The 21 Best Coffee Shops in Brooklyn
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The best coffee shops in Brooklyn, according to the experts: The World's 100 Best Coffee Shops, Time Out, and Eater have all weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Stumptown Coffee Roasters comes out on top.
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SEY and Winner hold the next two places. Sprudge shows up on more of this list than any other guide, with Time Out close behind.
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The awards
- The World's 100 Best Coffee Shops The World's 100 Best Coffee Shops: #52 · Top 100 Coffee Shops
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The awards
- Time Out Time Out: #4 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
- Eater Eater: The Best Coffee Shops in New York City
- Sprudge Sprudge: The Sprudge Guide to Coffee in North Brooklyn
- Time Out #4 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
- Eater The Best Coffee Shops in New York City
- Sprudge The Sprudge Guide to Coffee in North Brooklyn
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Rank 3. Winner
American Bakery
The awards
- The New York Times The New York Times: 2021 · Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
- Time Out Time Out: #9 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
- Eater Eater: The Best Croissants in NYC
- The New York Times 2021 · Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
- Time Out #9 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
- Eater The Best Croissants in NYC
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Rank 4. Che
Natural Wine Bar
The awards
- Time Out Time Out: #2 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: The Best Coffee Shops In NYC
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A former automotive welding shop in East Williamsburg now houses this multi-roaster coffee boutique, where the menu leans into distilled coffee, blue algae, and clarified matcha alongside a hand-brew selection from roasters around the world. The back of the space runs a small craft brewery called Niteglow, so the afternoon espresso can pivot to a draft pour. It reads like a coffee shop that got very ambitious and kept going.
The awards
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Rank 6. % Arabica
Japanese Coffee Shop
The awards
- Eater Eater: The Best Coffee Shops in New York City
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: The Best Coffee Shops In NYC
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Rank 6. Ciao, Gloria
Contemporary Italian Coffee Shop
The pastry case alone could hold up a line: Italian-style cakes, seasonal danishes, oatmeal cream pies, all housemade. This contemporary Italian coffee shop sits at street level of a Frank Gehry condo on Vanderbilt, which sounds like a setup for a joke, but the place is genuinely warm and busy for good reason. Sweetleaf coffee from Queens, a full kitchen running health-ish and comfort food, and staff who seem to actually mean it when they want you to feel at home.
The awards
- Time Out #20 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
- Sprudge The Sprudge Guide to Coffee In South Brooklyn
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Rank 6. Yafa Cafe
Coffee
Yafa is a Yemeni coffee shop on 4th Avenue in Sunset Park, brick walls hung with art and books celebrating Arabic culture on one side and proper third-wave gear on the other. The menu roams past the usual coffee shop lane into slow-cooked lamb and za'atar fries, with a pistachio cappuccino with cardamom for anyone who still wants something to sip. A second location has opened in Downtown Brooklyn, but this is the flagship.
The awards
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Rank 12. Brooklyn Ball Factory
Japanese
The awards
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Rank 14. Loveless
New York Nordic Coffee Shop
The pink-tiled bar and arched mirrors make the Nordic-leaning coffee shop look like a pastel fever dream from 1987, and the baristas lean into the contrast by taking everything very seriously. Pour-overs and espresso drinks are made with their own roasts, and a bowl of oatmeal is on the table if you need it. Sustainability runs deep here, from compostable materials to a Loring roaster chosen specifically for its fuel efficiency.
The awards
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The awards
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: The Best Coffee Shops In NYC
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The awards
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: The Best Coffee Shops In NYC
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Rank 14. Three Legged Cat
Coffee
A coffee shop in East Williamsburg that skips the iPad-flip tip prompt entirely, which alone earns goodwill before the espresso arrives. The team runs it as a multi-roaster cafe, rotating names like Onyx and Obscure Coffee, with excellent pastries from Native Bread alongside. Bar takeovers and barista events keep things lively without tipping into self-important. The vibe is coffee-serious without being coffee-cold, which in this neighborhood is a genuine achievement.
The awards
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The awards
- The Infatuation The Infatuation: The Best Coffee Shops In NYC
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Rank 19. Principles GI Coffee House
Personality-Driven Coffee
The pourover menu specifies black only, no exceptions, which tells you everything about this coffee shop before you've ordered. A queer-owned community hub straddling Park Slope and Gowanus, Principles runs on small rotating roasters, plant-based milks across the board, and a gratuity-included model. Cyclists and coffee obsessives fill the place, drawn as much by the ethos as the espresso. The garage door opens when weather permits, and there's a bike repair area out back.
The awards
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Rank 19. Southside Coffee
Minimalist Coffee
Window-service only since 2020, this minimalist coffee shop in South Slope turned its interior into a commissary, which turns out to be a fine trade. Counter Culture beans anchor the drinks, but the daily-rotating pastries, cheddar jalapeño corn muffins, and hugely bready sandwiches are what bring out the line of families and dogs. Greenwood Cemetery is an easy walk, if you need somewhere to eat.
The awards
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Rank 19. Villager NYC
Coffee
The awards