When I was back in Prague for the first time in years, I was amazed by the Czech coffee scene. Years ago, you had to do with typical local Czech coffee. Coffee lovers would not have liked this coffee that much, but this was often all there was. Prague, however, has since evolved into a trendy city, with many great and especially cozy coffee shops.

Most coffee shops can be found in the center of the city, especially in the old town. If you see a shop with the word Kavárna – or kava, as this means coffee in Czech – in large letters, then you know you have found a coffee place. This does not automatically mean that they serve a great cup of coffee, as one shop serves really great coffee, and another typical Czech coffee.

During our last visit, we did our best to try out as many coffee places as possible. We discovered many great coffee places, some with really amazing coffee. Here are a few examples:

1) Ebel

Cafe Ebel is the best coffee shop we have encountered so far in Prague. The beans are freshly roasted several times a week, and they have beans from all over the world. Ebel has two branches, one along Kaprova (no. 11) and one at Retezova (no. 9). The establishment at Kaprova is a small and cozy coffee house, close to the Jewish Quarters of Prague. Less than 100 meters away is the old square, and right behind the coffee house is the Jewish Cemetery. The establishment at Retezova (a street between the Old Square and Charles Bridge) is bigger and often more crowded. In addition to great coffee, they also have delicious homemade snacks, but no lunch menu. We went back a few times during our trip :).

2) Joe Cafe

Joe Cafe is a little coffee shop with a bakery. This is a good place for a delicious lunch on their small terrace after a long walk through the center of Prague. In addition to great coffee, they have a nice lunch menu with delicious items from their bakery. For only 79kr, you get a bowl of soup and a fresh baguette with a topping of your choice. Joe Cafe is located on Narodni Street (no. 37). The coffee shop is easily reached by tram 22 or on foot from metro station Mustek. From the Old Town Square, it is a 10-minute walk to Narodni Street. The bakery did the trick. Their coffee is great, so this is a fine place for a lunch during the day.

3) U Prince rooftop bar

The rooftop bar of the U Prince hotel is not real a coffee place, but they do serve a good Illy Coffee. Now this place is not on the list because of the quality of their coffee (although it wasn’t bad at all, as Illy Coffee is actually quite nice), but more because of the stunning views of the old square in the center of Prague. Here you can enjoy a cup of coffee with a 360-degree view of all of Prague. It opens at 11 o’clock in the morning, and around this time there usually isn’t anyone else on the rooftop terrace. If you love panoramic views over the city of Prague, definitely visit this place.

4) Espressamente Illy

Espressamente Illy coffee is a small chain with locations all over the world. It is the signature coffee place of coffee maker Illy. Illy Coffee is a huge brand of high quality coffee and, although it is not the same as a cup of freshly roasted coffee beans, it is always a good cup of coffee. In Prague, you have a branch within the Marriott Hotel. This luxury hotel is located near metro station Namesti Republiky and close to Palladium, a popular shopping mall. The coffee shop can be entered directly from the street, and has a small terrace so you also can sit outside. They have nice pastries and also a nice lunch menu.

5) Neo Palladium Cafe

Within the popular Palladium shopping mall, you can find Neo Palladium Cafe. Besides a great cup of coffee, they have an extensive menu of snacks, cocktails, and lunch dishes. It is a great place to relax after hours of shopping.

Other popular coffee shops in Prague (that we’ve heard about, but didn’t yet visit ourselves):

• Caffe Slavia – Smetanovo Nabrezi 2 (tram line 22)
• Dum Kavy – Jireckova 9, 170 00 Praha 7. To reach it, take tram 26 from Namesti Republiky and get off at Letenske namesti, then walk towards Letna park and turn at the first right
• Mama Coffee – www.mamacoffee.cz
• Bakeshop Kozi 1
• Friends Coffee House
• Michelska Kavarna – Karmelitska 20 (near Petrin Jill, Ujezd tram)
• Cafe Nona – Narodni Trida 4
• Literarni Kavarna – Vysehradska 53 (near metro station Karlovo Namesti yellow line C)
• Kava Kava Kava