While spending a long weekend in Riga last month, I took the opportunity to check out some of the Latvian capital's many excellent specialty coffee shops. Most of the cafés I visited were located in the Art Nouveau district, although there are also some good options in the Old Town. Sadly, Easter Monday closures meant I didn't make it to all of the venues on my list, but read on to discover my favourite Riga coffee spots.
Kalve Espresso Room
Kalve Coffee Roasters have been roasting specialty coffee in Riga for over eight years and they now run four Espresso Rooms, plus a 'Living Room' and a 'Mini-Market' in the city. I visited two of their locations during my visit and both were beautifully designed and served impeccably brewed coffee.
I first stopped by Espresso Room No 4, on the ground floor of the Radisson Old Town Riga Hotel. Located on Zigfrīda Annas Meierovica Boulevard, the location is very handy for the Old Town and Bastejkalna Park. The décor is minimal, with a stunning marble coffee bar taking centre stage. There are a few small tables, as well as stools placed by the windows.
I ordered a cortado, which was brewed with Kalve's signature Marmalade espresso. The coffee tasted great, the jammy notes coming through nicely with a little milk. Sadly, I'd already eaten breakfast at my hotel so I had to pass on the delicious-looking cakes and pastries on offer. They also sell a wide range of Kalve coffees and other products.
Espresso Room No 2 was Kalve's closest location to my hotel but because I knew I wanted to try one of their hand-brewed filter coffees, I only visited on my last day when I had more time. The petite but perfectly formed café on Baznicas Street is absolutely gorgeous. At its heart is a brass counter and brew bar, behind which is a cute wall display featuring colourful tins of different Kalve coffees. Most of one wall is taken up with a vibrant, blue-accented painting by a local artist.
One of the friendly baristas helped me to choose a coffee for my pourover: I opted for a washed Ethiopian Chelbesa. Brewed through the Origami Brewer, it had delicious floral and apricot notes, especially as the coffee cooled.
The baristas also helped me pick out a bag of coffee beans to take home. I chose the Rwandan Shyira, a naturally processed coffee and have been enjoying brewing it in my V60: The raspberry and jelly candy flavours come through really strongly.
Kalve Espresso Room is located at Zigfrīda Annas Meierovica bulvāris 10, Baznīcas iela 13 and other locations. Website. Instagram.
Miit Coffee
I happened upon Miit Coffee while taking a walk around Riga's Art Nouveau district. The cosy café is a lovely place to sit and enjoy a coffee — or brunch — with lots of comfortable seating and colourful art on the walls.
They serve both espresso-based drinks and single-origin pourover coffee, as well as cakes, pastries and an extensive breakfast and lunch menu. On the brew bar, Miit were featuring coffees from Latvian roaster Tiny Giant (check out their quirky purple branding!) and Berlin-based Five Elephant. I'd have liked to try a coffee from the former but the natural Guatemalan Five Elephant coffee on offer was more my cup of, er, coffee.
I took a seat at the window and I could tell I was going to like my coffee as soon as I could smell its juicy, tropical fruit aromas. It tasted just as good!
Miit Coffee is located at Lāčplēša iela 10. Website. Instagram.
Mīkla Bakery
The one downside to having an extensive breakfast buffet included in my hotel rate was that I didn't get to try so many pastries and cakes elsewhere in Riga. But I made amends by stopping by Mīkla Bakery, in the Art Nouveau district, for dessert and coffee on my final day in the city.
The café has a minimalist look, with a long white counter topped with a dazzling array of delicious pastries, cakes and sweet treats. It was hard to choose just one but I ended up going for a raspberry and white chocolate cake, which looked beautiful and tasted even better. It was a perfect complement to my cortado, which was brewed with Kalve's Marmalade espresso.
I nabbed a seat at one of the small tables inside — next to pet the budgerigars! — but if it's a nice day, the tables outside in the courtyard are also lovely. There's another location inside the Grand Hotel Kempinski, near the Latvian National Opera.
Mīkla Bakery is located at Lāčplēša iela 10. Instagram.
Rocket Bean
Rocket Bean is a Latvian specialty coffee roaster with five cafés in Riga, as well as coffee shops in Tallinn (Estonia) and Vilnius (Lithuania). I visited two of their locations during my visit, starting with the bright and spacious café on Raiņa bulvāris. It was only a couple of minutes' walk from my hotel and it's right next to Bastejkalna Park and the Freedom Monument, which you can see from the window seats.
As I entered the coffee shop on my first morning in Riga, I eyed up the large selection of pastries and cakes at the counter (once again, I'd — sadly — already breakfasted). I placed my order and then wandered through to the back section of the café, where there's plenty of seating. As I was at Rocket Bean, I couldn't resist taking a seat underneath the neon rocket sign on the wall.
My coffee — a cortado brewed with the house espresso — tasted great. They also sell a wide variety of retail coffees, some of which (like the 74-hour dry anaerobic fermentation coffee produced by Jairo Arcila in Colombia) sounded superb.
Later on the same day, I was in need of more coffee and came across Rocket Bean's Blaumaņa iela coffee shop, near the Galleria Riga shopping centre. As I was in a rush, I got my cortado to go but it was as well brewed as the one I'd enjoyed earlier in the day.
Rocket Bean is located at Raiņa bulvāris 11, Blaumaņa iela 10 and other locations. Website. Instagram.
Strada Coffee Bar
There aren't very many specialty coffee shops in Riga's Old Town, so I was glad to find Strada after my visit to Riga's Central Market. Located a stone's throw from St Peter's Church, the coffee shop is a relaxed and cosy spot for a coffee break.
Strada had a lot of different single-origin coffees available on the pourover brew bar, but I was a little pressed for time and opted for a cortado instead. It was nicely brewed, with a sweet, smooth taste. The staff were friendly and welcoming, and the café has lots of seating inside, as well as a covered seating section on the street outside.
Strada Coffee Bar is located at Jāņa iela 5. Website. Instagram.
Check out my Riga long weekend guide for my recommendations for things to do and see, and places to eat, drink, shop and stay in the Latvian capital.
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