Where to sit, sip and slow down in St. Louis.
Coffee shops, bakeries with seats and the places St. Louis lingers in over a cortado.
The flagship of St. Louis's best-known roaster, Kaldi's DeMun cafe overlooks Concordia Park and pours house-roasted coffee to a steady crowd of regulars.
Signature drink: House-roasted drip and seasonal espresso
Tip: Grab a patio table facing the park. The cardamom-spiced latte and the breakfast sandwiches are the regulars' order.
Kaldi's Central West End cafe sits on the busy West Pine and Euclid corner, a roomy spot for coffee and a pastry between gallery and boutique stops.
Signature drink: House-roasted espresso drinks
Tip: It gets busy mid-morning; the back room is quieter for laptop work. Euclid is best walked before or after.
Northwest roasts on site at its Central West End cafe and keeps a bustling counter with strong outdoor seating, a roaster-cafe for the laptop crowd.
Signature drink: Single-origin pour-overs
Tip: The patio is the prize on warm mornings. Ask which single origin is freshest off the roaster.
Sump built a national reputation roasting light, precise single-origin coffee in South City, served in a spare room that treats the cup seriously.
Signature drink: Light-roast filter coffee
Tip: This is a place to taste, not to camp; seating and outlets are limited by design. Try the filter flight.
Blueprint's Delmar cafe is the roaster's original home, a bright design-forward room serving precise filter coffee and espresso. A cornerstone of the Loop.
Signature drink: Filter coffee and seasonal espresso
Tip: The bar seating faces the brewing; ask the barista to talk you through the day's filter. Quieter on weekday mornings.
Comet pairs carefully pulled espresso with a serious in-house micro-bakery, so the pastry case is as much the draw as the cup. A small spot near the Garden.
Signature drink: Espresso and house-baked pastries
Tip: The kouign-amann and seasonal galettes sell out; come early. Limited seating, so plan for a quick stop.
Brothers Patrick and Spencer Clapp roast ethically sourced beans, many from their native Honduras, at this South City micro-roastery near Cherokee Street.
Signature drink: Honduran single-origin espresso
Tip: Ask after the Honduran lots the brothers source directly. The cafe is compact, so it is more a quick stop than a work session.
The Larson family roasts in house and runs a full breakfast and lunch kitchen at this Maplewood cafe, a hub that does coffee and a meal equally well.
Signature drink: House-roasted coffee and breakfast plates
Tip: It works as a full breakfast spot, not just coffee; the biscuits and the breakfast bowls are worth the visit. Plenty of seating for laptops.
A privately owned cafe and roastery on The Hill, Shaw's roasts in house using green coffees from the major growing regions, among the Italian groceries.
Signature drink: House-roasted espresso
Tip: Pair a cortado with a stroll through the Hill's groceries and bakeries. Roasts change; ask what is fresh.
A Cherokee Street fixture, The Mud House pairs a rotating multi-roaster coffee program with hearty brunch plates in a brick room full of antiques.
Signature drink: Multi-roaster espresso and lattes
Tip: Brunch gets a line at weekends; weekday mornings are calmer for laptop work. The biscuits and the breakfast platters are the orders.
A family-friendly Tower Grove South corner cafe, Hartford serves coffee, breakfast and lunch to a neighbourhood crowd, with a play nook for kids.
Signature drink: Drip coffee and breakfast plates
Tip: The back has a kids' nook, so it is busy with families at weekends. Weekday afternoons are best for a quiet work session.
A longtime LGBTQ-friendly anchor across from Tower Grove Park, Mokabe's pours coffee and runs an all-day vegetarian-leaning brunch in a welcoming room.
Signature drink: Coffee and all-day vegetarian brunch
Tip: The vegan and vegetarian brunch runs all day, which is rare in the city. It fills after the Saturday farmers market.
A downtown Maplewood cafe with a strong vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free bent, Foundation Grounds pours coffee and serves a wholesome all-day menu.
Signature drink: Coffee and vegetarian-friendly cafe plates
Tip: Most drinks make easily vegan with the soy and almond options. The brunch plates are the reason regulars linger.
Mauhaus pairs La Cosecha coffee and in-house cookies with a lounge of adoptable cats in Maplewood, the metro's cat cafe. The coffee is the side dish.
Signature drink: La Cosecha coffee with adoptable cats
Tip: The cat lounge is timed and ticketed separately from the coffee bar; book ahead at weekends. The cookies are baked in house.
A century-old house turned all-day breakfast cafe, Benton Park Cafe pours coffee and plates hearty brunch in a warren of cosy rooms. A south-side staple.
Signature drink: Coffee and all-day breakfast
Tip: The hash and the breakfast burritos are the orders. Weekend mornings draw a wait, so go early.
Union Loafers bakes naturally leavened bread and runs a lunchtime cafe of sandwiches and pizza in Botanical Heights, a James Beard-nominated bakery.
Signature drink: Espresso, sandwiches and naturally leavened bread
Tip: The bread sells out, so come early for a loaf. The Tuesday-through-Saturday pizza nights are a separate, popular service.
Park Avenue Coffee pairs espresso with more than 70 varieties of gooey butter cake, the St. Louis dessert it is best known for. Visit the Lafayette original.
Signature drink: Coffee and gooey butter cake
Tip: The Mom's Traditional gooey butter cake is the order, named best in town by Food Network. Boxes travel well as gifts.
Mike Randolph's Clayton breakfast room marries a focused coffee programme with made-from-scratch brunch, from blueberry pancakes to the flat-iron hash.
Signature drink: Espresso and made-from-scratch brunch
Tip: Ask for the pancakes cooked in bacon fat, a house move. Weekend waits are long, so put your name down and walk Clayton.
The second Comet sits on Oakland near The Hill, pulling the same espresso and baking the same micro-bakery pastries. Handy near Forest Park's south edge.
Signature drink: Espresso and laminated pastries
Tip: Same kouign-amann and galettes as Shaw Boulevard; both sell out by midday. Best for a takeaway cup and a pastry.
Blueprint's south-side cafe on Watson brings the roaster's precise filter and espresso to St. Louis Hills, a calm bright room for the neighbourhood crowd.
Signature drink: Filter coffee and espresso
Tip: Quieter than the Delmar flagship and easier for a laptop session. Ask about the rotating single origins.
St. Louis's English tea room pours dozens of loose-leaf teas and serves a proper afternoon tea with scones and savouries. A change from the espresso bars.
Signature drink: Loose-leaf tea and English breakfast service
Tip: Book ahead for the full afternoon tea service; walk-ins are welcome for a pot and a scone. The tea selection runs deep.
Rockwell's open-air pavilion in Francis Park pours Goshen Coffee by day and Rockwell craft beer with tavern pizza by evening. A rare park beer garden.
Signature drink: Goshen Coffee by day, craft beer by evening
Tip: Mornings are for coffee and the park; afternoons and evenings for beer and pizza. It is seasonal and weather-dependent.
Sump moved its roasting to Old North, where the production roastery doubles as a retail and tasting space for its light single-origin coffees.
Signature drink: Light-roast filter and retail beans
Tip: This is a roastery-first space, so check hours before going for a sit-down cup. Best for buying fresh-roasted bags.