Cafeography
Café de especialidad · Montevideo

Specialty coffee cafés in Montevideo

House roasters from Ciudad Vieja to Prado and Malvín.

Photo: Amelia Hallsworth, Pexels License

Café de especialidad (specialty coffee) is a recent arrival in a country better known for mate, the bitter herbal infusion sipped from a gourd: Uruguay drinks around 19 liters of it per person a year, the highest rate anywhere.1 Third-wave coffee began spreading in Montevideo around 2013, and new shops and roasteries have opened regularly since.2

MVD Roasters founder Alvaro Planzo told Sprudge in 2017 that Uruguayans are crazy about coffee but usually take it with a lot of sugar, and that yerba mate has made them used to bitter flavors.3 By June 2025, El Observador named Ciudad Vieja, Centro, Cordón, Parque Rodó, Punta Carretas and Pocitos as the neighborhoods leading the specialty boom.4

Local tip: Plan a morning cup at Tavoli in Malvín for Wednesday to Saturday: on Tuesdays and Sundays it opens only at 15:30.

Where these cafés are: Pocitos (2), Malvín (1), Parque Rodó (1), Prado & the north (1), Ciudad Vieja (1), Punta Carretas (1), Centro & Cordón (1), Buceo (1).

At a glance

9Cafés listed
2With opening hours
08:00Earliest opening
20:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Café Doré, from 08:00 (Mon–Fri 08:00–20:00 · Sat–Sun 13:00–20:00).
  • Most common features: indoor seating (33%), outdoor seating (22%), card payment (11%).

Nothing matches those filters here. See all cafés in Montevideo.

The Lab Coffee Roasters

The Lab, founded in 2015 and run by Verónica Leyton and her family, roasts for its own cafés and also supplies hotels, restaurants and private-label clients around Uruguay.5 In July 2024 it had six outlets in Montevideo, among them one at the National Museum of Visual Arts and one in Punta Carretas, and it has distributed La Marzocco espresso machines in Uruguay since 2015.5

In 2017 its baristas were pouring coffees from Colombia, Costa Rica, Burundi, Kenya and Indonesia and talking customers through origins, processing and brew methods.3 Its Ciudad Vieja café is at Sarandí 285, and another branch with outdoor tables sits at Avenida Luis Alberto de Herrera 1109 in Buceo.

Cafetto in Prado and Café Gourmand on Constituyente

Cafetto opened in 2014 at Joaquín Suárez 3640 in Prado. Co-founder Alicia Radi told El Observador in 2022 that it began by importing specialty coffee, trained with the Specialty Coffee Association and then started roasting its own.6 In 2019, Cafetto Prado was also roasting the beans for Tándem on Constituyente.2

Café Gourmand, on Constituyente near Parque Rodó, is a family business founded by Erica and Gregoire Bouthier that roasts its own coffee; in 2019 the beans came from Finca La María in Colombia, served as espresso drinks and pour-overs.2

Specialty cafés beyond the central barrios

Newer specialty cafés have moved into neighborhoods with little such choice. Desmadre opened on Itapebí, the central block of Jacinto Vera, about a year and a half before June 2025, and opens 09:00–20:00.4 Gallardía Café in La Comercial opened in 2025, pours coffee from local roasters with French pastry, and opens weekdays 12:00–20:00 and Saturdays 09:00–20:00.4

In La Blanqueada, Casa Berracos occupies a house built in 1924 on Esteros Bellacos, and sells croissants, focaccia and milanesas alongside coffee, vermouth and fernet.4 Further east, Tavoli at Santiago de Anca 1420 in Malvín opens Wednesday to Saturday 10:00–19:30, and only from 15:30 on Tuesdays and Sundays.

What a cup costs and when to go

As of October 2026, a regular cappuccino in Montevideo costs about UY$178 on average, with a typical range of UY$120–300.7

Check the day before you go. In 2022, Cafetto opened 11:00–20:00 and closed from Sunday to Tuesday.6 Tavoli's mornings are Wednesday to Saturday only, and Gallardía Café doesn't open before noon on weekdays.4

Sources

  1. Mate (drink), Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. A Specialty Coffee Shop Tour of Montevideo, Uruguay, Perfect Daily Grind (July 26, 2019), accessed October 2026
  3. The Good Coffee Lover's Guide to Montevideo, Uruguay, Sprudge (July 31, 2017), accessed October 2026
  4. Las cafeterías de especialidad en Montevideo que apuestan por barrios por fuera de Ciudad Vieja, Cordón y Pocitos, El Observador (June 6, 2025), accessed October 2026
  5. Uruguay's The Lab Coffee Roasters launches first franchise programme, World Coffee Portal (July 1, 2024), accessed October 2026
  6. ¿Dónde merendar? Cinco cafeterías para conocer en Montevideo, El Observador (October 8, 2022), accessed October 2026
  7. Cost of Living in Montevideo, Numbeo (last update October 24, 2026), accessed October 2026
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By area: Ciudad Vieja Parque Rodó Centro & Cordón Punta Carretas Pocitos Buceo

FAQ

Specialty coffee in Montevideo: questions

Which Montevideo cafés roast their own specialty coffee?

The Lab Coffee Roasters, founded in 2015, roasts for its own cafés, including Sarandí 285 in Ciudad Vieja and Avenida Luis Alberto de Herrera 1109 in Buceo, and supplies other businesses. Cafetto in Prado began roasting its own after training with the Specialty Coffee Association, and Café Gourmand on Constituyente roasts its own beans.

Which Montevideo neighborhoods are best for specialty coffee?

Ciudad Vieja, Centro, Cordón, Parque Rodó, Punta Carretas and Pocitos have led the specialty boom. Newer cafés have opened further out: Desmadre on Itapebí in Jacinto Vera, Gallardía Café in La Comercial and Casa Berracos in a 1924 house in La Blanqueada.

How much does a cappuccino cost in Montevideo?

As of October 2026, a regular cappuccino in Montevideo costs about UY$178 on average, with a typical range of UY$120 to 300. Some specialty cafés keep short weeks: Tavoli in Malvín opens only from 15:30 on Tuesdays and Sundays, and Gallardía Café opens at noon on weekdays.

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