My Favourite Specialty Coffee Shops in NYC (Updated 2026)

For over two decades, I've visited New York regularly and writing about the city's now-booming specialty coffee scene. Although I've made various neighbourhood coffee guides, my last overall NYC coffee guide was published in 2013. As both the coffee scene and my own tastes have evolved considerably, I knew another top ten wouldn't cut it. Instead, I created a specialty coffee map, which now includes almost 100 coffee shops and cafés throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn, from Abraço to Zibetto.

Long Weekend in New York City: Bex's Guide

From secret speakeasies and SoHo shops, to magnificent museums and Brooklyn Bridge, New York City is as good at alliteration as bucket-list items. Since I fell in love with the city during the sweltering summer of 1995, I’ve returned once or twice a year. These trips tare usually about four or five days, but it’s possible to pack a lot in even on short visits. You might not make it to all the major sights and museums, but you’ve got to save something for next time, right?

The NYC Caffeine Chronicles: Greenpoint Coffee Guide

I have spent a lot of time in the Brooklyn neighbourhood of Williamsburg over the years, including a recent visit to a couple of specialty coffee shops there, but I hadn't really scratched the surface on its northern neighbour, Greenpoint, apart from to go to Five Leaves, a restaurant on the Greenpoint–Williamsburg borders. When carrying out some coffee research for my most recent trip to New York, I realised that there were several Greenpoint coffee spots worth a visit and I spent a happy — and caffeinated — morning there.

I took the East River Ferry from the Financial District all the way up to the India Street docks (which provides the above vista of the Manhattan skyline), a fast 15-minute journey, which brought me within a five-minute walk of the coffee.

Homecoming

I started my tour at Homecoming, which is located in the "middle-west" of Greenpoint on one of the main north–south drags, Franklin Street. I was attracted both by the prospect of coffee from San Francisco roaster Sightglass (a favourite of mine) and by the fact that Homecoming is a flower shop and lifestyle boutique as well as a coffee shop. The interiors are beautiful, the colourful flowers setting off the minimalist white tiling and light wood flooring.

The exchange rate being what it is, I allowed myself only to browse the shop briefly, before taking a seat at the little bench by the door. The cortado I ordered ($4) was really nice, the barista was lovely and there was a very calming, relaxed ambiance in the cafe during my visit. There are no filter coffee options, although there is a cold brew on the menu, if that's your thing.

116 Franklin Street nr Greenpoint Ave. Website. Instagram.

Búðin (CLOSED)

As someone who loves to spend time in Nordic cities, I was naturally drawn to the Nordic-influenced Búðin, which is half a block east of Homecoming on Greenpoint Avenue. The cafe has minimalist, industrial-chic décor: blue walls, metal stools and pendant lights. There is plenty of seating around the three sides of the large, central coffee bar and both smaller and communal tables along the side and in the back.

Búðin often offers coffees from Sweden, Norway and Iceland, and there were two coffees from the Swedish Drop Coffee available as a pourover: an El Salvador variety and a Gichathaini from Kenya ($5), which is the one I chose. The pourover was excellent, with the slightly tart and fruity notes of the Gichathaini coming through very nicely. There were quite a few MacBookers on a Monday morning, but with its welcoming, knowledgable baristas and warm atmosphere, Búðin remains a great place to enjoy top-notch coffee.

114 Greenpoint Avenue bet. Franklin St. & Manhattan Ave. CLOSED


Champion Coffee (CLOSED)

I saw a lot of beautiful espresso machines on this New York trip but one of the loveliest was the cerulean La Marzocco in Champion's Manhattan Avenue coffee bar. In fact, everything Champion do is beautifully designed, from the gallery wall next to the coffee bar to the retail bags of coffee beans. There is plenty of seating in the small-ish cafe and I read that there is also a lovely back garden but it was much too cold a day for that.

I had hoped to sample a hand-brewed filter coffee, but the coffee menu focuses on espresso-based drinks and so I stuck to my usual cortado ($3.75), which was on the long side but tasted nice. I already had lunch plans and couldn't sample the tempting selection of sandwiches.

1107 Manhattan Avenue nr Clay St. CLOSED


Upright Coffee

So petite that only a few people can stand inside at one time, I can confirm that Upright Coffee, further south down Manhattan Avenue from Champion, is indeed appropriately named. There are a couple of stools where you can perch by the front window watching the denizens of Greenpoint walk past but otherwise, Upright is standing room only (and not much of that).

Upright roast their own coffee and the coffee menu was, once again, espresso-based. If I had known pourovers were a rare breed in Greenpoint, I might not have loaded up on two cortados back in Manhattan! The cortado I ordered was also on the long side — the price was the same as for a latte and it probably approached a latte in volume. The coffee, though, was rich and smooth and worked well as a (not-so-)cortado.

860 Manhattan Avenue #2 nr Milton St. Website.


On my list for next time:

Odd Fox Coffee (984 Manhattan Avenue nr Huron St.). Website. When I was in Greenpoint — just last week — the airplane-themed Propeller Coffee occupied the shop at 984 Manhattan Avenue. I didn't have time to go in but it has now permanently closed and Odd Fox is its replacement.

Sweetleaf Coffee (159 Freeman Street nr Manhattan Ave.). Instagram. They also have coffee shops in Long Island City and Williamsburg.

Variety Coffee Roasters (145 Driggs Avenue nr Russell St.). Website. Instagram.

NYC III:Skyline Views, Greenpoint Gallivanting and a Musical Interlude

Monday was my last free day in New York before heading into our office and happily, the weather had improved greatly after Sunday's sleety wash-out. I donned my running kit and did another loop to Brooklyn via Manhattan Bridge and back over Brooklyn Bridge.

I stopped for coffee at the hard-to-find (but well worth seeking out) Voyager Espresso, which is located inside Fulton Street subway station (enter through John Street near Gold, and no, you don't need to buy a subway ticket). Voyager is rather futuristic looking with a circular central coffee bar and a stripped down menu: black, white or filter. I had an excellent Costa Rican piccolo and some avocado toast, and then headed back up to my hotel to pack and change.

After taking my suitcase to my work-organised hotel —the Hilton DoubleTree, a ten-minute walk from the Gild Hall on Stone Street — I went straight back out to catch the East River Ferry to Greenpoint. I've taken the ferry a few times before, mainly during the summer to get between Williamsburg and Lower Manhattan. It's fast, cheap ($4 for a single in winter) and offers a great view of the Manhattan skyline and all three bridges. 

The ferries run less frequently in the winter, however, and as I had just missed one, I decided to kill some time at Cafe Grumpy's new Financial District branch, which, conveniently enough, opened up right next to my hotel earlier this month. I had a very good piccolo, admired the sexy orange Synesso espresso machine, chatted with the friendly barista about the Reykjavik coffee scene (we'd both visited recently) and then went to catch the ferry.

The ride to Greenpoint, the northernmost stop on the Brooklyn side, takes only about 15 minutes from Pier 11. I was disappointed when I was told that, unlike in the summer, I couldn't stand outside, but when I stepped off the boat in Greenpoint into the incredibly strong wind, I began to understand. The East River Ferry docks in Williamsburg and Greenpoint are also great places to capture a clear shot of the Manhattan skyline, but after snapping a few quick shots, I sought shelter in-land.

I spent the next few hours exploring some of the specialty coffee shops of Greenpoint, which will be the subject of a future blog post. For now, though, here's a preview of one of my favourites: the Nordic-influenced Búðin (CLOSED).

My Greenpoint coffee tour ended near the northern end of Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg, so I spent some time window shopping there before schlepping over to for lunch Bushwick (note: it's a very quick subway ride on the L train, but I usually prefer to walk). 

My destination was fabled pizzeria Roberta's, which I tried to visit with my family in October, but there was a two-and-a-half hour queue. There was no queue at all at 2 pm on a wintry Monday and I took a seat at one of the tables near the wood-fired pizza oven. 

The server started talking about the day's special — some kind of pimped-up porridge — but the margherita pizza was always going to be the only option. It was really good with creamy buffalo mozzarella and a thin but chewy base. I still don't think I'd wait for two-and-a-half hours for it, but it was delicious.

By this point, I had already had six coffees and didn't really need another but I was so close to Blue Bottle's new Bushwick roastery and cafe that it would have been rude not to stop by. I bought a bag of beans, which have been making my suitcase smell delicious. I can't wait to try it.

Back in the Financial District, the sun was starting to set over Liberty Island and I just had time to drop off my shopping at my hotel before meeting some colleagues at The Growler, a cosy gastropub on Stone Street. I had a lovely gin- and tea-based cocktail and a good burger with bacon marmalade. After dinner, I ended up walking all the way up to Madison Square Park to get a good view of the Empire State Building, which was all lit up in purple and yellow to celebrate the Westminster Kennel Club dog show.

To vary my morning running, I decided to jog through Battery Park and up the West Side to Canal Street before looping back towards my hotel. It was extremely cold but at least the wind had died down. I soon warmed up after an El Salvador pourover and some banana-nut bread from Cafe Grumpy. It was then time to head into the office, where I was met with an incredible view both of the Manhattan skyline and Liberty Island from the 46th floor. By golden hour, the views were even more impressive.

After work, one of my co-workers and I decided to go for Galentine's Day cocktails at BlackTail (CLOSED), a cool Cuban-themed bar in Battery Park (coincidentally, BlackTail popped up in London for three days last week). The cocktails were spectacular, although rather more potent than I was expecting. They also give you an "amuse-bouche" mini daiquiri as a palate cleanser; how wonderful! We sat at the bar so that we could watch the expert bar-tenders work their magic. The drinks weren't cheap but it was a great experience.

I then had a date with Le Poisson Rouge, a music and cabaret venue in Greenwich Village, where, for three days only, they were putting on Cruel Intentions: The Musical. Cruel Intentions is a guilty pleasure of mine: it's one of my favourite trashy '90s movies and I watched it so many times that I used to be able to quote large portions of the dialogue. 

It's also a very New Yorky film and I've been to a few of the filming locations, including the Ukrainian Cultural Center on the Upper East Side, which serves as the Valmont house. The musical was great fun, anyway, with plenty of bonus '90s songs (from N-Sync and Natalie Imbruglia, to Meredith Brooks and TLC) thrown in to complement the classics from the soundtrack (Placebo, Counting Crows and The Cardigans, to name but three). I've seen a lot of shows in New York over the years, including some on Broadway, but this was one of the most fun experiences.

On Wednesday morning, I checked out of my hotel and then went for breakfast at Bluestone Lane's second FiDi location on Water Street. The cafe is Instagram-ready with Bluestone Lane's signature white espresso machine, teal and green accents, and foliage. My piccolo and avocado toast were both very good too. 

After something of a caffeine crisis on Tuesday afternoon (there was no good coffee in my building), I decided to get in another coffee before going into the office and went back to Black Fox Coffee on Pine Street, this time trying a pourover (an Ethiopian Kayon from 49th Parallel, which was one of the best pourovers I've had in the past few months). After a morning of meetings, I just had time to grab a bagel from Leo's (tasty and huge) before catching the subway to Penn Station for the next part of my trip.

The NYC Caffeine Chronicles: 2016 Brooklyn Update

I've spent a lot of time in Brooklyn over the years, but with the exception of the original Café Grumpy and Williamsburg Toby's Estate, I haven't made many inroads into the borough's specialty coffee scene. I'm not quite sure why — possibly because by the time I make it over (or under) the river, it's often cocktail hour — but on my most recent trip, I started to make amends and spent half a day visiting four coffee bars. There were a couple more on my list but neither time nor my caffeine intake (I'd made the rookie error of drinking three coffees back in Manhattan) were on my side.

Devociòn (Williamsburg)

As with many visitors to New York, Williamsburg is the Brooklyn neighbourhood with which I am most familiar, so I'll start with the two cafés I visited there, although chronologically speaking, Williamsburg was at the end of my self-guided walking tour. I had heard many good things about the NYC branch of Colombian roaster Devociòn and I'm pleased to say that the rumours were true!

On a cold but sunny autumn afternoon, the large central sitting area was bathed in light from the giant skylight and there was a bustling, vibrant atmosphere. The décor is rustic — comfy leather sofas, brick walls and cheerful pops of bright yellow, from the cups to the wall art and parasols. The coffee menu was extensive, with three varieties of coffee served as a pourover (plus a 'special edition'), as well as the usual espresso-based drinks and several cold drinks served on tap (sparkling cascara, for instance). 

Although I really wanted to try a pourover, I had just had two filter coffees in Bushwick, and so stuck to a cortado, which was strong and smooth. The barista apologised for not having a glass to serve it in, but I rather liked my sunny yellow cup. Devociòn also serves some great-looking sandwiches, and although it's busy, there are plenty of seats so you should find a spot to sit.

Devociòn is located at 69 Grand Ave nr Wyithe. Instagram.


Sweatshop (Williamsburg) (CLOSED)

A Sydney-based coffee-loving friend of mine recommended Sweatshop, which is just a few blocks east of Devociòn, a couple of years ago and I've been wanting to visit the espresso bar/lifestyle store/creative space ever since. The first thing to note is that: there is a place called The Sweatshop in Bushwick (just down the block from City of Saints, in fact) that also describes itself as a creative studio of sorts — it is, however, a music recording studio/rehearsal space and they don't serve coffee!

As soon as I saw the, "Don't look for love, look for coffee," sign outside, I knew I had come to the right place. Inside, Sweatshop is small with just a couple of small, mirrored tables and a larger communal table, with more seating out front. The interiors are minimalist: a sleek black La Marzocco sits on a black counter; the menu — which is in Australian — is also monochrome and the Acme cups are slate grey. 

After so many cortados, which, in the US sense of the word, tend to be a little too long for my taste, it was nice to have the option to order a shorter piccolo. From the menu, I also learned some new Aussie coffee terminology: esky (iced coffee), sparky (espresso tonic) and magic (flat white). If you need more guidance, there is a handy chart in the bathroom (or you could just ask!).

The coffee is from Counter Culture and piccolo was excellent: one of the best espresso-based drinks I had on this trip, with great latte art and a smooth but flavoursome taste. You can also order a doughnut (I had a lavender-vanilla one, which was delicious), "brekkie biscuits" or "jaffles", if you are so inclined. You can also shop from the small but well-curated selection of lifestyle goods on sale — most of which are similarly monochrome. Sweatshop is based in the heart of Williamsburg so there is really no excuse not to stop by if you're in the neighbourhood.

Sweatshop is located at 232 Metropolitan Ave bet. Bedford & Driggs. CLOSED


City of Saints Roastery (Bushwick)

It's about a two-mile walk from Williamsburg to Bushwick, where the other coffee spots on my tour are located. If you don't fancy walking, it's a short ride on the L subway line, but I prefer to explore new neighbourhoods on foot. I didn't have time to stop for coffee at the City of Saints Roastery, which is in an industrial area in the north of Bushwick, but I happened to pass it on my walk so I peeked inside. 

I had already had a pourover at City of Saints' Manhattan coffee bar and bought a bag of beans, so it was nice to see where the roasting magic happens. There aren't very many other points of interest nearby (save the aforementioned music studio The Sweatshop) — in some ways, it reminded me of some of the arches of my own London neighbourhood, Bermondsey.

City of Saints' roastery is located at 297 Meserole St bet. Waterbury & Bogart. Twitter. Instagram.

Supercrown Coffee Roasters (Bushwick) (CLOSED)

I visited many coffee bars and cafés on my most recent trip to New York, but Supercrown in Bushwick might well be my favourite new discovery. As soon as I saw the coffee bar set-up on their Instagram — royal blue espresso machine and hot pink grinders — I knew that it was my kind of place and indeed, they seem to like vibrant colours as much as I do.

Supercrown's coffee bar is large and spacious, although only has a few high tables (with super-comfy, velvet-covered stools) for drinking in. The café is very bright, thanks in part to the stark white walls, accented with wooden furniture. The roaster — also bright pink — occupies a large open space at the back. Meanwhile, the colourful retail bags of coffee beans sit like a rainbow on the shelves near the door.

The pourover menu at Supercrown is particularly extensive: there were seven coffee varieties available and in the end, I went with the barista's recommendation of a Ruarai coffee from Kenya (Ruarai is obviously producing some great coffee at the moment, as I also had a Ruarai variety at City of Saints). 

The coffee tasted fantastic, the slightly sharp fruity notes contrasting nicely with the subtler sweeter flavours. On the tray, the barista placed a card containing information about the coffee, which is *great* for bloggers like me, who otherwise end up taking endless photos of menus and bags of means or scribble down notes. The orangey-yellow beans pictured above are the Ruarai.

If I didn't have two more coffee bars on my list for the afternoon, I would have liked to try the Ruarai as a single-origin espresso or to try the one and one (a split double-shot: one espresso and one mac). Supercrown is also famous for its coffee milkshakes and the maple lattes are also supposed to be good, but neither is really my thing. 

The breakfast sandwiches, however, sounded great. With its relaxed ambience, knowledgeable baristas and great coffee, Supercrown is well worth the journey — even if that journey is all the way from London!

Supercrown is located at 8 Wilson Ave nr Noll. CLOSED


Walter's Coffee Roastery (Bushwick) CLOSED

When a Breaking Bad-themed coffee shop named Walter's Coffee Roastery opened in Istanbul last year, followed more recently by a second location in Bushwick, Brooklyn, I thought the premise was great. However, I also assumed that it sounded very gimmicky and that the coffee wouldn't be any good. As soon as I arrived at the Brooklyn café, though, my skepticism began to fall away: Walter's would be a great coffee spot even without the Breaking Bad connection.

Like Devociòn, Walter's is decorated with pops of bright yellow, which contrasts nicely with the clean — dare I say sterile? — walls. The menu is probably the most gimmicky thing there — a periodic table of coffee — but I loved it; what a wonderful idea. They had run out of the Japanese cold brew — more was brewing, so I went for a fruity Kenyan coffee, brewed through the Chemex.

The coffee took a little while to cool — perhaps I just noticed this because I was on a tight schedule — but was very flavoursome and full-bodied. As my surname begins with 'W', I also had designs on the mug, which didn't seem to be for sale, but I took only photos. The café itself is large and spacious with a few seats at the front, next to the coffee bar, and tables of various size in the larger back room and patio. 

The crowd was a mix of MacBook-toting locals and tourists, and the diverse menu at Walter's was clearly very carefully selected to please both crowds. But the staff clearly take great pride in the quality of their coffees, which they roast themselves, and they are knowledgeable and friendly whether you're a specialty coffee connoisseur or a Walter White fan.

Walter's is located at 65 Irving Ave @ Starr. CLOSED


You can also find out which Manhattan coffee bars I visited last month and read almost a decade of my New York coffee posts here.

NYC Part IV: Brooklyn Coffee Tour and Walking 42nd Street

My dad had an early appointment in Newark on Monday morning, so my mum and I went out for breakfast. It was a cool but sunny day and I was beginning to regret not running until I ordered breakfast at Jack's Wife Freda, a Middle-Eastern-influenced pair of cafés in Soho and the West Village. 

I'd tried to go for brunch before but the queue was too long. However, at 8:31 on a Monday morning, we were the first diners through the door; there wasn't an empty seat by the time we left. I had a cortado, made with Stumptown coffee, and the rosewater waffle with yoghurt and (giant) berries, which was delicious. We also shared a side of duck bacon. If I hadn't known it was duck bacon, I'm not sure I'd have guessed, but it did have a distinctive taste.

Afterwards, I walked up to Union Square to do a bit of shopping, stopping off on the way in Washington Square Park, where there was a lovely rainbow, and the gorgeous Washington Mews.

I hopped on an L train to Bergen Street, Brooklyn, for the first stop of my self-guided coffee tour. I will be writing about my latest New York coffee experiences separately, but — spoiler alert — the Brooklyn cafés I hit up were: Walter's (the Breaking Bad-themed coffee shop and roastery — CLOSED); Supercrown Coffee Roasters (CLOSED; whose royal blue espresso machine and hot pink hoppers might be my favourite coffee bar set-up yet); the lovely, sunny Colombian Devoción; and Sweatshop (CLOSED), a hip, Aussie spot with fab doughnuts.

After six coffees (including an early-morning cortado at Everyman) in about five hours, even I was in need of a break. I stopped for lunch at La Superior, a small but authentic Mexican restaurant in south Williamsburg. I tried a few tacos but the fried fish tacos were the best. I didn't have room for guacamole but it looked great.

I headed back to Manhattan and met up with my family for some photographs, including the obligatory red sunglasses shot, at the Rockefeller Center. The ice rink was already installed even though just three days earlier it had been 29 degrees Celsius!

We skipped the skating this time and instead went on a mini-oyster crawl, starting at Red Hook Lobster inside the awesome Urban Space food court on Vanderbilt Avenue, and ending up at the subterranean oyster bar in Grand Central Terminus. It's always fun to walk through Grand Central during rush hour and the oysters were pretty good. 

We had our main courses back downtown at an Italian restaurant called Il Mulino Prime, just opposite our hotel. My veal milanese was excellent but the rowdy atmosphere wasn't ideal for a Monday night family get-together.

I woke up on Tuesday morning to the best sunrise yet. I am already missing the amazing view of Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridge from my 15th floor room at the Soho Grand. I did another run along the waterfront, which was, I later found out, a great six-mile circuit.

This time I stopped for coffee at Ludlow Coffee Supply on Ludlow Street. The cortado and the banana-walnut muffin were both very good.

After packing up and checking out of the hotel, we caught the subway to 42nd Street to do a self-guided walking tour along the length of 42nd Street. There are, of course, great views of the Chrysler Building — probably my favourite New York building — and it's interesting to watch the character of the street change from the UN Building and Tudor City on the East Side, past Grand Central and Times Square, all the way over to Hell's Kitchen.

Our final lunch was at a family favourite of ours — Fanelli's Cafe, a real SoHo institution. It's very relaxed and characterful, and a great place for a burger and a beer or some good ol' comfort food. I just had time for a couple more coffee shops — to Happy Bones (CLOSED) on Broome Street and a return to the new Café Integral on Elizabeth Street.

Although I had to work on Wednesday afternoon, I did at least manage to get some sleep on the plane. Most of the time, I would rather take economy flights to several destinations than a single business class flight, but it was a real luxury to have a flat bed on the way back this time. We also managed to nab seats in the front row upstairs, so I was right next to the cockpit.

I know how lucky I am to have spent over five full days in New York, but I'm already missing the city. Fortunately, I am hoping to return for a few days in February ahead of a conference so I won't have to wait too long before I'm back.