Café culture has been slowly developing in Georgia, especially in Tbilisi and some other cities. If some time ago, all you could get was mostly Turkish coffee and instant coffee, that has completely changed.
Below, I will be listing best cafes in Tbilisi which provide good coffee and sweets and/or are beautiful. I have visited all of these cafes at least once, while some of them I frequent.
Useful Tips for Visiting Cafes in Tbilisi
Before I start listing the cafes we love and recommend, I have to give you some tips, that may help you while visiting popular cafes:
- You will find some cafes that do open before 10am, however, there are far more of them which open only at 10 or even later. So, if you need your morning coffee fix or breakfast, make sure to double check the opening times of the cafes near your hotel or in the area you are visiting.
- Some cafes add tax/service charge separately (18%), which should be noted on the menu. Most of the listed cafes however will charge the stated amount and you can leave the tip at your own discretion.
- Some of these cafes only serve coffee and sweets, but the majority of them serve good food as well. Some of them even serve some Georgian food, if you want to try but are not a fan of huge loud restaurants, like me.
- You will find English speaking staff and menus at all of the cafes listed here.
Here is general information about visiting Georgia with detailed tips and itineraries.
Here is the suggested itinerary for Tbilisi for you to find out how to arrange your time in the city.
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List of Nice Cafés in Tbilisi
The café listings are in no particular order here. Just some nice cafes in those areas:
Best Cafes in Tbilisi Old Town and Liberty Square
I am starting with these areas, because they are the most touristy. This is where you will definitely end up while exploring Tbilisi. You may be even staying very close to one of these cafes.
The décor at Frida’s is very colorful. If you want eye catching instagram photos, this is for you.
Coffee is all right, nothing special, but it doesn’t matter much, as you will be basically coming here for the décor and view. This cafe is on a hill but it’s not that difficult to climb – make sure to come from the Asatiani street side, from where you will have to go uphill but it’s not too steep. If you come from the bathes area, you will have to climb more steep slopes.
If you would like a café with a view, check out this one. Keep in mind that as the name suggests you do have to climb 144 stairs, so do this only if you don’t have any mobility issues. The café itself is very cute and I believe has the best views of any café in the city (well, there are some restaurants, which also have similarly great views though). The food and drinks are nothing particularly special, I wouldn’t come here to eat, just order coffee or another drink and enjoy the view.
As the name suggests, this cafe is known for its choux, but the coffee is great too. The location may be a bit difficult to understand, Google maps has the correct pin, you just have to go through an arch into the courtyard. For summer it has very nice and quiet outside seating.
This café next to the writers’ house has a lovely décor and most importantly cute yard, in the center of which is a huge tree. The café is on the expensive side, if you want to eat here, but it’s worth a short visit for coffee. From what I see, they prefer reservations, but you can try your luck by just showing up. We showed up a couple of times and managed to get a table.
One of the most popular cafes in the city. It’s famous for its décor. Food is not widely liked by Georgians, however, it’s pretty decent. You should come here for its lovely interior. Plus, it’s so close to the main attractions you will be seeing in Tbilisi.
Bazari Orbelianze – My favourite cafes here include Qooqy Bakery and Coffee Lab
This isn’t a bazaar, as you may mistakenly think due to its name. It’s sort of a food court and a hanging out space and was called bazaar simply because this area used to be a real bazaar years ago. Currently, it’s nicely decorated with a number of food and coffee spots you can check out.
I particularly like Qooqy Bakery stand here: their choix and other cakes are delicious. There is also a Coffee Lab stand for great coffee. Plus, you can find any type of food from local to international cuisines. Upstairs there’s a small balcony area, where you can sit to have a view of the surroundings.
This cafe started its operation during the time when the old style décor in the old apartments became popular in Tbilisi. The old style chairs and tables, chandeliers, photos and mirrors all contribute to the quirky atmosphere. The café is very Instagrammable, if you are looking for something different. It’s not cheap any more (well, nothing is any more in Tbilisi), but it’s worth a visit. The atmosphere is nice.
This café opened a few years ago. Its décor is pretty cute. They mainly have seating outside on the pedestrian street, which is nice. They have pretty good coffee as well.
This is my favourite coffee in Tbilisi. You probably know Illy anyway, it’s a huge chain with various types of great coffee. This one is no different. I like all types of coffee they have (although servings are small). The Illycrema based coffee are delicious, I also like their food a lot – they do great Club sandwich.
Best Cafes around Rustaveli, Mtatsminda and Vera Areas
Like the old town, these areas are also where most tourists will end up, while exploring Tbilisi. They are considered the heart of the city.
This café is nice with the open air seating. The only disadvantage is that it’s on the highway, so a bit loud, if you are sitting outside. I especially love their Tiramisu. Food is also very good. By the way, I discovered this café during COVID times, when we were ordering their food and sweets to be delivered home.
This lovely cafe/bar has been very popular among Georgians, due to its beautiful interior. For a while, people were doing proposals here – each time we would visit, someone was proposing 🙂 It has good coffee and waffles, as well as food.
One of the most popular places in the city. Stamba has a restaurant part and a café side. the restaurant also has great, albeit expensive food. The café offers good coffee and homemade chocolate, as well as pastries (you can order khachapuri here for instance). It has a spacious yard in the back with wooden seats, if you prefer to sit outside in summer.
This cafe is located in the hotel. Like in Stamba there is a restaurant section and a café/bar section. They have nice wide armchair seats in the café part and good coffee.
This café can’t boast with its food or sweets, but it’s a cute colorful café, you may wish to have a look at.
Do you want to buy some beautifully decorated cakes? Then this cafe is for you. It’s relatively new and very popular. They have tasty, although expensive, cakes. The décor is lovely, more old style. They also have a quiet open air seating.
Althaus now has 5 branches around the area. I do like this branch on Kostava, as it’s housed in an old apartment and is cozy. I come here quite often They offer a number of different tea options, good coffee (Americano is good, although I am not a fan of their cappuccino) and tasty pancakes and waffles. The service staff are very nice and welcoming. The atmosphere is also very nice. Overall, I highly recommend this café.
This café is housed in an English-language bookshop. It has a lovely quiet yard once you enter from the Rustaveli avenue, as well as seating inside among the bookshelves. You can read a book while enjoying your coffee. Their coffee is certainly not the strongest, but it’s decent.
This café chain started as a small ice cream shop and now has cafes and stand in several locations around the city. Their ice cream is all right, so is their coffee, so if you are on Rustaveli and want a quick coffee and snack, you can stop by.
A recently opened very popular café with good coffee. Each time I come here, it’s always crowded.
Want to get some delicious cakes? Praline is the recent addition to Tbilisi’s cafe scene and I love their cakes – I keep ordering the three chocolate mousse.
Erti Kava has a branch in Mestia, where we discovered it. In Tbilisi they opened this cafe relatively recently. We enjoy their coffee a lot. Plus, the cute colorful decorations is certainly a big bonus. It’s very popular and particularly crowded on the weekends.
This cafe is located in the white building you can see on Mtatsminda, near the TV tower, from almost anywhere in the old town. You can get here either by riding a train from this location or taking a cable car from Rustaveli. You will find the cafe as soon as you get off the train.
The lower floor is a spacious café, while upper floors house an expensive Georgian restaurant. I do suggest going to this café for sure, unless you can afford to pay a fortune in the restaurant upstairs. This café has very tasty light cakes, as well as good coffee. You also have an option to eat various types of food here. The café has inside and outside seating and the view is certainly nice.
The main attraction of this cafe is the fact that they paint your face on the takeaway coffee cup. The artists usually change, so the picture of yourself you can get today may be entirely different from the one you got yesterday. I did this a few times and while the photo doesn’t always look like me, I still like seeing what they are gonna do next. We still do keep some versions we particularly liked. In addition to this Instagrammable fun feature, their coffee is good as well, so I do suggest coming here.
Best Cafes around Marjanishvili
At the heart of this area is the Aghmashenebeli Avenue. Parts of it were renovated a few years ago and you may enjoy walking around here.
A very popular café always full, especially during weekends. Their food is on the expensive side, but delicious; so are their cakes and coffee. With coffee they give small tasty locally made cookies btw, which I love. The café decoration is rich and lovely. They also have great seating space outside, where it’s always difficult to find a seat. I highly recommend coming here at least once.
This is not a café, but a hostel with the courtyard of several cafes and bars. It’s very popular among young people during the daytime, as well as evenings. So if you want to find a lively spot to hang out, this is for you.
This bakery has good coffee and breads/sandwiches.
Best Cafes in Vake
While this area is more residential and being a tourist you may not exactly walk in that direction, it’s full of nice coffee places. So if you do decide to walk around, you can check out some of these cafes as well.
If you like strong coffee, this café is for you. They have a great selection of nice coffees. The café opened several years ago and this is already their second branch. Also try their food option, they are really good.
A good option lunch – you should try their pancakes.
One of my favourite places for lunch. This café was opened by a Ukrainian about a decade ago. It became very popular, due to its great food and drinks. I do like all types of food I tried here. They also have a great selection of good coffee. The only thing I am not entirely a fan of is their cakes, as they are too heavy for me. But if you like particularly sweet cakes, you will enjoy them too. The café is quite small, so if you come exactly during lunch hours, you may not find a spot. By the way, it actually is the only café I heard of in Tbilisi that is open 24 hours.
Mziuri is a park which you can get to by taking stairs down from Chavchavadze avenue. The café is inside the park. It has very cute décor and seating inside and outside. Their coffee and sweets are good. They also offer food, but I haven’t tried it, as I usually go for coffee.
This one is considered restaurant, as well as a cafe. It’s a popular lunch place and they have great coffee at that.
This cafe is a go to place for people who love breakfast food. It has short operating hours and closes by 3pm. I do like their eggs benedict.
Best Cafes in Saburtalo
This is another area you won’t end up at while exploring the city, unless you go specifically. It’s a university and residential area with a number of shops and cafes. Here are some suggestions, if you by any chance do end up there.
If you are a chocolate lover, don’t miss this place. This is one of my favorite cafes for buying chocolate, as well as having their hot chocolate and coffee or even coming for lunch. Oh and don’t forget their delicious cakes. As a bonus their interior is cute.
This branch has spacious outside seating in a small square. It has good selection of strong coffee and is very popular. Actually during busy times, it’s totally full and you can’t even find a seat. I do like their food options as well – try their salads and the eggs benedict, if you are around.
This café is known for its cakes. They have various types of cakes worth checking out.
While this cafe has a small seating space, it has great cakes and coffee. I do often order their cheesecakes and croissants. Be sure to stop by, if you are in the area.
Best Cafes Farther From Central Areas
This café is located in a residential area far from any transport connections. The only way to get there by public transport is by minibus, so it would be too complicated. So I would suggest taking a taxi. The café is famous for its lovely garden. You will need to pay 5 GEL to enter the garden. The drinks are fine – I don’t particularly remember either liking or disliking them. But you wouldn’t be coming for food or drinks really, mainly for the garden.
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