Guide to the best cafés in Covent Garden

If you're looking for some of the finest coffee Covent Garden can offer, try Monmouth Coffee Company. This place really puts the emphasis on quality and roasts its own beans. Visit the café to sample a range of coffee drinks, as well as sweet treats like pastries. Coffee beans and equipment are also available for purchase.

Lively Lilly's Café Covent Garden offers fun all-day dining. Draped with palm leaves, it's a style-conscious spot that's popular for breakfast and brunch. Bottomless brunch is on here too. Visit for a meal or come for a hot drink and a sweet treat – the venue is run by a pastry chef, so the cake displays are always worth checking out.

Covent Garden Café offers a peaceful retreat from the busy pace of the area. This tranquil and contemporary café serves hot and cold drinks in a relaxed environment. Coffee, smoothies, and milkshakes are all available here, in addition to tasty snacks like scones and cakes.

Coffee and music are the two big passions at Notes. High-grade coffee is served in this bright and contemporary setting, which looks homey and often gets busy. Expect good music coming from the speakers, coffee roasted in-house in East London, and food served all day, like brunch recipes or cheese and charcuterie sharing boards. 

When you need a tea break that comes full of French elegance, Ladurée London is the ideal choice in Covent Garden. This refined destination is well-known for its macarons but that's not all you can indulge in here. All-day dining dishes like sandwiches and omelettes are served, but you can also sample a sweet treat paired with a hot drink or champagne.

Grind has locations all over the city, including one in Covent Garden. The emphasis at this contemporary spot is on top-quality fresh coffee and juices, but you can also try out cocktails and global café dishes here. Contemporary options like bruschetta topped with burrata or avocado toast are on the menu.

Cosy café Abuelo brings Aussie coffee culture to Covent Garden. It's all about great coffee and tasty brunch food here – there are a number of coffee blends to choose from, plus creative recipes like fritters, toasties, and filled empanadas. Food is served all day in this bright and peaceful space.

Brigit's Bakery is an unashamedly pink café and bakery. It's popular for afternoon tea, available at the café or on a roving double-decker bus. Brunch and lunch are served at this bustling spot, in addition to an array of sweet treats such as cupcakes and scones. This cheerful venue also has spaces for private events.

Visit White Pine and you'll find a café with a Nordic touch housed within a Scandinavian lifestyle store. The café is a plant-based venue, offering coffee as well as Nordic-inspired snacks like smoothie bowls and rye bread sandwiches. In the store you'll discover sustainable homewares, beauty products, books, and gifts.

French bakery and patisserie Orée has locations around the city, including one in Covent Garden. The venue is painted blue outside and has a welcoming feel. Visit to shop for fresh pastries and bread, or stop by for coffee along with fresh sandwiches and snacks. Takeaways and delivery are also offered.

Originating from Denmark, Ole & Steen is now a familiar sight in London. Foodies come here for fresh Scandinavian bakes like bread and flavoured buns, as well as for treats in the cosy and contemporary café space. Enjoy a hot drink with an open sandwich, pastry, soup, or cheese toastie.

Relaxed café The Black Penny is an ideal choice for breakfast or lunch in Covent Garden. Set over two floors, the venue is decorated in a smart style, complete with sophisticated coffee-themed artwork. There's a selection of meaty, veggie, and vegan breakfast dishes, plus filled buns and signatures hashes.

With two locations in Covent Garden, WatchHouse takes inspiration from its buzzy surroundings for its decor. This contemporary café is dedicated to serving high quality coffee in a design-forward setting. There are options if you're hungry too – to match its modern coffee, the café serves a menu of modern takes on brunch favourites.

In Drury Lane you'll find a popular but understated spot for food and drinks - Café Verona. Hot drinks are served but it's also an in-demand place for food, served canteen-style. This functional and straightforward café is well-known for its cooked breakfasts but other options include pasta, soup, and panini sandwiches. Menus are written on chalkboards outside.

Founded in Kyoto, % Arabica in Covent Garden is the group's first international outpost. This cool space boasts slick modern design as well as quality coffee inspired by coffee cultures all over the world. Visit the café to try the coffee or buy some beans to savour at home.

Bageriet brings a taste of Sweden to Londoners with its fresh traditional bakes. Many foodies come by to shop for bread, pastries, and sweet or savoury celebration cakes. You can also stop in the small and intimate café to enjoy tasty treats like classic cinnamon buns and coffee in a cosy rustic setting.

Redemption Roasters gives something back, working with offenders in prison to roast coffee, providing skills and employment opportunities. The Covent Garden café is cosy, tasteful, and contemporary, with plenty of wooden accents. As well as quality filter and espresso coffee, guests can enjoy cakes, pastries, and brunch dishes here.

Apple Butter Café feels vibrant with bursts of colour around the space and a Middle Eastern-influenced menu. There's also an elegant apple tree growing right in the middle of the venue. Tea and coffee are served here, but you can also try a variety of dishes, including breakfast options, salads, sandwiches, and pasta.

Founded in 1999 in Greece, Coffee Island has become a renowned international group of roasters and coffee shops. This award-winning brand has a bright and airy café in Covent Garden where you can sample speciality coffee prepared with a range of methods to bring out the flavours. Light food like muffins and croissants is also available.

Contemporary coffee shop Neal Street Espresso works with people involved in crime and addiction to give them a second chance with work, training, and support. Visit this bustling and tasteful venue to sample carefully crafted drinks made with sustainable single origin beans, alongside a variety of light snacks like banana bread and toasties.

When you want creamy and warming chai in Covent Garden, head to Chai Guys in Seven Dials Market. This bold and modern spot offers a range of chai blends, including an iced chai. Tasty pastries are also served to ideally complement your drink. You can also shop here for chai blends to savour at home, as well as ceramics for holding your hot drinks.

WA Café combines classic French patisserie techniques with distinctive flavours from Japan. The café is a calm and minimalist oasis, serving inventive cakes and pastries including mousses and cheesecakes, plus high-grade coffee and tea. Goods here are also available for takeaway or can be delivered directly to your door.

The Covent Garden branch of Kiss the Hippo is a sanctuary for coffee lovers, offering the house blend with rich notes of chocolate, butterscotch, and berries, alongside a variety of single-origin coffees and other beverages, complemented by pastries and eco-conscious treats. It features both indoor and outdoor seating, and you can also stock up on the brand's compostable pods and coffee gear here.