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UPDATED Sept 2022: My favorite coffee shop(s) in Oaxaca

Oaxaca is a city of beautiful courtyards hidden like treasures to discover. The reward for discovering the treasure? A peaceful sit with a coffee while you watch the plants grow. 

If you’re looking for a strong shot of espresso, something sweet, or maybe space to get creative in Oaxaca, here are a couple of the Guide’s favorites:

My favorite coffee shop in Oaxaca: Filemón y Sagrado

They won me over the first time I visited, shortly after I had ordered, when the barista brought me the freshly ground beans for my coffee so I could smell the aroma. Like herby chocolate-dipped pineapple. 

It’s the kind of place that really cares about the coffee and the food they’re serving you. The pastries (oh, the pastries!) are exceptional. Popular shop Boulenc is just down the street but if I was going to choose between the two, I’d come to Filemón. Their food is also excellent. Fresh herbs from the mountains, butter made in-house, coffee marmalade, golden milk–the menu is an enjoyable read.

If you opt for a filter coffee or press, the beans they use for those change like some restaurants change their soup of the day. Check the chalkboard under the espresso machine for where your coffee soup is coming from that day. 

There’s a large, airy room with high ceilings and tables that are perfect for a lunch date or getting some work done while you mindfully chug coffee. The WIFI was smooth and reliable like the coffee.

Filemón y Sagrado is located west from the Templo de Santo Domingo and the Jardín Etnobotánico de Oaxaca, and just up/north on the street from Pug Seal. 

The front entrance to the coffee shop, with a door way entering onto a shaded hallway. The sunshining into an open air courtyard is visible through the door. There are snake plants on either side of the doorway. It has very wide trim and a lintel on top. The door frame and lintel are painted white. The building is painted a deep, golden yellow. There are rounded clay roof tiles hanging over the edge of the building, shaded by tree branches extending into the picture frame at top.

Oaxaca en una Taza: get that chocolate croissant

Your Guide has a post devoted solely to the incredible chocolate croissant here: Oaxaca en una Taza has chocolate croissants you’ll want to bury yourself in. I’ve eaten many chocolate croissants around the world and this one is special. Their name means “Oaxaca in a Cup” but I think of it as: “Me in a Chocolate Croissant”.

There is also seating there, and great coffee. You can buy their coffee to take home with you. The WIFI is strong, the seats are comfortable, and the staff are very hospitable. 

The exterior of coffee shop, Oaxaca en una Taza

It’s also very convenient, so I would often stop at Oaxaca en una Taza early in the morning before doing a tour or class in Centro. It’s right around the corner from the Jardín Etnobotánico de Oaxaca and Tierra del Sol.

Cafébre: an ideal courtyard for reading and writing

A skeleton decorated for Christmas stands outside the exit of Cafebre, Oaxaca. Inside the doorway, a courtyard with tables is visible.
Depending on when you stop by, the skeleton at the entrance will dress up to welcome you.
A piece of chocolate cake with thick icing on top, beside two books, and a mug of coffee as large as the cake, sitting on a table in the courtyard of my favorite coffee shop in Oaxaca, Mexico: Cafebre.
A bowl of coffee, a slice of chocolate cake, and books! A good afternoon at Cafébre.

Cafébre’s courtyard has plants and light and a variety of different tables and chairs so you can find the right spot for your laptop and a bowl of coffee and a piece of cake with an inch of chocolate ganache.

The food is delicious, the coffee is bold, and the space is comfortable and welcoming. It’s the kind of space I wouldn’t hesitate to go for a work session or to meet somebody.

Located right in the middle of Centro, it’s an easy refuge if you need a break from running around town.

The exterior of Cafebre, Oaxaca. It is a one store building, painted reddish brown. There is a large door with a lintel above. A round sign beside it that says Cafebre.

CHO & Co

CHO & Co is an important refueling stop every time you visit Centro. There is some seating but it’s more of a bakery. And what a bakery it is! Feast on the brownie paleta I shared about in this post: CHO & Co for chocolate desserts in Oaxaca 

I’d say CHO & Co is the place to stop by if you want to get a coffee and something chocolatey while you’re moving around town. If you’re moving from one tourist attraction or on your way back to your hotel, then CHO & Co might be ideal. It’s also close to all of the action. I stopped by after my English-language tour of the Jardín Etnobotánico de Oaxaca

Is Selina Oaxaca's cafe good for remote work?

The Selina in Oaxaca is located at 5 de Mayo 217, Ruta Independencia, Centro, which is a short walk away from the Quinta Real Oaxaca (click here for my review of the Quinta Real). While I was staying at the Quinta Real, I stopped by Selina one afternoon to have a coffee and do some work. Maybe the Quinta Real’s peaceful gardens spoiled me, but the Selina’s café had too much traffic noise and exhaust fumes for me. It has two open doors right on a busy street corner. It’s not in a quiet courtyard. You get trucks idling or revving their engines at the intersection throughout the day.

The exterior of Selina, Oaxaca co-working space and hotel
The exterior of Selina, Oaxaca. The cafe's tables are immediately inside the two open doors on the corner.
A cup of coffee on a table inside the cafe of Selina, Oaxaca
I had an Americano at Selina's cafe. There was excellent crema on top.

But if you’re looking for the co-working feel, and you’d like a quieter place, I’d recommend a short walk down the street to Muss Cafe…

Muss Café

Whenever I’ve visited Muss Café, it’s been full of people on laptops. It combines excellent espresso with a co-working space vibe. The café itself is a first floor shop in a large colonial building steps from the Zocalo. Across from the espresso machine is a single row of tables and benches along the wall. Walk out the back door, however, and you enter the inner courtyard of boutique hotel Casa Antonieta. There you’ll find an airy, multi-story courtyard with large tables and plants and comfortable chairs. That’s a fantastic place to work. 

This Guide hasn’t stayed at Casa Antonieta, but it has excellent reviews, and the work area, wifi, and coffee combo is definitely top-notch. A room with a patio and breakfast runs around $200 USD during the high-season. If you book, please use our affiliate link:  Casa Antonieta

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