10 Best Coffee Shops in Portland 2024: Cozy & Hip Cafés

Portland is one of the original hotbeds of specialty coffee. The surge in popularity of high-quality craft coffee owes a significant portion of its momentum to the Portland area, and specifically to Stumptown Roasters. Stumptown opened in Portland in 1999 and led the charge into the third-wave coffee world we currently enjoy.

Unsurprisingly, Portland continues to be one of the best cities for coffee in the United States and the world. There is nowhere on earth that you can find a higher density of specialty roasters and shops dedicated to the coffee craft. In this article, we share with you our 10 favorite shops in the Portland area. Choosing only 10 was a challenge since there are so many choices, but we think you’ll like our picks. Let’s go!

The 10 Best Coffee Shops in Portland:

1. Coava Coffee Roasters

First up, we have Coava Coffee Roasters. Coava manages to stand out in a crowd of excellent coffee shops because of its excellent coffee, baristas, and location. We’ll start by saying that the premises at Coava are simply enormous. The seating area is tremendous and airy, with an industrial decor that perfectly captures what we picture when we think of a modern coffee shop. It’s worth a visit just to experience the atmosphere.

Luckily, the building isn’t the only great thing about Coava. The coffee is out-of-this-world delicious and prepared with a skilled hand. The baristas are a delight to talk to and cultivate a friendly, welcoming atmosphere. Coava is one of the best coffee shops we’ve been to anywhere, not just in Portland. If you live nearby or find yourself in Portland on business or vacation, you have to check them out at 1300 SE Grand Ave (A).

2. Good Coffee

The name says it all, really. Actually, Good Coffee is a bit of an understatement since the coffee at Good Coffee is more aptly described as excellent. The cappuccino we had was made to perfection with high-quality beans and expert technique. It was so good that we broke our one cappuccino at a time rule and ordered another.

Good Coffee has a delightful seating area that feels like you’re seated in a back porch sunroom at your grandmother’s house. The decor is warm and welcoming, and time passes alarmingly quickly as you bask in the greenery and coziness sipping your coffee. Good coffee is a great place to kill a few hours doing some work or just relaxing. You can find them at 4747 SE Division St.

3. Stumptown Coffee Roasters

There wasn’t a chance in the world that we would compile a list of the best Portland roasters without including Stumptown. There isn’t much to say about this world-renowned roaster other than they exude professionalism and quality. You probably know what you’re getting when you go to Stumptown, and that is the choice of an impressive variety of excellent coffee.

The service at Stumptown is as impressive as the coffee. The baristas are happy to make suggestions, answer questions, and just chat with customers when it isn’t busy. It’s a great place to go to spend some time honoring specialty coffee and learning from professionals at the top of their game. You owe it to yourself to visit the mecca of third-wave coffee at 128 SW 3rd Ave.

4. Case Study Coffee Roasters

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Case Study Coffee Roasters sets themselves apart by having an extensive menu of interesting espresso drinks that will keep you coming back to try more. The espresso is the highlight for us, but the filter coffee we tried was quite good as well. There is also a decent selection of baked goods, making Case Study a great place to grab breakfast and get a jump on the day.

The seating area at Case Study is big and roomy, making it reasonably easy to get a seat even during busy hours. We love the large glass windows that give the whole place a bright, cheery vibe. Grab your favorite book or a laptop and check them out at 802 SW 10th Ave.

5. Nossa Familia Coffee

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Nossa Familia is a small coffee shop specializing in espresso drinks and tasty treats. Unlike the other shops we’ve reviewed so far, this one is on the small side and not conducive to sitting with a laptop or book for extended periods. The atmosphere is nice and filled with greenery, and there is a bar with some seating, but we wouldn’t count on getting a seat during the busy morning rush.

The coffee is excellent, as are the pastries, and the prices are some of the best in the Portland area. Our latte was noticeably cheaper than it would be at other shops and the quality was nearly the same. If you need a place to grab some coffee on the go, visit Nossa Familia 1350 NW Lovejoy St.

6. Proud Mary Cafe

Proud Mary Café is a lovely shop with a great outdoor seating area full of plants and sun during the summer months. It is also one of the few shops where we think the filter coffee is actually better than the espresso. We ordered a pour-over, and the barista nailed it. Pour-overs are notoriously temperamental, but the one from Proud Mary was bright, acidic, and fruity, just the way we like it.

Unfortunately, the prices are a bit higher than other similar shops, but not excessively so. They also serve breakfast food and pastries if you want something to snack on while enjoying your coffee. Be prepared to wait if you go anytime that could even remotely be considered breakfast. You can find Proud Mary at 2012 NE Alberta St.

7. Deadstock Coffee Roasters

Deadstock Coffee Roasters offers an experience that we can safely say you won’t get anywhere else. Rather than your typical coffee shop aesthetic, Deadstock has a seriously cool and unique sneaker collection on display. The whole shop, from the sneakers and interior to the mural outside, drips with personality.

It’s worth a visit just to see what it’s all about, but the coffee is also high-quality and delicious. We love that they have a variety of non-dairy milk to choose from, and the oat milk latte we had was as good as we’ve had anywhere. You can find this unique coffee shop at 408 NW Couch St Suite 408.

8. Never Coffee

Never Coffee is an interesting name for a coffee shop that always sells coffee, but we love it because it sets the off-beat tone Never Coffee seems to be going for. Their shop is bright and vibrant with interesting art and pastel-colored decor. The neon sign above the door has a cool retro feel and lets you know what Never is all about.

We haven’t mentioned the coffee yet, but that’s not because it isn’t good. On the contrary, the coffee at Never Coffee is excellent, and so is the service. Our barista was friendly and professional and did a stellar job whipping us up one of their specialty lattes. We recommend giving them a try at 4243 SE Belmont St Unit 200.

9. Ovation Coffee & Tea

Ovation Coffee & Tea has a wide array of delicious coffees and teas, so many that it’s hard to decide what to order. We opted for an unusual pistachio latte that turned out to be amazing and paired it with one of their delicious homemade scones. The only downside to the coffee is it is on the expensive side, but it’s not so expensive that we wouldn’t come back.

Aesthetically we don’t love Ovation, unfortunately, but that is highly personal, so you might like it. To us, it felt like ordering a coffee at the cafeteria in a mall. Even though it was well-lit and spacious, we didn’t feel a strong urge to stick around. Still, the overall experience was positive, and we recommend you give them a try at 941 NW Overton St.

10. Portland Coffee Roasters

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And finally, we have the appropriately named Portland Coffee Roasters. As you can probably guess from the name, Portland Coffee Roasters roast their own coffee from an impressive array of origins. We had one of their pour-overs, and it was delicious, perfectly extracted, and absolutely bursting with flavor.

Coffee is king at Portland Coffee Roasters, but they also serve some baked goods and breakfast sandwiches. Food is definitely an afterthought here, although the vegan hash brown sandwich we had was decent. The prices are competitive or maybe slightly low for the quality of coffee they have. The shop is traditionally decorated with wood accents and tons of seating. You can find them at 815 SE Oak St.

Featured Image Credit: 12019, Pixabay