If you read my blog you will see that one of the things I enjoy most when exploring a new city is finding the best and most unique cafés and coffee shops. Lisbon is a gorgeous city with a LOT of trendy and hip cafés! Apart from great coffee and amazing breakfast dishes, the thing I enjoyed the most in these coffee shops is the wide variety of amazing Portuguese pastries and sweets. There are tons of great places to choose from but these are my top 6 cafés in Lisbon that you shouldn’t miss out on visiting.

Hello, Kristof

Hello, Kristof came up over and over again when I searched for the best coffee shops in Lisbon. Naturally, I had to give it a try. It also happened to be located just around the corner from our Airbnb.

Hello, Kristof’s interior is simplistic with a few Nordic influences. You can tell that the owner, a freelance graphic designer, put a lot of personal touches into the design. I just loved the decor. Even though it’s artsy and hip it still has that unique “Lisbon feel” to it.

The cafe offers fresh breakfast options such as a healthy Granola bowl with yogurt and fruits, mashed Avocado on toast, refreshing squeezed juices and a variety of freshly baked pastries.

Hello, Kristof is a place that I would definitely come back to!

The Mill

The Mill is by far one of the most popular and best-rated cafés in Lisbon. It’s also just two minutes away from Hello Kristoff. So if you’re staying in the São Bento neighbourhood you have two of the best breakfast places in town right at your doorstep.

The cafe has an Australian inspired food menu with lots of delicious vegetarian options. It’s a hip, spacious café, popular with students and quite perfect for a relaxing breakfast or brunch.

The Village Underground Cafe

The Village Underground is an interesting place to visit in Lisbon if you’re into architecture, photography or street art.

Shipping containers and two buses were upcycled and turned into a modern co-working space that houses multiple offices and a very unique café. The concept of this arty, urban “Village” filled with modern street art reminds a bit of Shoreditch in East London.

The Village Underground “cafeteria” is by far one of the most interesting cafés I have ever seen. The unique restaurant/café is located inside an old London double-decker bus which is attached to a shipping container.
You can find a small kitchen in the lower part of the bus and plenty of seating space on the upper deck.

The café offers an inexpensive lunch menu (10 Euro) and the coffee- while simple- was one of the cheapest we had in Lisbon.

I really recommend this place if you’re looking for a unique experience, friendly staff and a budget-friendly, simple Portuguese food menu.

Pastelaria ALCÔA

At award-winning Pastelaria ALCÔA, you can find typical Portuguese sweets with an artsy twist. Located in the heart of the Chiado neighbourhood it is hard to pass by the Pasterlaria without trying some of their deliciously famous treats.

If you’re curious about typical Portuguese sweets and pastries this is hands down the best place in Lisbon to start discover them all. From the famous Pastel de Natas to the more infamous Coroa da Abadessa, you can find it all at ALCÔA.

The Pasterlaria also offers a few gluten-free options (which can be hard to find in Lisbon). If you’re unsure which sweets are gluten-free it’s best to ask the staff for more information.

Cafe Janis

Just down the road from the popular Time Out Market, you can find Cafe Janis. The place has by far one of the prettiest decors out of all the cafes we visited. The lively colours and friendly staff were so inviting that it was the only cafe we came back to more than once.

The menu has a great variety of different foods including vegan and vegetarian options. There are lots of healthy choices on the menu but we opted for cheese sandwiches and super delicious banana bread and enjoyed it thoroughly.

Fabrica

Located in down-town Lisbon, Fabrica is a retro chic café that was probably one of the coziest ones we visited (loved the big leather sofa seats!). The place is well-known for it’s croissants that are freshly prepared every morning. We only tried the coffee which was probably one of the best we had in Lisbon.

Chiado Caffe

Portugese pastry at Chiado Caffe, Lisbon

Chiado Caffe is your typical traditional Portuguese Padaria. Visiting one of these traditional bakeries is something you shouldn’t miss out on when in Portugal, in my opinion.

Frequented by locals you can find the most delicious Portuguese pastries and coffees at Chiado Caffe for a lot cheaper than in all of the other cafes on this list.

While we selected a few pastries to try in the cafe a local woman started telling me all about the backstory of how many of the Portuguese pastries recipes stem form nuns in covenants. To this day, these pastries are still known as doces conventuais (covenant sweets).