Cafes in Bristol
These cafes in Bristol have cracked the code to sublime caffeination (and cake) in the city. Each speciality spot features in the spanking new Indy Coffee Guide South No8 – your passport for discovering the highest-quality coffee experiences in the region – so next-level brews are guaranteed
Coffee Club
Run by husband-and-wife team Lucy and Dan, Coffee Club at Paintworks on Bath Road unites two of the couple’s shared passions: coffee and music. It’s part of their expanding enterprise, which includes a cafe in a converted shipping container on Spike Island and plans for a new music venue.
At Paintworks, the Coffee Club offering is ensconced within beautifully converted Airstreams with a spot-on soundtrack courtesy of an exceptional vinyl collection. Kick back in the relaxing environs of the cafe with your top-class coffee and plan your return trip around one of the bi-monthly Chow Down Fridays in which street food, knockout drinks and great tunes collide.
As you’d expect, the coffee is carefully considered: the house blend is from Bristol’s Extract Coffee Roasters and is complemented by a monthly rotation of guest filters from the likes of Radical Roasters and Big Dog Coffee. Sweet pairings can be found in Coffee Club’s baked goods, which feature cakes from Bedminster’s Bosh Kitchen and sensational vegan pastries from The Forest Bakery in St Philips.
A collab between Coffee Club and Bristol Eats on selected Fridays sees the cafe morph into a bar that hosts ticketed events showcasing local street food traders, with beats curated by Coffee Club’s DJ. Don’t miss the next Chow Down Friday taking place on June 7.
Coffee Under Pressure
The coffee may be under pressure at this speciality coffee and tea venue on Park Street, but the friendly pro baristas and chatting customers are anything but. At the cafe (the third in an award-winning clutch by Maria Fyssaki and Nasos Nasios) banter and brewing go hand in hand.
Located a couple of minutes from Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, the duo have refurbed the Grade II-listed two-storey premises, with bleached wood and bright industrial decor creating a calming canvas for the convivial scenes of hustle and bustle that ensue each day.
Opt to get your caffeination via tea leaves or coffee beans, but know that single-origin coffee rules here, with ten direct-trade options available at any time. There’s also a superb selection of beans available to purchase for home brewing, so coffee fans can recreate the Coffee Under Pressure experience at home.
Stick around awhile to soak up the surroundings and pair your perfectly made brew with an equally well-crafted savoury or sweet pastry, cake or traybake.
Nook
Hailed as a ‘shot of sunny Byron Bay in the heart of Bedminster’ in the Indy Coffee Guide, Nook – or more specifically its founder Millie – has brought Aussie coffee culture to North Street. Inspired by her time travelling Australia in 2018, Millie opened cafes in Frome and Bath before establishing this Bristol outpost in 2023.
Naturally, Nook excels at coffee. River Coffee roasters provides the the house espresso while filter coffees are sourced from superb guest roasteries across the country. Like its antipodean counterparts, Nook also shines when it comes to wholesome food – enjoy nourishment in the form of superfood smoothies, poke bowls, cold-press juices and acai smoothie bowls.
The speciality cafe is gluten free and mostly dairy free, with local, sustainable (and where possible organic) plant-based dishes heading up a diverse and colourful menu. Breakfast options include the likes of pea and courgette fritters with spinach, avocado, coconut yogurt, chilli jam, savoury seeds, coriander and soft boiled egg. Those with a sweet tooth can relish toothsome thrills like the salted caramel smoothie bowl of tahini, maca, banana, oat milk and sea salt, topped with berries, banana, coconut flakes, cacao nibs and house granola.
The Orchard Coffee & Co
In a grand former church on Clouds Hill Road is a cafe that is as lively as its coffee beans, which are roasted on-site and brewed alongside coffee from a handful of carefully chosen guest roasteries, including Airhead and Radical.
The airy building with huge arched windows and walls lined with local artwork provides the perfect space for entertaining up to 100 people. By day, The Orchard Coffee & Co is a buzzing cafe, but by night it’s a fully licensed live music and open mic venue.
Like the surroundings, the food is anything but ordinary. Fresh sourdough boards, for example, feature roasted squash rings, coconut confit yogurt, chilli pumpkin oil and crushed micro herbs, while sweet treats include unctuously decadent traybakes. All of the freshly made goods are beamed down directly from the upstairs bakery and the Orchard team even make their own kimchi to give an extra kick of gut-friendly goodness to savoury dishes.
Foliage Cafe
Tucked away on Regent Street, among Clifton Village’s collection of indie shops, boutiques and restaurants (and just round the corner from Royal York Crescent – one of Bristol’s most exclusive residential addresses) is botanical haven Foliage Cafe. From well-heeled neighbours and loyal regulars to prudent passers-by, everyone seeking solace among Foliage’s verdant plant-filled walls receives a warm welcome – including canine companions.
Behind the vibrant yellow door is a cafe devoted to nurturing every one of the senses. Plants, people and piled-high plates of food are all part of a mission to make visitors’ days that little bit more special. No wonder, then, that around 90 per cent of customers return regularly, giving Foliage genuine home-from-home status.
Coffee couldn’t get much more local than hero city roaster Clifton Coffee, with the offering refreshed monthly to showcase different origins and keep regulars on their toes. Clear space in your diary (and stomach) to indulge in a bite to eat. Expect your choice from the hearty menu to be made all the more difficult by food-envy-inducing plates crammed with sandwiches (the croque monsieur is raved about) and sumptuous cakes making their way to neighbouring tables.
Discover more cafes in Bristol and speciality coffee spots across the region in the Indy Coffee Guide South No8.
We choose the companies included in our 5 of the best features based on editorial integrity. Occasionally, some inclusions will be handpicked from clients with whom we have a commercial relationship.
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