The Best Cafés in Lisbon, Portugal: Coffee, Pastéis de Nata & Brunch Spots

Looking for the best cafés in Lisbon? From specialty coffee and proper sit-down brunches to a quick Portuguese bica, pastel de nata and a coffee beneath Ponte 25 de Abril, here’s a few of my tried-and-true recommendations in the city.

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Every cool city needs a good coffee scene. Luckily, Lisbon’s got you covered.

From the old-fashioned pastelarias, where you can pop in for an espresso straight from the counter, to specialty coffee shops serving everything from filter coffee to a full-on brunch, there’s plenty to keep you busy.

And when your day involves climbing Lisbon’s hills and getting your 10,000 steps in before you’ve even thought about lunch, that’s rather important…

I’ve been visiting Lisbon since 2017 and constantly find a new coffee spot to tuck into each trip. With that said, here’s a few to put in your back pocket for your visit.

Shall we?

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Quick Overview: Best Cafés in Lisbon

Short on time? Here’s my favourite Lisbon cafés by neighbourhood—from a quick coffee to a sit-down brunch.

Looking for…	My pick	Area
My favourite Lisbon coffee stop	The Folks	Multiple Lisbon locations
A proper sit-down brunch	Dear Breakfast	Chiado, Alfama and more
Speciality roasted coffee	Hello Kristof	São Bento / Bica / Alfama
Coffee and a laptop sesh	Tomorrow at 9	Avenidas Novas / Picoas
A slow breakfast near Lisbon’s viewpoints	Quase Café	Alfama / Graça
An old-school Portuguese coffee counter	Café Tradicional	Mouraria
A pit stop café near Ponte 25 de Abril (perfect for a mid-Lisbon walk)	Rui dos Pregos – Docas	Doca de Santo Amaro, Alcântara

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A Little About Lisbon’s Coffee Culture

Café Tradicional, Lisbon

Long before Lisbon’s specialty coffee roasters arrived, the city had its pastelarias and neighbourhood cafés—where you’d grab a little espresso at the counter, something sweet, a chat with someone you know.

In some cases, Lisbon’s historic cafés (like Martinho da Arcada) even served as the backdrop for some of the country’s most renowned writers and sometimes heated political discussions.

In other words, coffee has been part of everyday Lisbon for generations, far before it became trendy.

Onto the cafés!

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The Best Cafés and Coffee Shops in Lisbon

1. The Folks: For Coffee and Breakfast Before Sightseeing

Best for: Specialty coffee, all-day brunch and choosing a café close to your Lisbon sightseeing.

Locations: Chiado, Alfama, Belém, Santos, Sé and Blue Street.

First up, The Folks, which I went to on my last Lisbon trip and fell in love with.

They roast their own specialty coffee in Lisbon and serve espresso, filter coffee and quite a fabulous all-day brunch from what I saw. If you’re particularly taken with the coffee, you can even pick up a bag of beans to bring home.

They’ve got six Lisbon branches, so I’d simply pick one that fits your day. The Chiado café on Rua dos Sapateiros is handy if you’re in the Baixa and Praça do Comércio; the Sé café faces Lisbon Cathedral (with the famous trams passing by), and the Belém one makes sense before Jerónimos Monastery.

Note: All their cafés are walk-in only!

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Dear Breakfast: For a Tried-and-True Lisbon Brunch

Dear Breakfast

Best for: Eggs Benedict, pancakes, a proper breakfast and a sit-down brunch in Lisbon.

Locations: Chiado, Bica, Alfama and others.

Sometimes coffee is just coffee. Other mornings call for eggs Benedict, pancakes and an inappropriate amount of Portuguese breakfast tacos with avocado cream. Dear Breakfast is really for the latter.

The first Dear Breakfast opened in São Bento in 2017, and they’ve been serving a mean all-day breakfast ever since, with a menu featuring Benedicts, banana-and-caramel pancakes, juices and truffled scrambled eggs.

On that note, I’d definitely come hungry rather than make it a takeaway espresso stop.

Its Chiado café is also on Calçada de São Francisco, so you can watch the old trams work their way up the street while you’re here. There’s also an Alfama location beside Lisbon Cathedral. Book ahead!

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Hello Kristof: Coffee, Roasting and Magazines

Hello Kristof

Best for: Speciality coffee, filter brews, magazines and a hangout spot in Lisbon

Locations: São Bento, Bica and Alfama.

A coffee shop that doubles as a magazine store? Yes, please. Hello Kristof combines a serious coffee menu with shelves of reading bits to tuck into. In other words, it’s incredibly easy to lose a morning here.

At the São Bento café, they roast coffee on site and serve quite a fabulous espresso and single-origin filter brews. The food goes beyond the usual avocado toast too, with dishes influenced by the chef’s Laotian background like marinated pulled pork breakfast sandwiches with whiskey sauce.

For a smaller stop, there’s Hello Kristof Bica on Rua do Poço dos Negros, or the Alfama branch opposite the National Pantheon.

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Tomorrow at 9: Brunch and a Laptop-Friendly Spot

Tomorrow at 9

Best for: A relaxed breakfast, specialty coffee, matcha and occasional laptop time.

Address: Rua Viriato 9B, Avenidas Novas.

Tomorrow at 9 sits on Rua Viriato, a little way out from the old-town sightseeing circuit if you’re keen on a more local Lisbon stop.

The café looks quite small from the street, but stretches back to a larger seating area and terrace that’s well worth settling into. Think matcha, filter coffee, pancakes and savoury options like hummus, eggs and gravlax (not a bad start to your Lisbon day).

It’s also one of the cafés I’d look at if you need to open your laptop in the city for a little while.

If you’re staying around Picoas or Marquês de Pombal, you’ll be close by. Otherwise, I’d save it for a morning when you’re not trying to squeeze in every sight in Alfama.

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Quase Café: Breakfast in Alfama

Quase Café

Best for: A homey brunch in Lisbon near the city’s best views

Address: Rua do Salvador 32, Alfama.

Quase Café is tucked onto Rua do Salvador in the steep streets of Alfama, perfect if you’ve been wandering around the old town for a proper breakfast.

Inside, you’ll find more of a homely feel than some of Lisbon’s shiny cafés, with mismatched furniture and retro details, all matched with good coffee, sweet pastries and savoury brunch plates.

I’d stop here before heading towards Miradouro de Santa Luzia or carrying on uphill to Graça. If you’ve been putting off breakfast in favour of another viewpoint, this would be a good place to finally sit down!

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Café Tradicional: A Bica in Mouraria

Café Tradicional, Lisbon

Best for: A quick neighbourhood coffee stop with a pastry

Address: Rua dos Cavaleiros 98, Mouraria.

For a more traditional coffee stop, tuck into Café Tradicional on Rua dos Cavaleiros in Mouraria.

Mouraria is one of Lisbon’s oldest neighbourhoods, full of narrow lanes, old tiled façades and small shops. It’s also a neighbourhood with a long association with fado, so there’s plenty of local history to take in while you’re walking around.

The café is at Rua dos Cavaleiros 98, a short walk from Martim Moniz. A good stop if a quick espresso and a pastry is all you’re after.

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Rui dos Pregos – Docas: Coffee With a View of Ponte 25 de Abril

Best for: A breather during a long Lisbon riverside walk, coffee by the marina and Ponte 25 de Abril views.

Address: Passeio Doca de Santo Amaro, Alcântara.

A caveat that this one’s technically a restaurant rather than a café, but given its sinfully beautiful location and the fact that it’s a lovely stop near the end of a walk from Praça do Comércio along the Tagus to Ponte 25 de Abril, it still works great.

Here you’ll find Lisbon’s iconic bridge and the marina spread out right in front of you alongside classic Portuguese food like pregos (steak sandwiches), smoothies, coffees and the like.

If you’re exploring this side of Lisbon, LX Factory and its brilliant Ler Devagar bookshop are only a short walk as well, and the MAAT is a bit further on.

P.S. – The walk from central Lisbon to the bridge is a long one! If you’re following my Lisbon weekend itinerary, you can work this into your Belém and LX Factory day instead of making a separate trip.

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How to Order Coffee in Lisbon (In Portuguese)

Before you step into a Portuguese café, it’s worth learning a few of the coffee names. Ask for um café and you’ll usually get an espresso. In Lisbon, you’ll also hear it called a bica.

You don’t need to have brilliant Portuguese to order one, either. A bom dia and a se faz favor go a long way.

What you want	What to ask for
Espresso	Um café / uma bica
A shorter espresso	Um café curto
Long black coffee	Um abatanado
Espresso with a drop of milk	Um pingado
Small coffee with milk	Um garoto
Coffee with milk in a cup	Uma meia de leite
Milky coffee in a glass	Um galão
Double espresso	Um café duplo

My easy order would be “Bom dia! Uma bica e um pastel de nata, se faz favor.” That’s “Good morning! An espresso and a custard tart, please.” If you prefer your coffee milky, ask for a galão instead.

Of course, at The Folks or Hello Kristof, you can simply order a flat white or filter coffee from the menu if that’s more your thing.

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When in Doubt, Just Get a Coffee and a Pastel de Nata

When in doubt, I don’t think you can go wrong with a coffee and a pastel de nata. Especially after a few hours on Lisbon’s cobbles!

Find a little pastelaria, order a bica and have your tart while the pastry is still crisp (you’ll absolutely pass them whilst you’re out and about, but don’t expect them to have a website or a brunch menu…).

And remember, always add cinnamon!

For more stops after breakfast, see my best things to do in Lisbon guide.

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Which Lisbon Cafés Are Good for Working on a Laptop?

Need to send a few emails while you’re in Lisbon? Tomorrow at 9 has laptop-friendly seating, Hello Kristof São Bento has a small designated area, and The Folks says laptops are welcome before noon.

With that said, I’d always check with staff first, especially at busy brunch times.

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Where I’d Stay in Lisbon (Near the City’s Best Cafés)

I’d personally stay around Chiado for a first Lisbon trip. It’ll be easy to find Lisbon’s best coffee shops nearby, then wander into Baixa or down towards the Tagus. Just remember, comfortable shoes!

I stayed at Palácio das Especiarias in Chiado on my last trip and adored it. It’s a historic hotel, with foundations dating to the 16th century, fabulous breakfast and friendly staff. Read my hotel review or browse my Lisbon boutique hotels guide if you’re choosing where to stay.

P.S. – Lisbon has a serious housing crisis, with short-term holiday rentals (like Airbnbs) adding pressure to the local housing supply. Where possible, I’d encourage choosing a hotel over a home rental in Lisbon, particularly an independent, locally run one.

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Final Thoughts on the Best Cafés in Lisbon

Every time I’m in Lisbon, I set off with a plan to see everything. Then I find a café I like, sit down for coffee and suddenly an hour has gone by!

I’d happily go back to The Folks, and if I’m walking towards Ponte 25 de Abril, I’d stop for another coffee at Rui dos Pregos – Docas.

And remember, when in Lisbon, there’s always time for a bica and another warm pastel de nata (probably more than one, knowing me).

Have the most fabulous time in Lisbon!

Happy travels,

Candace x

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FAQ: Lisbon Cafés and Coffee Shops

What coffee should I order in Portugal?

Ask for um café or uma bica if you want an espresso. For more milk, try a galão (in a tall glass) or meia de leite (in a cup).

What’s the difference between a pastelaria and a specialty coffee shop?

A pastelaria is an everyday bakery-café where you can get an espresso, a pastry or a sandwich. Specialty cafés focus more on beans, brewing methods and drinks like flat whites or filter coffee.

Where can I get specialty coffee in Lisbon?

Try The Folks or Hello Kristof.

Which Lisbon cafés are good for working?

Tomorrow at 9 has a bit of laptop seating. The Folks allows laptops before noon.

Is coffee expensive in Lisbon?

Depends on where you go! A bica at a traditional café in Lisbon will always cost a lot less than a flat white or brunch at one of Lisbon’s specialty coffee shops.

Can I get vegan or dairy-free options in Lisbon cafés?

Yes! Hello Kristof has vegan and vegetarian options.

Where should I get a pastel de nata with my coffee?

I’d look for a neighbourhood pastelaria with fresh tarts in the display. The most famed is Pastéis de Belém but you’ll find incredible (and no-name) ones dotted throughout the city.

Where can I stop for coffee near Ponte 25 de Abril?

Rui dos Pregos – Docas! It’s on the Santo Amaro waterfront, directly beside the bridge. It’s a casual restaurant rather than a specialty coffee café, but still a lovely place to rest your feet and look out over the marina. You can also visit LX Factory nearby or carry on towards MAAT while you’re here.

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