I think I say this in all of my coffee shop posts, but one of my very favorite parts of traveling is finding local coffee shops with great drinks and coffee shop vibes. There were an overwhelming number of shops to try while we were staying in Tucson, Arizona, and I was surprised by how many of them also roast their own beans – it felt a lot more common than in other cities I’ve been to. This post covers all of the shops we tried and recommend, roughly starting with my favorites; at the end of this post there’s also a summarized list of all of the shops so you can Pin it or save it to your phone for future reference. We really loved Tucson and were already talking about going back by like day two of our trip there, so I’m hoping we’ll return relatively soon and can add to this list.

Presta Coffee Roasters – Near Downtown

Recommend: Hot vanilla latte and Cold Brew
Seating: a few small tables inside; plenty of outdoor seating
Work / study: didn’t check wifi but other people were on laptops; solo study / work might be okay inside but tables are small and there aren’t a ton of them
Location: Corner of N Third Ave and E Ninth St; they have other locations in town

I loved Presta Coffee Roasters – I stopped by on three of our nine days in town because it was near our Airbnb and I loved the vibes. There’s a biking (cycling) theme inside so I asked a barista about it – she said the owner is a cyclist. The baristas were always super nice and I looked forward to it every day; I’m a little sad that I didn’t pick up a t-shirt. Hopefully next time!

Talega Coffee Co. – Downtown Tucson

Recommended: Vanilla Latte and a donut
Seating: A few small indoor tables and a couch; maybe 1-2 small outdoor tables
Work / study: didn’t check wifi; it’s a little small and is probably better for catching up with friends, but could bring a laptop
Location: in downtown Tucson on the corner of S Scott Ave and E McCormick St

We almost didn’t make it to Talega because work was really busy on the morning we planned to go, but I’m so glad we did – it was adorable inside. It’s small and there’s really only room behind the counter for one barista, so if it’s busy there could be a wait. We loved it and it’s worth stopping by if you’re looking for a coffee shop downtown.

La Chaiteria – West of Downtown

Recommended: Hot coffee
Seating: plenty indoor and outdoor
Work / study: no; it’s a restaurant instead of a coffee shop
Location: West of Downtown; near Tumamoc Hill for hiking. On the corner of W Congress St and E Grande Ave

This is the only place that made both our favorite coffee shop and favorite restaurant list. I don’t drink regular coffee (I always get lattes), but when Dom’s coffee came out, even I could tell it was the world’s best cup of coffee. (Buddy the Elf wouldn’t have been disappointed). We’re not sure how they made it (pour over, French press, etc.) but Dom couldn’t stop talking about it. A large part of why we went here a second time on our trip was so that he could get the coffee again, and it made this his “I would take a detour to visit…” location for Tucson.

Eleven Cafe – Downtown Tucson

Recommended: Cold brew
Seating: limited; mostly for waiting on your order
Work / study: probably not ideal – it’s really small inside and there’s only one or two tables, couch seating, and a couple barstools at the counter
Location: Downtown Tucson; corner of Church and Pennington

We stopped by Eleven Cafe one morning since it was close to our Airbnb and had good reviews – Dom said it was probably his favorite cold brew he had while we were in town. I had a hot mocha and it was good, but not as sweet as I’m used to. Their special is a Vietnamese coffee – I think I saw a review that says it takes a little while to make, though, so you may want to confirm that / skip it if you’re in a rush.

Exo Roast Co – Near Downtown

Recommended: Hot mocha
Seating: Only a few indoor tables; no outdoor tables
Work / study: didn’t check wifi and only a couple tables, but good vibes for it
Location: corner of N Sixth Ave and E Seventh Ave; they have another location

We walked here from our Airbnb – it’s a little north of downtown in a restaurant / shopping area, so it would be a good place to stop for a coffee if you’re over there. They have a few tables but most of their space is taken up by their impressive coffee bean roasting operation.

Caffe Luce – Near University of Arizona

Recommended: Hot Mocha
Seating: Plenty of indoor tables; only a couple small outdoor tables
Work / study: yes – open wifi and quiet, at least while students are on winter break
Location: near the corner of E University Blvd and N Park Ave; they have other locations in town

Dom and I stopped here to work on a few things over the weekend – it’s really convenient if you’re new the University of Arizona, and it had plenty of seating. It was almost a little too quiet inside – I would have liked some background music.