The Best Coffee in Leeds

The best coffee in Leeds comes from North Star, the city's own roaster, which you can drink at its cafe on Leeds Dock or on Sovereign Street, and at Laynes on New Station Street, open since 2011 and still the benchmark. Then there is a whole second tier of independents worth crossing town for. Here is where to go, with what is in the hopper at each, because in Leeds the roaster matters as much as the room.

North Star, Leeds Dock and Sovereign Street

North Star roasts in Leeds, and its beans turn up in half the cafes on this list. Its own Cafe and General Store is on The Boulevard at Leeds Dock (LS10 1PZ), with a second site on Sovereign Street. Order a filter or whatever micro lot is on, with food from Nova Bakehouse, and pick up a bag of beans and some kit on the way out.

Laynes, New Station Street

Laynes, at 16 New Station Street, opened in 2011 and has since expanded. It is barista-owned, uses Square Mile's Red Brick with guest blends, and makes a flat white that people get the train in for. The Turkish eggs are the food order.

Kapow, The Calls and Thornton's Arcade

Kapow Coffee has been going since 2013, with one site at 46 The Calls and another at 15 Thornton's Arcade. The house blend mixes Brazilian and Ethiopian beans, and there are guests from local and national roasters. The arcade branch is the prettier stop.

More in the city centre

• La Bottega Milanese, Bond Court and Park Square West. Italian-style coffee from Yorkshire-roasted Arabica, with pasteis de nata, canelé and cannoli.
• Stage Espresso & Brewbar, 41 Great George Street. Single-estate beans, batch brews and bags from five roasters, plus board games and a resident dog.
• Raw Coffee, 10 Mill Hill. Opened in 2024. Matcha, cold brew and a house dog called Roo.
• Miles & Co, 94 Kirkgate. A husband-and-wife operation by Kirkgate Market, opened in 2021, using Dark Woods beans or its own blend.
• LeSon, 95 Kirkgate. A Vietnamese restaurant, opened in summer 2025, doing dark-roasted iced coffee with condensed milk or salted cream, and an egg coffee you should try at least once.
• Vinyl Grounds, 30 Central Road. Assembly Coffee by day, wine and cocktails later, with records on.
• The Brew Society, 26 Aire Street. North Star single origin by day, a dozen beers by night, and sofas for both.
• Ethiopian Organic Coffee, 1 Cypress Point. Organic Arabica from Limu, roasted in Leeds, run by a husband-and-wife team.
• 200 Degrees, 31 Bond Street. The house Love Affair espresso with changing guest batches, and an on-site barista school if you want to learn to do it yourself.
• Habitum, 9 Hunslet Road, Aire Park. Run by the former owner of La Bottega Milanese. Self-serve, with an iced Dubai latte and a coconut water Americano for the adventurous.
• Livett's, 6 St Peter's Square. A tiny kiosk next to The Wardrobe pouring North Star.

Headingley and Hyde Park

Loaf, at 90 to 92 Otley Road, uses Dark Woods, with Deer Hill as standard and Lamplight for decaf. Order a cortado and the Tarka eggs. Next door, Fika North pours Casa Espresso with guests from Hard Lines, and does bagels and hash browns. The Bowery, at 54 Otley Road, is a gallery and workshop space doing Allpress coffee Kiwi-style. Coffee on the Crescent, at 2 The Crescent in Hyde Park, is owned by former professional cricketer Tim Linley, rotates Dark Woods, Echelon and North Star, and supports local food banks.

Chapel Allerton, Meanwood and Roundhay

Opposite Cafe has branches on Stainbeck Lane in Chapel Allerton and Stonegate Road in Meanwood, pouring North Star and Grumpy Mule. The Chelsea buns, sweet or savoury, are the thing. Kofi & Co, at 71 Street Lane in Roundhay, moved from Wetherby in 2024 and does a pancake stack and shakshuka alongside a York Coffee Emporium house blend.

Kirkstall Road

Kulture Coffee, at 380 Kirkstall Road, is an Australian-style cafe run by Jake Gilmour, with beans from Brazil, Guatemala and Ethiopia. Get a volcano cookie with whatever you order. Further out, Rabbit Hole Coffee in Moortown does a house roast with Maude Coffee and sandwiches on Baltzersen bread.

How to drink coffee in Leeds

If you only have time for one, go to Laynes on your way out of the station. If you have a morning, walk from North Star on Sovereign Street up through Mill Hill to Kapow in Thornton's Arcade, and you have done the essentials. Most of these places sell beans, so take some home. The full list lives in the Leeds-List coffee guide, and for coffee with eggs, see the Leeds-List brunch guide.