Best coffees of Coral Gables: The Complete Guide to the City's Cafés You Need to Know
Updated: Sep 20
Coral Gables has a special relationship with coffee. It's not just a quick stop between meetings, it's part of the rhythm of the city. In this guide, we've gathered ten cafés that each tell you something about what makes this community special, from the one that arrived from New York with a story spanning nearly two decades, to the one almost no one knows about yet but probably should.
Threefold Cafe
📍 Instagram: @threefoldcafe
The Story: Threefold brought Melbourne, Australia's specialty coffee tradition to Coral Gables, an approach that was rare in Miami at the time: traditional-sized espresso and single-origin pour-overs, made with the same seriousness you'd find in Australia or Scandinavia.
The People Behind It: The team has earned recognition from The Infatuation and CavsConnect for holding that specialty standard without losing the warmth of a neighborhood café.
What Sets Them Apart: Over 2,000 combined reviews across Yelp and Google (4.4/5) one of the highest review counts of any café in Coral Gables.
Why You'll Love It: Sky-high reviews, serious specialty coffee, and a team recognized by local press, everything you need in a reliable spot to work quietly, read, or get a proper espresso without leaving Coral Gables.
Tinta y Café
📍 Instagram: @tintaycafe
The Story: Born as a bridge between old-school Cuban coffee culture and a gourmet take on the croqueta, two symbols of Cuban cuisine, elevated without losing their soul.
The People Behind It: The team pulled off something rare: a MICHELIN Guide recommendation and a feature on PBS's "Check Please! South Florida" two honors that almost never land on the same address.
What Sets Them Apart: Over 2,300 combined reviews across Yelp and Google, the reference point for gourmet Cuban coffee in the city.
Why You'll Love It: MICHELIN recognition, national TV coverage, and a croqueta that's already part of Coral Gables lore. Perfect for showing an out-of-town guest something genuinely local, or for your daily cafecito with a little extra flair.
Bachour
📍 Instagram: @bachourmiami
The Story: The café and pastry shop of chef Antonio Bachour, one of the most internationally recognized names in fine pastry.
The People Behind It: Antonio Bachour himself, his reputation as a world-class pastry chef is, on its own, the reason many visitors come to Coral Gables specifically to find this place.
What Sets Them Apart: A MICHELIN Guide Bib Gourmand and nearly 1,000 Yelp reviews with over 3,000 photos, the highest photo count of any café on this list, almost entirely uploaded by customers themselves.
Why You'll Love It: World-class pastry, MICHELIN recognition, and thousands of customers who already back it up with their own photos. The ideal spot for a special occasion, to impress someone, or simply to treat yourself without leaving the neighborhood.
A NOTE FROM IMOTION We're iMotion, a photography and video studio serving South Florida. We put this guide together because we wanted to celebrate the places that have won us over on our own trips around the area — not so much for what they sell, but for what they are: their team, their essence, the reason someone decided to open those doors one day and still keeps them open with the same care. We hope reading this gives you a small taste of what we felt the first time we walked into each one of these places. Message us on Instagram and tell us what you thought of this guide: instagram.com/imotion.co |
Café Grumpy
📍 Instagram: @cafegrumpy
The Story: Founded in Greenpoint, Brooklyn nearly two decades ago, Café Grumpy became one of New York's most beloved independent coffee brands, so beloved that its original Greenpoint location was a filming location for HBO's "Girls." Today, that same brand has a home in Coral Gables, on Ponce de León Blvd.
The People Behind It: Founded by Caroline Bell, who built Café Grumpy into one of New York's most respected independent roasters before expanding to South Florida.
What Sets Them Apart: Nearly 100 Yelp reviews and 140 photos at its Coral Gables location, plus a local reputation for hosting art and community events in the space.
Why You'll Love It: Almost 20 years of history, a real New York story, and a space that's already part of the neighborhood's cultural life. Ideal for anyone looking for a café with character, an afternoon of work, or simply the feeling of being somewhere with genuine roots.
Café Demetrio
📍 Instagram: @cafedemetrio
The Story: Billed as the oldest café in Coral Gables, operating out of a 1920s building that once housed the city's first newspaper, a direct link to Coral Gables' own origins.
The People Behind It: Founded by husband-and-wife team Demetrio and Vilma Piña, inspired by 18th-century European coffeehouses.
What Sets Them Apart: Being, by its own account, the city's first "coffee house", a title no other café on this list can claim.
Why You'll Love It: History, architecture, and a founding couple with a clear vision from day one. The perfect spot for a long conversation, a charming date, or simply to feel Coral Gables of another era.
GROU Coffee + Cowork
📍 Instagram: @groucoffee
The Story: Coral Gables' first café-plus-coworking concept, and Miami's first affogato bar, two categories GROU was first to bring to the city.
The People Behind It: Co-founded by Barbara Safina, named Businesswoman of the Year in 2024, alongside Orlando Superlano.
What Sets Them Apart: Works with more than 70 local brands, a level of community impact few cafés this size reach.
Why You'll Love It: Innovation, community, and an affogato you won't find anywhere else in Miami. Perfect for work meetings, coworking, or simply a café with real community and entrepreneurial energy.
Dora's Bakery & Bistro
📍 Instagram: @doraglutenfree
The Story: Born from the gluten-free recipes grandmother Dora Milán developed to feel better herself, a personal need that grew into a family business.
The People Behind It: Carried forward today by co-founder Ana Crolla, who continues Dora's legacy.
What Sets Them Apart: Entirely gluten-free baked goods and coffee, built from one grandmother's original recipe.
Why You'll Love It: A genuine family story and a fully gluten-free menu made with real love. Ideal for anyone with dietary needs who doesn't want to sacrifice flavor, or simply wants to support a business with real heart behind it.
Madruga Bakery
📍 Instagram: @madrugabakery
The Story: Describes itself as "the only full bakery in Coral Gables" a bakery-café that mills its own organic wheat on stone, a level of craft rarely found in the area.
The People Behind It: The team behind that in-house mill, a process few businesses Madruga's size keep under their own roof.
What Sets Them Apart: Nearly 400 Yelp reviews, proof the product has already built a loyal following by word of mouth.
Why You'll Love It: Bread and pastry made with a level of craft few places maintain — from the wheat to the table. Perfect for anyone looking for something truly artisanal, not just in name.
Chef Sucre Café
📍 Instagram: @chefsucrecafe_coralgables
The Story: A French-Latin café with home-cooked food, run personally by the couple who founded it.
The People Behind It: The founding couple, present in the day-to-day of the shop, the kind of hospitality you notice the moment you walk in.
What Sets Them Apart: A TripAdvisor "Travelers' Choice" distinction and food that tastes like home.
Why You'll Love It: Genuine warmth, personal service, and recognition from travelers around the world. Ideal for anyone looking to feel like they're eating at the home of someone who truly knows how to cook.
Al's Coffee Shop
📍 Instagram: @als.coffeeshop
The Story: A classic Cuban-American coffee shop operating inside a bank building on Ponce de León, an unusual combination that gives it a character all its own.
The People Behind It: A regular crowd so loyal that reviewers describe it as "just like Cheers" the place where everybody knows your name.
What Sets Them Apart: 25-cent "Croqueta Tuesdays" a neighborhood tradition still very much alive.
Why You'll Love It: Real community, traditions worth keeping, and that neighborhood feeling where everyone knows each other by name. Perfect for anyone looking to feel part of something genuine, no pretense required.
Did You Know?
● Café Grumpy's original location was a filming set for HBO's "Girls," long before it opened in Coral Gables.
● Bachour holds a MICHELIN Guide Bib Gourmand, and its founder is one of the most recognized pastry chefs in the world.
● Café Demetrio operates out of a 1920s building that once housed Coral Gables' first newspaper.
● GROU Coffee + Cowork opened Miami's very first affogato bar.
● Madruga Bakery mills its own organic wheat on stone, something almost no other bakery-café in the area does.
Best coffees of Coral Gables Near you
Thank you to every one of the Best coffees of Coral Gables, for your service, your teams, and everything you pour into every cup. Coral Gables is better because of businesses like these.
What really matters about a café, a restaurant, or any business isn't just what it sells — it's its roots, its people, its team, its love for the craft, and its story.
At iMotion, that's what we aim to capture in every photo and every video we make. If you'd like us to tell your story through our photography and video, we can do it with a clear strategy, one that brings your purpose together with ours.
