The United States is filled with iconic cities. But perhaps one of the most unique is the Louisiana capital of New Orleans, with its jazz culture, Cajun dining, colorful rambling architecture and infamous night life. You may not think of coffee when you think of New Orleans, but you should.
Here are five of the best cafes in New Orleans:
Café Amélie
If you find yourself in NOLA on a warm day (a very likely occurrence), there’s no finer place to lounge than the leafy courtyard at Café Amélie. The atmosphere is simply gorgeous. Two doors up they also have a sweet corner cafe, Petite Amélie, where you can people watch over an espresso or grab a flaky French pastry to go.
HiVolt
Far from the touristy (albeit charming) French Quarter, the Lower Garden District is one of the coolest neighborhoods in New Orleans. A stone’s throw from shopping and dining thoroughfare Magazine Street, HiVolt is a sleek, artfully-decorated cafe with some of the finest breakfasts in town (think toasted gourmet sandwiches on French baguette). Their latte was the best I had in the city.
Spitfire Coffee
Deep in the heart of the French Quarter, but far enough removed from the tackiness of Bourbon Street, sits comfy little espresso bar Spitfire. New Orleans cafes don’t get much more central than this, but the atmosphere is still nice and relaxed. Stop here for an afternoon pick-me-up; these guys sure know how to do coffee.
Arrow Cafe
Right on the border between the classic French Quarter and the historic music district of Treme, Arrow Cafe is a warm, welcoming space with strong, good coffee. Grab yours to go and enjoy it in the adjacent Louis Armstrong park, a rambling green space devoted to New Orleans’ music history. Or even make an afternoon of it and visit the nearby Backstreet Cultural Museum in Treme after your caffeine pick-me-up.
Eat
Eat is actually more of a restaurant than a cafe, but I couldn’t resist including it as it’s one of the finest dining spots around. Situated on the corner of Dumaine and Dauphine streets, the restaurant is in one of the loveliest spots imaginable, in the northern reaches of the French Quarter. They do excellent filter coffee and their weekend brunches are a force to be reckoned with.
Note: your friends and guidebooks are probably telling you to go to Café du Monde too. New Orleans’ French culture is a major drawcard and it’s fun to stop by du Monde for a powdered sugar beignet, or French donut. But the crowds are madness and the frenetic atmosphere is overpowering, so I recommend you either go in the early morning or hit the to-go counter and enjoy your beignets on the banks of the Mississippi, right next door.
By Gemma King
What’s your favorite New Orleans coffee spot? Please share in the comments below.
Jessica Festa is the editor of the travel sites Jessie on a Journey (http://jessieonajourney.com) and Epicure & Culture (http://epicureandculture.com). Along with blogging at We Blog The World, her byline has appeared in publications like Huffington Post, Gadling, Fodor’s, Travel + Escape, Matador, Viator, The Culture-Ist and many others. After getting her BA/MA in Communication from the State University of New York at Albany, she realized she wasn’t really to stop backpacking and made travel her full time job. Some of her most memorable experiences include studying abroad in Sydney, teaching English in Thailand, doing orphanage work in Ghana, hiking her way through South America and traveling solo through Europe. She has a passion for backpacking, adventure, hiking, wine and getting off the beaten path.
