Kiev is blessed with hipster cafes and good coffee to rival anywhere in the world.
Locals explain their coffee is good, compared to say France, because coffee was prohibited during the soviet occupation of Ukraine.
When the USSR crumbled in 1991 and Ukraine won independence, coffee entrepreneurs were able to take on the best practices and contemporary trends from around the world.
So know there’s lots of good coffee in Kiev. In our opinion these are the 5 best cafes in Kiev (which we didn’t find on any other lists).
5 Best Cafes in Kiev
We loved these great Kiev cafes because they have good coffee, an upbeat atmosphere, wifi, place to work with a laptop including power plugs and they’re near Kiev centre.
Use this map to find the coffee shop nearest to you to try out.
ONE LOVE espresso bar
Located at the bottom of Toronto-Kyiv Business Centre, One Love espresso bar is distinct from other Kiev cafes.
From the moment you spot the cafe on the ground floor of a typical Toronto-skycraper, surrounded by businessmen and women in suits, you’ll feel like you are in Canada or the US, rather than downtown Kiev.
Inside, the cafe is decorated in wooden Scandinavian design, which is punctuated by chess boards and plants.
Almost every seat has power plugs, and a decent table for working on a laptop while drinking coffee.
Coffee is noticeably dear here than elsewhere in Kiev, starting at 65 UAH ($3 USD). Vegans are catered for – 85 UAH for a soy milk latte.
ONE Love espresso bar is dear by Ukrainian standards but is easily the most stylish cafe in Kiev and a great place to meet people or to get work done.
Bimbo Coffee
A small cafe located about 40 minutes walk downtown from Independence Square.
Outside is a popular al fresco terrace area with comfortable lounges. Inside is air-conditioned and seats a surprising amount of people in comfort.
Capuccino will set you back 40 UAH, large lattes cost 60 UAH.
Early birds get the figurative worm here. A cappuccino + choice of turkey sandwich, oatmeal berry bowl or for 90 UAH.
Most cafes in Kiev serve alcohol too, and Bimbo Coffee is no different.
There’s a large selection of bottled craft beers to sample in addition to popular cocktails (Apero Spritz again)!
Lviv Handmade Chocolate
For a unique coffee experience, why not stop in at Lviv Handmade chocolate where you can order a good quality cappuccino (39 UAH – $2) and cup of melted milk chocolate (59 UAH – $3)?
The perfect motivation to get moving in the morning, or reward to end the day.
The interior is decorated in vintage white linen tablecloths and female staff dress in old-fashioned dresses with aprons.
Prices: cappuccino (39 UAH – $2) and cup of melted milk chocolate (59 UAH – $3)
Lviv Handmade Chocolate: one of many cute cafes in Kiev with good coffee and of course chocolate
L’kafa Cafe
This 24 hour lounge bar come restaurant come cafe is not one we would normally frequent. Out front you’ll inevitably find revelers lounging around sucking on a Hookah and probably sipping a beer.
However, one night we were looking for a cafe at an unusual hour and this chain was one of the few places open.
We were surprised to find seats with power plugs.
Beers are affordable by non-Ukrainian standards (59 UAH or $3 USD). Coffees too at about 40 UAH ($2).
The Journalist
We strongly considered excluding this cafe because although the location is good and interior nice, there are a few issues which progressively bugged us:-
- you have about 10 minutes to drink your coffee. After that, the staff are instructed to do the rounds and collect cup, half-filled or otherwise. People stay longer, but the staff under the obvious instruction of the owner (who will literally point out offenders) to hurry people along;
- if your coffee is served cold – which happened to us twice – the baristas won’t fix it. Ask the preposterous question of heating the stone-cold coffee in the microwave, or remaking it instead, and you’ll be answered with a look of utter antipathy and contempt, “it can’t be heated any more”.
If the strong possibility of encountering dick-ish behaviour won’t spoil your time, consider The Journalist.
Coffee from The Journalist cafe in Kiev
Centrally located 10 minutes walk from Independence Square Kiev. This cafe isn’t quite peak hipster, rather it’s modern stylish and even a bit fancy.
Lots of light, lots of seating though it still gets crowded. Almost every seat has a power plug and/or USB charger.
Typewriters, vintage soviet cameras and National Geographic and Vogue magazines occupy decorate the space.
Blazing fast wifi (like 70 Mbps download / upload), exposed brick walls, white shelves and furniture complimented by plenty of green (living) plants. Air-conditioning too of course. The interior is functional and fashionable.
The coffee is very good too. A latte costs 35 UAH ($1.5) – or 10 UAH more if you chose to sit in.
One of the cooler items on the menu is the cold brew coffee which is served chilled in a glass hip flask.
Groups of girls come here for a quiet cocktail (Apero Spritz is the most popular) to start the evening.
There’s also an al fresco area out front where you can sit back and relax while people watching the shoppers on Velyka Vasylkivska Street.
The atmosphere is kept bright by upbeat but not overbearing jazz music.
More Kiev Blog Posts
Is Kiev safe to visit in 2019? One of the most common questions for anyone planning to visit Ukraine. Here’s a few tips
Independence Square: Don’t miss these 5 interesting sights in Kiev’s main square
St Michael’s Cathedral: Interesting things to know about the Golden Domed cathedral in Kiev
Golden Gate Kiev: The story behind one of the most visited attractions in Kiev
Tunnel of Love Ukraine: Not in Kiev but a must-see destination in Ukraine. Crazy interesting photos.
More Great Coffee Around the World:
If you love coffee like us, here are some other great coffee shops around the world:
