Buenos Aires · Retiro
Cafés in Retiro
Saint Moritz, Florida Garden and the French-style blocks of Arroyo, between Plaza San Martín and the Kavanagh tower.
Photo: Jose Luis Vanasco, Pexels License
Retiro faces the river at the north end of the center, around three landmarks: Plaza San Martín, once a training ground for San Martín’s mounted grenadiers, the Retiro rail terminal, and the Kavanagh, the 120 m tower finished in 1936 at the northern end of Calle Florida. Line C of the subte serves the barrio.1
Its coffee falls into two camps. The older confiterías (tea rooms) took their customers from the art galleries of the 1960s, and the newer bars cluster around Arroyo, among old buildings and French-style residences.234
Local tip: Pair Saint Moritz with a look at the Kavanagh: the tower stands at the far end of Florida, a short walk from Paraguay and Esmeralda.1
At a glance
59Cafés listed
4With opening hours
08:00Earliest opening
20:00Latest closing
- Opens earliest: flat&white, from 08:00 (Mon–Fri 08:00–20:00).
- Most listed streets: Avenida Córdoba (3), Paraguay (2).
- Most common features: outdoor seating (10%), wi-fi (7%), specialty (5%).
Clorindo Café
- Wi-Fi
- Specialty
Farinelli
- Outdoor seating
- Wheelchair access
- Brunch
My House
- Outdoor seating
- Takeaway
- Toilets
Amelie Bar and Coffee
Atalaya
Babalú
Bagels & Bagels
Barrio cafetero
Biblos
Brew Coffee
Café Castelar
- Partial wheelchair access
Cafe Tortone
Cafeteria mil cositas
Caffe Vergnano
- Outdoor seating
- Takeaway
- Card payment
- Partial wheelchair access
Chikys Resto-Cafe
Clarisimo Café
Classic BA
Confitería Saint Moritz
Datri
Deli Office
Ditali
Grand Café
Gros Café
Kaffa - Cafeteria de Especialidad
- Specialty
Kudzu Cafe
La Fonte De Oro
La Motofeca
La Torre de Retiro
Las Meninas
Manifiesto
Melody Cafe
Negro
Petit Plaza
Saigon cafe
SHOUT Café & Espresso Bar
Nothing matches those filters here. See all cafés in Buenos Aires.
Coffee chains in Retiro
Chain
Café Martínez
Show 6 locations
- Avenida Leandro N. Alem 756Mon–Fri 08:00–19:00
- Avenida Santa Fe 828Mon–Fri 08:00–20:30 · Sat 10:00–18:00
- Cerrito 1264Mon–Fri 08:00–20:00 · Sat 09:00–14:00
- Paraguay 799
- Reconquista 1038Mon–Fri 07:30–20:30 · Sat 08:00–18:00
- Talcahuano 948Mon–Sat 07:30–20:30
Chain
Starbucks
Show 9 locations
- Avenida Córdoba 550Mon–Sat 10:00–21:00 · Sun 12:00–21:00
- Avenida Córdoba 975Mon–Fri 07:00–20:30
- Avenida Doctor José María Ramos Mejía 1450Mon–Fri 06:30–21:00 · Sat 08:00–21:00 · Sun 09:00–21:00
- Avenida Maipú 1270Mon–Fri 07:00–20:30 · Sat 08:00–20:30 · Sun 09:00–20:00
- Avenida Santa Fe 1302Mon–Fri 07:00–21:00 · Sat 08:00–21:00 · Sun 09:00–21:00
- Carlos M. Della Paolera 265Mon–Fri 07:00–20:00
- Esmeralda 902Mon–Fri 07:00–20:00
- Florida 960Mon–Fri 07:00–21:00 · Sat 08:00–21:00 · Sun 09:00–21:00
- Posadas 1245Daily 10:00–22:00
Chain
Havanna
Show 6 locations
- Avenida Córdoba
- Avenida Doctor José María Ramos Mejía 1450
- Avenida Santa Fe 998
- Florida 944
- Posadas 1059Mon–Fri 08:30–22:00 · Sat 09:45–22:00 · Sun 11:00–21:45
- San Martín 1131
Chain
Bonafide
Chain
The Coffee Store
Chain
Le Pain Quotidien
- Posadas 1402Mon–Fri 08:00–21:00 · Sat–Sun 09:00–21:00
Chain
Tostado Café Club
Chain
Nucha
Chain
Crisol
Chain
Alma Café
Chain
Import Coffee Company
Chain
Maru Botana
- Suipacha 1371Mon–Fri 08:00–20:30 · Sat 09:00–20:00
Confitería Saint Moritz at Paraguay and Esmeralda
Confitería Saint Moritz opened in 1959 at Paraguay 802, named for the Swiss winter resort, and in the 1960s and 1970s it was the place for tea after a round of the nearby galleries.2 Jorge Luis Borges and his mother, Leonor Acevedo, lived close by, and their conversations carried across its tables.2
The room has four central columns wrapped in mirrors, square tables with red and yellow cloths, red chairs, and Saint Moritz posters above the wood paneling.2 A counter on Esmeralda once sold masas, pan dulce and sandwiches de miga (crustless finger sandwiches) to take home until 1986, and it still has its original paper-roll holder.2
Florida Garden and the Di Tella years
Florida Garden emerged in the 1960s and quickly filled with artists and intellectuals coming from the Galería del Este and the Instituto Di Tella, in what the city’s heritage page calls the era of the “Happening Porteño”.3 Borges and Diego Maradona are each said to have come a couple of times.3
Look up from your cup at the curved staircase, which seems to float in the air.3 The city names it among its bares notables, while noting that it is not a traditional café.3
The Shelter Coffee and Farinelli on Arroyo
Arroyo is the street to walk, with old buildings and French-style residences above its sidewalk tables.4 The Shelter Coffee, at number 940, borrows from London gentlemen’s clubs, with big armchairs and dim light; in 2022 El Cronista singled out its double-shot flat white and the Patric Shelter, a cocktail of whisky, two shots of coffee, ginger ale and pink grapefruit.4 Jaime Chmea opened the business in 2015 and now roasts at its Uriburu branch.5
Farinelli, at Arroyo 900, is the brunch stop: its menu follows the season and changes daily, with its own pastry, and it has hosted live music.4 Visit Argentina’s 2026 note recommends The Shelter Coffee for its range of brewing methods and a counter of sfogliatelle and alfajores.6
A library courtyard on Talcahuano
Clorindo Café trades from inside the Ricardo Güiraldes library at Talcahuano 1261, and Time Out’s 2025 list recommends its calm, pastel-toned courtyard for groups, with espresso and pour-overs on the menu.7 It opens daily from 09:00 to 20:00. If it is full, Kudzu Cafe, at 1253 on the same block, has Wi-Fi and outdoor tables.
Sources
- Retiro, Buenos Aires, Wikipedia, accessed November 2026
- Bar Saint Moritz, Turismo Buenos Aires, accessed November 2026
- Florida Garden, Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, accessed November 2026
- Las 4 cafeterías de la calle más parisina de Buenos Aires, El Cronista, accessed November 2026
- The Sprudge Guide To Coffee In Buenos Aires, Sprudge, accessed November 2026
- 4 experiencias gastronómicas en el barrio de Retiro, Visit Argentina, accessed November 2026
- 12 cafeterías de especialidad imperdibles en Buenos Aires, Time Out Buenos Aires, accessed November 2026
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FAQ
Retiro cafés: questions
Which historic cafés can you visit in Retiro, Buenos Aires?
Confitería Saint Moritz opened in 1959 at Paraguay 802 and was a stop for tea after the galleries; Borges and his mother lived nearby. Florida Garden emerged in the 1960s as a meeting place for artists from the Instituto Di Tella and is known for its floating curved staircase.
What can you order at The Shelter Coffee on Arroyo in Retiro, Buenos Aires?
The Shelter Coffee is known for a double-shot flat white and the Patric Shelter, a cocktail of whisky, two shots of coffee, ginger ale and pink grapefruit. The room recalls a London gentlemen’s club with big armchairs and dim light, and the counter has sfogliatelle and alfajores.
Where is the café in a library in Retiro, Buenos Aires?
Clorindo Café is inside the Ricardo Güiraldes library at Talcahuano 1261. It has a calm, pastel-toned courtyard suited to groups and serves espresso and pour-overs. It opens daily from 09:00 to 20:00, and Kudzu Cafe on the same block has Wi-Fi if the courtyard is full.
For café owners
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