I recently illustrated a map of my favorite coffee shops in Atlanta, so I figured why not update it for you all to enjoy. Here is the next installment of my ongoing discoveries of coffee shops in this city. Hope you can discover some of these lovelies and enjoy them as much as I have without breaking the bank!
So, here are my favorite coffee places in Atlanta [by proximity to SCAD]:
1. Land of a Thousand Hills [Atlantic Station]
Atlantic Station, 232 19th St NW #7100, Atlanta 30363 (470) 344-0197
Hours: Mon-Thur: 7am-10pm, Fri: 7am-10pm, Sat: 8am-11pm, Sun: 9am-9pm
- Best part, it’s walkable from SCAD
- It’s in Atlantic Station.
2. Sweet Hut Bakery and Café [Midtown]
933 Peachtree St Ne, Atlanta · 404 600 4800
Hours: Sun-Thu: 8am-12am, Fri-Sat: 8am-1am
- Walkable from SCAD
- Great place for a date or to sit down and sketch!
- Great lighting.
- Bubble tea
- Korean baked goods and food.
3. Café Intermezzo [Midtown]
1065 Peachtree Street, Suite 2, Atlanta, (404) 355-0411
Hours: Mon-Sun: 7:30am to 2am
- Walkable from SCAD
- A lovely place to dress up and feel beautiful.
- Perfect lighting for a chill night in the city.
- Excellent place for a date as well (this + the symphony=perfect night out).
- Entire menu (50+ pages) for drinks alone-alcohol + coffee, etc.
- Premium cheesecake history (let them tell you their story)
- Outdoor covered seating for fresh air.
- Language learning in the restroom.
- 2 Hours of validated parking is available in the parking deck of 1075 Peachtree with entrances on both 11th and 12th street. Ask hostess for a validation ticket.]
4. Octane Coffee/Bar [Multiple locations]
Photo courtesy of Christine Burney
Arts Center: [walkable from SCAD] Suite 100-A, 1280 Peachtree St. NE (same block as ACA)
Regular Hours: Mon-Fri: 7am-10pm, Sat-Sun: 8am-10pm
Grant Park: 437 Memorial Drive Suite A5, Atlanta, (404)815-9886
Regular Hours: Mon-Fri: 7am-10pm, Sat-Sun: 8am-10pm
Westside: 1009-B Marietta St, Atlanta, p 404.815.9886 ext 1
Regular Hours: Mon-Wed: 7am-10pm, Thu-Fri: 7am-11pm, Sat: 8am-11pm, Sun: 8am-10pm
Atlanta Tech Village (Buckhead): 3423 Piedmont Rd NE Ste 100, Atlanta, p 404 815 9886 ext 3
Regular Hours: Mon-Fri: 7am-7pm, Sat-Sun: 9am-4pm
- High-crafted coffee drinks
- Attached to Little Tart Bakery, the originator of my most favorite waffles and syrup on earth: Cheddar waffles and sorghum, with this wonderful syrup that tastes like honey mixed with molasses (if this is true, this makes me like molasses for the first time in my life).
- Local/seasonal ingredients from local farmers who use sustainable processes [www.littletartatl.com]
- Large sitting area-great place for meeting with friends, sketching, or meeting with friends to sketch.
- Outdoor seating-sitting place/water for dogs as well.
- Eclectic atmosphere-people who come here are anywhere from artists, business peeps,
- Alcohol on tap, sold after 5p
- Beautifully lit at night! Like being at a wedding.
- Barista competitions-fun to watch!
- Across the street from my second favorite beautiful place in Atlanta, Oakland Cemetery (first is the Chattahoochee River).
5. Amelie’s French Bakery [WestMidtown]
Photo courtesy of Christine Burney
840 Marietta St NW Atlanta 30318, p 404 921 0276
Regular Hours: Sun-Wed: 7am-8pm, Thu-Sat: 7am-10pm
- Games, great music, laid-back atmosphere!
- Great place to meet up for fun with groups
- Pastries!
- Separate room for events.
- Gourmet coffee and wonderful lemonade.
- Weekly yoga Thursday evenings 6-7
6. Hodgepodge Coffeehouse and Gallery [East Side]
720 Moreland Ave., Atlanta (404)622-8525
Hours: Mon-Sat: 7am-9pm, Sun: 9-9pm
- Home to Atlanta Zine Library: A Zine (/ˈziːn/ ZEEN; an abbreviation of fanzine, or magazine) is most commonly a small circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images usually reproduced via photocopier (Google defined).
- Coffee drinks! “Organic coffee, shade-grown, bird friendly”
- Interesting used books for sale: great place for the intellectual reader/writer
- Fun gallery areas on walls, featuring local artists-even SCAD students!
- Occasional Ladypreneur League meetups…
- Big round tables to do homework
Regular events:
- Monthly art show with Atlanta artists
- Open Mic – 1st/3rd Thurs of every month at 7.30p. Features singer/songwriters, poets, rappers and spoken word artists.
- The “Hodgepodge Comedy Lodge” – every Wed night (call for info)
- Atlanta Intown Songwriters Showcase – 2nd Thursday of every month.
- Local handmade goods for sale
- “Art Attack Kids” is every Monday
- Story Time is Mondays at 11am
7. Chattahoochee Coffee Company
Photo courtesy of Christine Burney
River Side: 6640 Akers Mill Rd. SE, Atlanta 30339, (770) 955-0788
Hours: Mon-Fri: 7am-8pm, Sat-Sun [residents only]: 8am-7pm
Westside: 790 Huff Rd. NW, ATL, p 470 344 0197
Regular Hours: Mon-Fri: 7am-8mp, Sat-Sun: 8am-7pm
- Westside location is in the heart of West Midtown, near Westside Provisions District.
- [Best part] It’s by the river. Yep, a river runs right next to it. (Great place to canoe, etc. in the summer & fall). Feels like you are on a retreat as soon as you come to the coffee shop portion of the complex.
- Great hiking trails right outside of the shop.
- Outdoor seating, large lawn-great for picnics, seating available closer to the river as well.
- Sells jewelry items made by people rescued from human trafficking.
- You can live there! Located in a gated community (Walton on the Chattahoochee apartment complex), has two pools, a nice spacious gym, an on-site vegetable garden for residents to pick from, and much more! Take a sweet tour today or any day.
- Open to non-residents during the week. Dial 101 at the gate and the coffee shop personnel will let you in (if it’s a really nice day, you may want to call ahead to make sure they are accepting people in during that time-everyone wants to go to the river when it’s hot!).
8. Dr. Bombay’s Underwater Tea Party [East Side]
1645 McLendon Ave NE, Atlanta 30307, (404)474-1402
Regular Hours: Tues-Fri: 11am-9p, Sat-Sun: 11-8p, Closed Mondays for private events
- Black and Green Learning tea, sourced directly from partners in Darjeeling
- High Tea-3:30-5:30 daily, call to reserve (tea time for two $35)
- Sweet reading: old-time library style reading area, books inexpensive to purchase from a large selection
- Funds from tea sales, books sold, and events give educational scholarships to young women in impoverished areas of India. Check out TheLearningTea.com.
- Great place for a small event/party
9. The Goat Farm [West Midtown]
Photo courtesy of: drawchange.org
1200 Foster St NW. Atlanta 30318
- Apparently, there are epic Halloween parties here as well as other events.
- Artist studios can be rented here as well as apartments.
- All drinks are by donation only.
- Great place for pictures!
10. Café Lucia [Downtown]
57 Forsyth St NW, Ste R8, Atlanta, p 404 968 9658
Hours: Mon-Fri: 7am-6pm, Sat-Sun: 8am-4pm
- Has an app and free wifi
- Small but cute feel
11. ChocoLaté Coffee (Atlanta/Decatur)
Atlanta 2558 Shallowford Rd NE # 201, Atlanta, GA (404) 321-0174
Hours: Mon-Wed 6:30 am – 9:00 pm | Thu-Fri 6:30 am – 10:00 pm | Sat 7:30 am – 10:00 pm | Sun 8:00 am – 8:00 pm
Decatur 2094 N Decatur Rd, Decatur, GA (404) 982-0790
Hours: Mon-Thr 7:00 am – 9:00 pm | Fri 7:00 am – 10:00 pm | Sat 8:30 am – 10:00 pm | Sun 9:00 am – 8:00 pm
- unique, fun, local atmosphere
- inexpensive drinks
- free wifi (partnership with AtlantaFreeNet)
- Club Card
For a comprehensive list of other amazing coffee shops to explore during your stay in ATL, check out the Atlanta Eater website.