Specialty coffee in the Algarve, Portugal is a small scene rather than a big one, but it is a good one: at least four cafés between Aljezur and Quinta do Lago roast their own beans on site, and there is a proper flat white available in almost every town on the coast. Koyo in Aljezur, Al-Gharb in Albufeira and bean17 in Loulé are the three worth planning a day around, and in Lagos our own default is Everyday People.
The thing to understand first is that Portugal already has excellent coffee, just a different kind. A €1 bica at any café counter is a good espresso. Specialty coffee here means something narrower: single origins, filter brews, plant-based milks and a barista who can tell you where the beans were grown. Below is where to find it, town by town, west to east.
Key Takeaways
- At least four Algarve cafés roast on site: Koyo in Aljezur, Al-Gharb in Albufeira, bean17 in Loulé and Q Coffee Lab at PURE in Quinta do Lago.
- In Lagos, Everyday People is our go-to, just outside the old town and easy to reach on a bike.
- Clifftop Coffee Roasters in Lagos supplies cafés across the region and opens its roastery to visitors on Tuesdays for anyone wanting to buy beans.
- A specialty flat white typically runs €3 to €4, against €1 for a traditional bica at the counter.
- Opening hours are the trap. Several of the best close early afternoon, and bean17 in Loulé shuts entirely on Sundays and Mondays.
- For remote workers, Laundry Lounge in Sagres has free wifi and plenty of sockets, and most roasteries close too early to work from all day.
Where to Find Specialty Coffee in the Algarve
1. Koyo Speciality Coffees, Aljezur
The best cup in the western Algarve, and the reason to drive up the coast. Koyo is run by Gyula Illés, a Hungarian barista who roasts single-origin beans on site and supplies cafés across the region, including several in Lagos. Garden terrace at the back, homemade cakes with vegan and gluten-free options, and a standard that would hold its own in any European city. If you only visit one place on this list, make it this one.
Location: Aljezur. Roasts on site: yes
Koyo Speciality Coffees on Google Maps
2. Santo Loco, Sagres
Part of a surf and skate shop above Praia do Tonel, and the same operation that runs stores in Munich and Lisbon. Espresso around €1.20, an americano €2.20, oat milk available, and homemade banana bread and cookies baked daily. A large terrace and no queuing systems, which suits the pace of Sagres.
Location: Rua do Tonel, 8650-376 Sagres
3. Everyday People, Lagos
Our own default in Lagos, and the café we end up at more often than any other on this list. Everyday People sits just outside the old town, which matters more than it sounds: the streets inside the walls are narrow, cobbled and partly pedestrianised, so this is the rare Lagos café you can reach easily on a bike, in kit, without walking it through a crowd. Good coffee, quick service, and close enough to the marina to work as the first stop of the morning or the last one after a ride.
Location: Lagos, just outside the old town near the marina
Everyday People on Google Maps
4. Velochique, Monchique and Portimão
Two cafés from the same team. The original sits on the car-free square in Monchique by the thermal baths, run by cyclists, with specialty coffee, flapjacks and lunch bowls, and it is the natural stop for anyone driving up to the Serra. The newer Velochique Vista Rio brings the same standard down to sea level on Avenida Guanaré in Portimão. The Monchique café closes on Tuesdays.
Location: Rua Serpa Pinto 8, Monchique, and Avenida Guanaré, Portimão
Velochique Vista Rio on Google Maps
If you are working your way along the coast, Velo Algarve delivers road bikes to accommodation anywhere in the region, and plenty of our riders build a whole day around getting from one of these cafés to the next.
5. Al-Gharb Coffee Roasters, Albufeira
The reason to leave the Albufeira strip. Al-Gharb roasts its coffee on site in Santa Eulália, a block back from the main road, with a small terrace in the morning sun. It holds a 4.7 rating across more than 180 reviews, and one café owner who visited liked the beans enough to start serving them in their own business. Croissants, pancakes and toasted sandwiches alongside, and bags of beans to take home.
Location: Beco do Sol 3, Santa Eulália, 8200-269 Albufeira. Roasts on site: yes
Al-Gharb Coffee Roasters on Google Maps
6. bean17 coffee and more, Loulé
Inside the covered municipal market, run by Ilona and Jan, who roast the beans themselves. It is rated 4.9 across 140 reviews, ranks first among Loulé’s coffee spots and appears in the Coffee Guide of Portugal. The Dutch apple pie is the thing to order alongside the flat white. Cash only, mornings only, and closed Sundays and Mondays, so check the day before you go.
Location: Mercado Municipal de Loulé, shop 11, 8100-544 Loulé. Tue to Fri 9am to 1pm, Sat 8.30am to 2pm. Roasts on site: yes
bean17 coffee and more on Google Maps
7. PURE and Q Coffee Lab, Quinta do Lago
The resort option. Since 2025 PURE has housed Q Coffee Lab, where green beans from sustainable producers are roasted on site into Quinta do Lago’s own blend, with the spent husks and grounds returned as fertiliser at the resort’s organic farm. Terrace over the North Course, juice bar, and dairy or plant-based milk.
Location: Av. André Jordan, Roundabout 2, Quinta do Lago. Open daily, 8am to 4.30pm. Roasts on site: yes
8. Yellow Bourbon Specialty Coffee, Faro
The specialty option in the Algarve capital, in the yellow building on Rua Vasco da Gama, and a reliable breakfast stop within walking distance of the old town. Faro’s café culture leans heavily traditional, so a place pouring filter and flat whites is more useful here than it would be in Lagos.
Location: Rua Vasco da Gama 19, 8000-442 Faro
9. Flavour Café, Tavira
The eastern Algarve pick, ranked first of the coffee spots in Tavira with a 4.5 rating across more than 300 reviews. It sits in the centre overlooking the Gilão river, with baristas who take the milk drinks seriously and a menu of teas, wine and light food alongside. A proper cappuccino is harder to find in the east than the west, which is why this one matters.
Location: Rua José Pires Padinha 26, 8800-354 Tavira
Special mention: Clifftop Coffee Roasters, Lagos
Not a café, and on this list anyway, because if you care about coffee enough to read this far you will want to know it exists. Clifftop is a specialty roastery on the edge of Lagos that started in 2021 with Rhian Gainsborough roasting on a balcony above the sea and selling bags at a local farmers market. It now supplies cafés, restaurants and hotels across the Algarve and ships across Europe.
The coffee is seasonal single origin from Ethiopia, Rwanda, Peru, Colombia and Brazil, roasted medium-light for balance and sweetness rather than anything aggressively roasty or thin. The Clifftop Espresso is the one to start with: milk chocolate, stone fruit and peach. They roast on Mondays, and on Tuesdays the roastery is open to visitors, which is the day to go if you want to buy beans to take back to the villa or home in your luggage. Check before you make the trip, since it is a working roastery rather than a shop with fixed hours.
Location: Laco Hub, Sítio Chinicato, 8600-306 Lagos. Open to visitors on Tuesdays
Clifftop Coffee Roasters | Clifftop Coffee Roasters on Google Maps
Specialty Coffee and the Bica: Knowing Which You Want
The most useful thing a visitor can know is that these are two separate systems, and both are good.
The traditional Portuguese café is built around the bica, a short strong espresso, drunk standing at the counter in about ninety seconds for around €1. It is available everywhere, it is consistently decent, and it pairs with a pastel de nata, which is covered in our guide to the best pastelarias Algarve Portugal. If all you want is a good coffee, you do not need anything on the list above.
Specialty coffee is what you want when the milk drink matters, when you want a filter brew or a named origin, or when you need to sit for an hour with a laptop. Expect €3 to €4 for a flat white, earlier closing times than a traditional café, and in several cases cash only.
For Remote Workers and Riders
Two groups use these cafés more than most, and they want different things.
If you are working, Laundry Lounge in Sagres, a café that is also a working laundrette, has free wifi and plenty of sockets. Most of the roasteries close early afternoon, which makes them morning stops rather than all-day offices, so plan a working day around the opening hours rather than the coffee.
If you are riding, the geography matters more than the menu. Everyday People in Lagos is the easy start and finish, Koyo in Aljezur and Velochique in Monchique both sit at natural turnaround points on longer rides, and bean17 in Loulé is right at the start of the Barrocal climbing. Carry cash for the smaller places, and check opening days before building a route around one of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do you need to know about specialty coffee in the Algarve, Portugal before you go?
It is a small scene concentrated in Lagos, Aljezur, Albufeira and Loulé, with at least four cafés roasting on site. Expect €3 to €4 for a flat white against €1 for a traditional bica. Check opening hours carefully, since several of the best close early afternoon and some are cash only.
Where is the best specialty coffee in the Algarve?
Koyo Speciality Coffees in Aljezur is the strongest single pick, roasting single-origin beans on site and supplying other cafés across the region. In the central Algarve, bean17 in Loulé and Al-Gharb Coffee Roasters in Albufeira both roast their own beans and hold ratings of 4.7 and above across well over 100 reviews each.
Which Algarve coffee shops are good for working remotely?
Laundry Lounge in Sagres is a strong option, with free wifi, plenty of sockets and hours running into the evening. Most specialty roasteries, including bean17 in Loulé, close in the early afternoon, so they suit a morning session with a laptop rather than a full working day.
Can you buy locally roasted coffee beans in the Algarve?
Yes. Clifftop Coffee Roasters in Lagos roasts seasonal single-origin coffee and opens its roastery to visitors on Tuesdays. Several cafés also sell their own beans, including Al-Gharb in Albufeira and bean17 in Loulé, and Clifftop ships across Europe with a monthly subscription for when you get home.
Where should I get coffee in Lagos?
Everyday People, just outside the old town near the marina. It is our own default in Lagos, and because it sits outside the cobbled, partly pedestrianised streets of the old town, it is the easiest good café in Lagos to reach on a bike or in a hurry.
Find Great Coffee
If you are in the west, start with Koyo and Everyday People. In the centre, bean17 and Al-Gharb. Either way, you will have a better sense of how the Algarve drinks coffee in a morning than a week of hotel breakfasts will give you.
If you are getting between towns and want a better way to do it, check delivery locations across the Algarve or book a bike here and plan the route around the coffee.
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