Coffee & Cafés
Where do you get serious specialty coffee in Mexico City?
Chiapas, Veracruz, and Oaxaca produce some of the most interesting coffee in the Americas. For years most of it was exported. In the last decade a serious specialty scene has grown up in CDMX around the beans that stay home.
Cardinal Casa de Café (Roma / Condesa)
The most rigorous of the local roasters. Multiple locations, but the original Roma space is the one to visit. Their single-origin Mexican lots rotate seasonally.
Buna (Roma / Juárez)
The other pillar of the scene. Buna sources direct from producers in Chiapas and Veracruz and their espresso program is the most consistent in the city.
Cucurucho (Centro)
The one to hit if you are in the Centro Histórico — a tiny counter next to the Templo Mayor with excellent filter coffee and a serious pastry program.
Almanegra (Juárez / Roma)
Newer, more experimental. Their Colombian and Ethiopian lots are worth trying alongside the Mexican beans.
Frequently asked
Quick answers
Where is the best coffee shop in Mexico City?
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Cardinal Casa de Café (Roma) and Buna (Roma / Juárez) are the two most consistently excellent specialty coffee operations in CDMX. Both roast in-house, source directly from Mexican farms, and have well-trained baristas.
Does Mexico grow good coffee?
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Yes. Chiapas, Veracruz, and Oaxaca produce coffees that regularly score in the specialty range (85+ on the SCA scale). Chiapas in particular is one of the most respected origins in the Americas for washed arabica.