Starbucks may have locations all over, but independent coffee shops hold their own keeping locals caffeinated and happy. What makes the best ones great? Is it the quality of the beans, a daily roasting, some flavorful espresso-based experiments, the latte art, pastries, or maybe food, live music or overall mood? Or some mysterious combination of the above.
Hoodline filtered the numbers to find the top five coffee shops around the city, using both Yelp data and our own blend of analysis to produce a data-driven breakdown of where coffee drinkers go out of their way to get the city’s best cup(s) of coffee.
Summermoon Coffee Bar
Multiple Locations
The family-owned business opened its first coffee bar on 1st Street in 2002 before branching out into the coffee roasting industry shortly after. Fast forward to 2017 and the company now has eight additional locations in Texas, along with its wholesale production. The hip coffeeshop hand-roasts coffee beans from Central and South America, Africa and Indonesia everyday in its one-of-a-kind hearth that the staff built brick by brick. The menu offers everything from café lattes, cappuccinos and moon lattes to its house favorite, the moon glacier which comes with vanilla, java chip, organic mocha, heath mocha, and organic bourbon vanilla.
Mozart's
Lake Austin
The European-style coffee shop flame roasts its coffee beans on site, every two days, and offers nine different coffee blends, including 'El Gato Negro,' the 'Lake Austin Blend,' 'Mocca Java,' and more. After you grab your gourmet coffee, grab a seat outside on its expansive patio and take in some breathtaking views of Lake Austin. Along with coffee it also has a small pastry menu that includes options like fruit tart, cupcakes, chocolate covered strawberries and more.
Mozart's also has live music on its patio on Thursday-Saturday and puts on an annual light show that runs through the first week of January.
Epoch
North Loop/West Anderson
The 24-hour coffee shop is a blessing, especially to those that need a boost of caffeine into the wee hours of the morning. Complete with a giant light-up signage of its name on the roof and large tables that are perfect for personal enjoyment or group conversations, Epoch continues to be one of Austinite's favorite cafes to visit. Espresso drinks include macchiato, cortado, cappucino and a Mexican mocha, which can be made hot or cold and in decaf, for those that don't like coffee. In addition, there's a small batch of food offered to customers including, pastries, desserts, sandwiches, quiche, Greek salad and pizza.
Jo's Coffee
South Congress/Downtown
Jo's Coffee may be a coffee shop by name, but most Austinites know that it's a community hub where people can get some good coffee and have a great time. The laid back venue has available seating inside and outside, complete with heat lamps for the cooler, winter months. The coffee menu offers a variety of options including several espresso drinks, a Belgian bomber, the signature Turbo and more, along with food options like sandwiches, salads and pulled pork. Before you leave, don't forget to check out its famous wall that faces W. James Street, with the words "I Love You." There was even a wedding proposal in front of this wall in 2015.
Halcyon
Downtown/Warehouse District
Halcyon is a coffee house by day and a bar/lounge by night. Caffeinated drinks, including macchiatos, Americanos, iced cold brews and others come in 12oz or 16oz cups for less than $5 each. But if you're looking for something different, stick around till the afternoon to read through its boozy espresso cocktails menu, which offers classics with a dash of various types of alcohol. There are eight cocktails on the menu, from the 'Cosmonaut' (260 Vanil, Kahlua, espresso and half & half) and 'Irish Coffee' to the 'Long Island Iced Coffee,' which is limited to two per person, 'Insomniac,' (vodka, Irish cream, Amaretto, espresso) and more.
