Tea has long been at the heart of Kazakhstani culture and remains a symbol of hospitality and respect. I drank a lot of tea while there, but I was also excited to explore Almaty's specialty coffee scene. I sampled everything from single-origin pourovers to signature drinks featuring local ingredients. And even a camelccino!
I spent five days in Almaty, Kazakhstan's biggest city and visited 12 different specialty coffee shops while in town. Almost all of the coffee I drank was roasted in Kazakhstan. Logistically, this makes sense: Kazakhstan is a vast country and is the world's largest landlocked country.
I paid by credit card/contactless at all of these venues, and staff at most of them spoke some English, for which I was very grateful! Most have English menus, but I sometimes needed Google Translate for flavour profiles. I have lots of photos like this one!
Special thanks to Zhaslan, who recommended several of the cafes I visited, and to Peter for connecting us!
Almaty Specialty Coffee Shops
* Born Brave Coffee Roasters
I visited Born Brave's spacious and sunny coffee shop while exploring Almaty's Golden Quarter. While there, I met the lovely Aigerim, who gave me some tips for coffee spots in Tashkent, and El'mira, who brewed me an excellent pourover.
There were seven coffees on the seasonal menu and the anaerobic natural Ethiopian coffee I tried was delicious, with orange and tropical fruit notes. They also have an awesome collection of rare and special coffees in their freezer; I wish I'd been able to come back and try one!
Born Brave is also a good place to stock up on beans: they have a wide selection on offer, from various origins. I definitely regretted the need to keep my suitcase light for my flight to Uzbekistan.
Born Brave is located at 37 Shevchenko Street. Instagram.
Coffee Roots
If you love coffee and pizza, you should head to Coffee Roots while in Almaty because they share their space with Make Love Pizza. I'd already eaten lunch so I settled for coffee, but settling is really underselling it because I really enjoyed the anaerobic natural Colombian coffee I ordered.
Brewed in the V60, it tasted super-juicy, especially as the coffee cooled. And yes, Almaty coffee shops often have coffees with experimental processing — perfect for people like me! The cafe itself is bright and colourful and the retail bags of coffee had gorgeous duochrome packaging.
Coffee Roots is located at 138 Bogenbai Batyr Street. Instagram.
* Coffee Shop by Massimo Coffee Roasters
You can find coffee from Massimo Coffee Roasters at various cafes around Almaty but I wanted to go to the mothership. Located on the south side of the city centre, it has beautiful, minimalist interiors that make you feel like you've crept into a secret cavern to enjoy your coffee.
The coffee menu is just as impressive. They had 10 different coffees available at the brew bar and after chatting with Aruzhan, I opted for a washed coffee from Kenya. The careful hand-brew brought out intense winey, blackcurrant flavours. By the time I'd finished, I was sad to be leaving my cosy spot.
Massimo Coffee Roasters is located at 77 Kurmangazy Street. Website. Instagram.
Fika
I visited Fika during my Golden Quarter walking tour: my guide Antonina mentioned that the stunning interiors were created by the architects at female-led NAAW Studio.
Several friends enjoyed brunch and dinner at Fika. I was only able to sample the pastries — the cakes looked beautiful but the sausage roll I tried was easier to eat on the go, and tasted great! I also had a cortado, which was very well brewed.
Fika is located at 104 Kabanbay Batyr Street. Instagram.
Flask
I arrived in Almaty at 4 am, having had no sleep on my overnight flight from Istanbul. After a nap at my hotel, I was raring to go but coffee was definitely needed before my walking tour. Luckily, one of Flask's locations was on my way to the meeting point.
Flask roasts its own coffee and there were several different coffees available on espresso and filter coffee. I ordered a cortado, which was nicely brewed. I also thought I was ordering one of the single-use drip coffee packs they had on the counter but I ended up with a pourover instead.
These are problems I like to have! The filter coffee was an anaerobic natural from Colombia and it was lovely: the perfect companion on my walk around the Golden Quarter! And if you're feeling peckish, there's a fried chicken restaurant on site!
Flask is located at 54 Kurmangazy Street (and other locations). Instagram.
Julius Specialty Coffee
Petite but perfectly formed, Julius's Kabanbay Batyr Street location is ideal for a caffeinated stroll along Panfilov Street. There are a few seats inside too and more outside on the terrace.
As it was standing-room only on my visit on a Sunday afternoon, I got my coffee to go in my KeepCup. I had a very fine cortado, brewed with a coffee from Massimo (they also had coffees from Coffee Roots and Yuki). They also serve very tempting-looking pastries.
Julius is located at 83 Kabanbay Batyr Street (and other locations). Instagram.
Probarista
I needed Yandex Maps to track down Probarista, which is located down a small passage just off Panfilov Street. There's a barista training centre and a cafe next door: you'll know you've arrived when you spot the cool coffee-themed mural from Aleksandra Kalacheva.
The small coffee shop has several tables inside, with a few more in the courtyard outside. I had a cortado, prepared with a blend of Brazilian and Ethiopian coffees, which tasted sweet and smooth. They also have a wide range of retail bags of coffee beans, as well as brewing kit and merch.
Probarista is located at 92/63 Panfilov Street. Instagram.
Solid Coffee
Located on the ground floor of Almaty Hotel, Solid Coffee combines specialty coffee and Japanese comfort food in an attractive, arty space.
As well as the usual espresso-based coffees, Solid serves an interesting mix of signature drinks. I opted for the espresso soda, which is like an espresso tonic but with flavoured soda instead of the tonic. The strawberry soda I chose worked very well with the coffee, making for a refreshing drink.
I also ordered the beef sando special from the food menu, which was tasty and filing.
Solid Coffee is located at 85 Kabanbay Batyr Street. Instagram.
* Tereze
Tereze was another recommendation from my Walking Almaty guide Antonina. The cafe is located inside a 1950s apartment building and the beautiful interiors were created by NAAW Studio (the female-led architecture firm that also designed Fika).
Once inside, you feel like you're visiting the apartment of a particularly stylish friend. I loved the colourful décor and cosy nooks: you can see why it also works very well as a cultural events space.
As for the coffee, I decided to try one of their signature drinks: an espresso tonic with pomegranate and almond. The espresso was from Cosmic Garden and the flavours were perfectly balanced; my drink also paired well with the cardamon bun I ordered.
Tereze is located at 60 Zhibek Zholy Street. Instagram.
Urban Yurt Coffee Shop
I didn't know my second Almaty hotel, Urban Yurt, had its own coffee shop on the ground floor, although the hotel was so well-equipped it shouldn't have surprised me! I stopped by for a cortado a couple of times during my stay and both coffees were expertly brewed.
There are a few seats outside the hotel and a larger seating area on the mezzanine level.
Urban Yurt is located at 64/84 Panfilov Street. Instagram.
Voronka Specialty Coffee
A short walk from my first hotel, D'Rami, Voronka occupies a large and cosy cafe space on the south of the city centre. They serve breakfast and lunch, and sell bags of their own beans, along with coffees from other local roasters like Born Brave and Serikov.
While my cortado didn't come with latte art, it tasted great. With the help of Google Translate, I worked out that it was a washed Ethiopian coffee roasted by Born Brave, with white grape and peach flavours, an ideal complement to my banana bread.
Voronka is located at 160 Zheltoksan Street. Instagram.
Bonus: Tasting a camel-milk cappuccino
Check out my other Central Asia travel guides: Almaty city guide, Charyn Canyon & Kolkay, Tashkent city guide, Tashkent specialty coffee guide, Khiva guide, Bukhara guide, Samarkand guide, 10 days in Uzbekistan guide, packing for two weeks in Central Asia.
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