Four Barrel Coffee in San Francisco is the Valencia Street roaster cafe with a long Probat showroom in back and a no-laptops, no-wifi policy out front.
Tip: No wifi by design; bring a book or a friend, not a screen.
Address: 375 Valencia Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Linea Caffe in San Francisco is Andrew Barnett's two-counter Mission espresso bar, with a 5-second pull style that won out before the third wave settled.
Signature drink: Espresso
Tip: Stand-up service only at the 18th Street counter; ask for the macchiato instead of a cortado.
Caffe Trieste in San Francisco is the North Beach Italian cafe that has poured cappuccino at Vallejo and Grant since 1956, with Saturday opera on the back wall.
Signature drink: Cappuccino
Tip: Saturday at 13:00 for the opera and accordion set; arrive at 12:30 for a seat in the back room.
The Buena Vista Cafe in San Francisco is the Hyde Street corner where Jack Koeppler perfected the American Irish coffee in 1952, pouring 2,000 of them a day still.
Signature drink: Irish coffee
Tip: Sit at the long bar to watch the line of pre-warmed glasses come down; the back tables miss the show.
Sightglass Coffee in San Francisco is the Morris brothers' SoMa roastery cafe, with a mezzanine over the rooftop roaster and the Owl's Howl espresso on tap.
Signature drink: Owl's Howl espresso
Tip: The 7th Street flagship is the best room; the Mission and Ferry Building outposts are quicker but smaller.
Ritual Coffee Roasters in San Francisco is one of the city's third-wave originals, with the Valencia Street flagship and a sharp single-origin filter programme.
Signature drink: Single-origin filter
Tip: The cortado is the regular order; the Hayes Valley kiosk has the fastest line on a weekend.
Saint Frank in San Francisco is the Russian Hill cafe and roastery known for direct-trade Latin American lots and a quietly precise cortado.
Signature drink: Cortado
Tip: The pour-over flight rotates weekly; ask for the lightest lot if you want to taste origin clearly.
