The best cafés in Bratislava

Hey again! I dedicated my earlier entries to the city of Bratislava. I told you about the advantages and disadvantages to living in this city and about everything you can do as a tourist. Today I am going to talk to you about the cafés that my friends and I normally go to in Bratislava. In Bratislava there are cafeterias to eat and drink in, for all tastes. So here is the list.

1. Vespa Caffeteria.

You only have to put one foot into this place to smell the coffee. It is one of our favourites. There are a few throughout the city. We normally went to the one that is in the centre, in Stare Mesto (the Old Town). The coffee is very good and, also, cheap. An espresso will cost you 90 cents and a cappuccino will cost you €1. 50. Also famous are its warm croissants with Nutella or with cheese and ham. The only downside to this café in the centre is that it is small, it only has four tables on the terrace to sit at, and these are normally occupied. They also have soya milk, which you can ask for without any additional cost. That said, quality, excellent service and good prices. It is always a good decision to come here.

2. Kafíčko.

We really liked this café because it is a little hidden. It can be found on the famous Obchodná Street, where there are all different kinds of shops. Kafíčko is found on a little street that you could walk past without noticing, but this establishment puts a sandwich board outside to notify you that they are there. Here they take advantage of the board and write the price of their espresso: 90 cents. Not bad at all, for being in Bratislava and being in the centre. It has a terrace with small but very cute tables. The café is decorated in a very cool way inside, bringing together cosy and minimalist styles. There are shelves with different coffee pots and different kinds of coffee from all over the world. If you are a huge fan of coffee, you can ask to take some home with you. In summer, there is air conditioning and in winter it is very well heated. Sometimes I would go there to relax and work on my laptop whilst enjoying a good coffee. The only bad thing is that you cannot pay by card, so you always have to bring cash. Furthermore, the waiters were often phenomenal. One of them spoke to us in Spanish! I have always come to Kafíčko ever since I arrived in Bratislava, so you could say that it has been with me from the beginning. In conclusion, I would 100% recommend it.

3. Caffé Trieste.

Good, pretty and super cheap. Espresso for 90 cents, tea for €1 and a cappuccino for €1. 30. The cheapest that I have seen in Bratislava. I believe it has an Italian philosophy in regards to coffee. Which is that you order a coffee, you drink it and then you leave. They often play music and it closes at seven o'clock in the evening, so don't hang about! It is a little bit far away from what tends to be the touristic area, but it is worth going there.

4. Pancakes.

Or better to say "Pán Cakes", which is it's correct and original name as it is a play on words (in Slovak, it means "Mr. Cakes", but sounds like the English word "pancakes"). I mention is because it's not only a cafeteria where you can drink tea, coffee or lemonade but where, as it's name suggests, you can also eat some great pancakes. More than pancakes, they are crêpes, although the translation from Slavik would be "pancake": palacinky. In any case, the point is that they're delicious. There are sweet and savoury ones, although I would recommend the savoury crêpes in particular. They are cheap and if you order three or four, you can end up leaving feeling very full. The ones I particularly liked were the ones with cheese and spinach, hummus and carrot, tomato and mozzarella and cheese. Basically, a crêpe filled with different vegetables. They were a treat, so we tended to come only a few times. When our friends came to visit us we would bring them to Pán Cakes because we knew it would be the right decision to make. Pán Cakes also offers breakfast menus and meal menus until certain times. It is also in Stare Mesto, which is the historic centre, so if you want to take a break during your day of being a tourist and you want to fill your stomach, this is the place for you. I will leave you a photo of a sweet crêpe with peanut butter and other delicious toppings.

5. KC Dunaj.

An excellent cafeteria and without doubt the most frequented. Without a doubt, its views are the best, as at night you can see the lit-up castle from the terrace, which is adorned with little, colourful lights. In summer, there is a very nice atmosphere, and it's not too expensive. At night, the café becomes a club where there are often themed parties. One of the most popular is the Cuban party. Watch out! You can only pay in cash. Also, on the first Wednesday of each month, from 17:30 to 19:00, people interested in practicing German, French, Russian etc. meet here... it is a kind of tandem. You go to the café without knowing anybody, without knowing who you might meet, simply to practice a language that interests you. It is a very interesting activity because as well as improving your speaking abilities, you get to meet new people. And, of course, it's free!

6. La Patisserka.

It is a little far from the centre (on Krížna Street), but it is worth going to. The coffee is cheap, the staff are friendly and the décor is very well done. It's not very well lit, but during the winter days it is heated. I tended to go here because I had a friend who was too lazy to walk to the centre, but I liked it. It had good coffee, tea and also many cakes. We tried the cheesecake and it was almost sinful. The music that they play there tends to be relaxing, very chill, ideal for an afternoon with a book or for working on your laptop.

7. La Donuteria.

As its name suggests, doughnuts are sold here. They aren't your typical, industrial doughnuts, but homemade and they have a great texture and flavour. My favourites were those with peanut butter, with peanuts inside, and those with speculoos spread (Biscoff spread), with Biscoff biscuits in the middle. Yum yum. We generally wouldn't buy cakes for birthdays, but instead we would come here. We bought doughnuts of different flavours and we would put candles into each one of them for the person whose birthday it was to blow out. The place is small but very cute. It has two or three tables only because the doughnuts are normally bought to be taken away. You can see all the doughnuts that they have that day on the shelves in the display, and the most difficult thing to do is to choose only one. They are all to die for!

8. Mačkafé.

It is a little far from the centre, heading up towards the castle. It is a special café because... there are lots of cats around it! In fact, the name of the café is a play on words: "mačka" which means "cat" in Slovak and "kafé" ("café" with a "k"). Some sleep, some walk between your legs and others let you stroke them. For the lovers of these felines, this is the ideal place. In addition, it is very calm, there is a good atmosphere and the menu is really good: coffee, tea, little cakes, milkshakes, lemonade. These furry pets have their own area so you don't annoy them, and remember to wash your hands with disinfectant before going in and just before you leave as well. The truth is that here you can feel as though your in the living room of your own home. I recommend it.

9. Art Cakes Café.

It is a café that is more expensive that the others already mentioned, but it is really good. I decided to mention it because as well as teas and coffees, it has the option of having an afternoon snack. If you are quite hungry, you can order a quite a large glass of yogurt, granola and whatever other seasonal fruit. For example, as a topping I once had banana, and another time I had blueberries and strawberries. The best thing is that there's no sugar. As a snack, it's really good. There are very comfortable chairs and it is in the very centre. And I nearly forgot, as its name suggests, there is a huge variety of cakes, biscuits, brownies, for those indulgent days.

10. Luculus.

Now its the ice-cream shops turn. I would recommend the ice-cream shop Luculus, on the same street as the Opera, the national theatre. They change the flavours every week so that you never get bored. In summer, there is quite a big queue because their ice-creams are very popular. They have very original flavours such as passionfruit with mascarpone ice-cream, panna cotta, Oreo and dark chocolate etc. The best thing is the cone. It's not like other ice-cream shops where the cone looks as though it's made of cardboard. Furthermore, it only costs €1. 50 for a scoop, and they are generous with the quantity. For a hot summer day in Bratislava, there is nothing better.

11. Another well-known ice-cream shop is KOUN.

It also changes its flavours every week and some are also out of the ordinary, such forest fruits with rocket. You can actually see little pieces of rocket among the red fruits in the ice-cream scoop. It is also on the same street as the national theatre and there tends to be a line if you go in the early hours of the afternoon. My favourite ice-cream is the cinnamon one, which, by the way, is vegan. Also very recommendable.

12. i Nonni.

They have vegan ice-creams that are quite good and relatively cheap. It's in one of the prettiest and most touristic zones in Bratislava. We sat on the terrace in summer and chatted whilst the tourists walked past. The only bad thing is that an aspiring musician might have the brilliant idea of setting up and busking in front of you and spend the whole afternoon playing the strangest instruments that could exist, and that produces a sound that is really unpleasant. The lemonades and fruit juices aren't bad at all. If you are in the area and Vespa is full of people, you could come to here. The prices are a little higher, but hey, it's always a good idea to try new places.

13. Tanker Boat.

The city of Bratislava also stands out for the huge boats that are berthed along the Danube river and are very versatile. In the afternoons, they are cafés, and at night they become used as clubs. We sometimes went to Tanker Boat because it often plays Latin music and entry is free until ten o'clock at night, so why not? One day we went in the afternoon because a well-known Spaniard was cooking their famous Spanish omelettes for Tanker Boat. As we were really missing Spanish food, we decided to go. The upper part of the ship was really well decorated, there was an area where you could chill-out and you had great views of the UFO and of the great Danube river. I will leave the photos for you here. You could choose between the standard Spanish omelette, with cheese or with tomato. All came with onion, because the real potato omelette has to have onion in it, no matter what.

In conclusion, in Bratislava there are cafeterias all around, on every corner. They all have something that makes them special and they are all different. So, please, don't always go to McCafé, there are places that are better, less commercial and with more personality than that. There are a variety of cafeterias in this city.

And that is everything I wanted to tell you! I hope that you have discovered a new place for yourselves. I will see you in the next post. Thank you for reading.

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