21 cafe rooms in San Diego we have eaten in, sorted by editor score. All cuisines in San Diego | Cafe across every city.
San Diego's cafe culture is dense in North Park, where independent roasters and coffee bars cluster along University Avenue and the surrounding streets. Communal Coffee and Holy Matcha sit close together on University Avenue, with Dark Horse Coffee Roasters and James Coffee Co also in the neighborhood. Bird Rock Coffee Roasters is a respected name out in La Jolla, and Caffe Italia keeps a long-running Italian counter going in Little Italy.
Communal Coffee ★ 4.7
2335 University Ave, San Diego, CA 92104
Communal Coffee in San Diego is the University Avenue cafe and floral shop in North Park, a long bar with bouquets along one wall and Stumptown coffee.
Holy Matcha ★ 4.5
3118 University Ave, San Diego, CA 92104
Holy Matcha in San Diego is the North Park ceremonial-grade matcha cafe on University Avenue since 2017, the first dedicated matcha room in the city.
Bird Rock Coffee Roasters La Jolla ★ 4.8
5627 La Jolla Blvd, La Jolla, CA 92037
Bird Rock Coffee Roasters in La Jolla is Chuck Patton's coastal flagship on La Jolla Boulevard since 2006, the Roaster of the Year 2012 cafe.
Dark Horse Coffee Roasters ★ 4.7
3794 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104
Dark Horse Coffee Roasters in San Diego is the North Park direct-trade roastery and cafe on 30th Street, a tight grab-and-go counter with small-batch single.
Caffe Italia ★ 4.4
1704 India St, San Diego, CA 92101
Caffe Italia in San Diego is the Little Italy espresso bar on India Street since 1992, pulling Miscela d'Oro beans imported from Italy at La Pensione.
Tartine Coronado ★ 4.1
1106 1st St, Coronado, CA 92118
Tartine in Coronado is the long-running First Street European cafe and bistro near the Ferry Landing, with patio seating, pastries, sandwiches and an all-day.
Hob Nob Hill (cafe and bakery counter) ★ 4.0
2271 1st Ave, San Diego, CA 92101
Hob Nob Hill in San Diego is the Bankers Hill 1944 institution where the bakery counter opens at 6am, with fresh muffins, cakes and the long-running American.
Bread and Cie Cafe ★ 4.3
350 University Ave, San Diego, CA 92103
Bread and Cie in San Diego is the Hillcrest European bakery and cafe on University Avenue, a rustic stone-hearth bread room serving cafe drinks.
Sidecar Doughnuts and Coffee ★ 4.6
3435 Del Mar Heights Rd, Suite D7, San Diego, CA 92130
Sidecar Doughnuts and Coffee in San Diego is the Costa Mesa import in Del Mar Highlands Town Center, a small-batch doughnut counter rotating six monthly.
Lofty Coffee ★ 4.3
90 N Coast Hwy 101, Encinitas, CA 92024
Lofty Coffee in North County is the Encinitas Coast Highway roaster and cafe, a converted gas station with a wide patio and Lofty's direct-trade single.
Moniker General ★ 4.2
2860 Sims Rd, San Diego, CA 92106
Moniker General in San Diego is the Liberty Station coffee bar and retail shop on Sims Road, a barista-driven counter inside a converted naval-base building.
Snooze, an A.M. Eatery ★ 4.1
3940 5th Ave, San Diego, CA 92103
Snooze, an A.M. Eatery in San Diego is the Hillcrest pancake-flight breakfast room on Fifth Avenue, a Denver-import diner with rotating pancake plates.
Stella Jean's Ice Cream ★ 4.5
829 Garnet Ave, San Diego, CA 92109
Stella Jean's Ice Cream in San Diego is the Pop Pie Co. team's Pacific Beach scoop counter on Garnet Avenue, small-batch flavours with real ingredients.
Bird Rock Coffee Roasters ★ 4.6
la-jolla · 5627 La Jolla Blvd, La Jolla, CA 92037
Bird Rock Coffee Roasters in La Jolla, San Diego, the 2008 roastery that scoops cup-of-excellence lots from Ethiopia, Colombia and Burundi across eleven.
Dark Horse Coffee Roasters North Park ★ 4.4
north-park · 3794 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104
Dark Horse Coffee Roasters on 30th Street in North Park, San Diego, a small-batch roaster pouring espresso and pour-over with ten outposts across the city.
James Coffee Co North Park ★ 4.3
north-park · 4379 30th St Suite 1, San Diego, CA 92104
James Coffee on 30th Street in North Park, San Diego, the local roaster's longtime production roastery with a sit-down cafe while Little Italy rebuilds.
Communal Coffee ★ 4.2
north-park · 2335 University Ave, San Diego, CA 92104
Communal Coffee on University Avenue in North Park, San Diego, the flower-shop-meets-cafe that opened in 2016 and now anchors five neighborhood roaster.
Goldchild Coffee Roasters ★ 4.4
gaslamp-quarter · 240 Broadway, San Diego, CA 92101
Goldchild Coffee Roasters on Broadway in downtown San Diego, Jeff Rambo's small-batch single-origin roastery with a Brew Lab and Swedish cardamom buns.
Holsem Coffee ★ 4.2
north-park · 2911 University Ave, San Diego, CA 92104
Holsem Coffee on University Avenue in North Park, San Diego, the in-house roaster from Muna Farhat and Salpi Sleiman known for freeze-dried fruit latte.
Better Buzz Coffee Hillcrest ★ 4.0
hillcrest · 801 University Ave, San Diego, CA 92103
Better Buzz Coffee in Hillcrest, San Diego, the local chain's flagship roastery cafe with a vintage Probat roaster, cold-brew lab and a full espresso bar.
Lofty Coffee Encinitas ★ 4.3
north-county-coast · 90 N Coast Hwy 101, Encinitas, CA 92024
Lofty Coffee on Coast Highway 101 in Encinitas, north San Diego County, a specialty coffee roaster running two neighbouring cafes plus brunch service.