Cafeography
São Paulo · Centro & República

Cafés in Centro & República

Early-opening cafés on Rua Boa Vista, the Martinelli and the Copan, from the São Bento monastery to Praça da República.

Photo: Dominiquemel16 Ramos, Pexels License

São Paulo dates its founding to 25 January 1554, when the Jesuits held the first mass of their school at the place now called Pátio do Colégio; Manuel da Nóbrega and José de Anchieta led the mission.1 The church there was rebuilt around 1953, for the city's 400th anniversary, and the Museu Anchieta, with more than 600 objects from the Jesuit missions in Brazil, opened beside it in 1979.1

The Benedictines arrived in 1598, and the present Mosteiro de São Bento church on Largo de São Bento was built from 1910; the monks make bread, cakes, jams and chocolates, sold in the monastery shop since 1998.2 In the same old center rose Edifício Martinelli, planned in 1922 by the Italian-born businessman Giuseppe Martinelli, designed by the Hungarian architect Vilmos Fillinger and finished in 1929; with 28 floors it was the tallest building in Latin America when it opened.3

Local tip: Start at 06:30 with a coffee at Café Bom Gosto on Rua Boa Vista, then buy the monks’ bread at the São Bento monastery shop; on Sundays, when Rua Boa Vista is shut, PPD on Rua Nestor Pestana opens at 09:00.

At a glance

57Cafés listed
7With opening hours
06:30Earliest opening
23:30Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Café Bom Gosto, from 06:30 (Mon–Thu 06:30–20:30 · Fri 06:30–23:30 · Sat 07:00–17:00 · Sun Closed).
  • Most common features: wi-fi (11%), card payment (7%), open late (4%).

Café Bom Gosto

  • Rua Boa Vista, 319A
  • Mon–Thu 06:30–20:30 · Fri 06:30–23:30 · Sat 07:00–17:00 · Sun Closed
  • +551133266490
  • Card payment
  • Open late
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Coffee chains in Centro & República

Getting around the old center

Metro Line 1 (Blue) stops at São Bento and Sé; Sé, opened in 1978, is the transfer to Line 3, and Luz connects with Line 4 and the CPTM trains.4

Rua Boa Vista and the Girondino

Café Girondino, at Rua Boa Vista 365, looks out on the Mosteiro de São Bento. The name goes back to a café on Rua 15 de Novembro that Mercado & Consumo dates to 1875; the present café opened here in 1998, and Gazeta de S.Paulo notes that it has no tie to the Italian family who ran the original.56

Gazeta credits the original with São Paulo's breakfast of pingado and pão na chapa. The Boa Vista café closed in June 2024, blaming the pandemic's after-effects, and reopened under the same name that November.56

Girondino now opens 07:00–20:00 Tuesday to Saturday and closes at 18:00 on Mondays. Café Bom Gosto, at number 319A, opens earliest, at 06:30 on weekdays, and stays open until 23:30 on Fridays. Cafeteria São Bento, at 274, opens at 07:30 on weekdays with Wi-Fi. All three are closed on Sundays.

Martinelli, the Copan and Praça da República

Café Martinelli Midi, at Rua Líbero Badaró 508 inside the Martinelli building, has been open since 1993.7 Grão do Pátio, on Rua Roberto Simonsen, opens 07:30–16:30 on weekdays, and Orange Sucos & Café is on Rua Quinze de Novembro.

The Copan, Oscar Niemeyer's curving apartment block at Avenida Ipiranga 200, was completed in 1966 with 1,160 apartments and 72 businesses on the ground floor.8 Café Floresta is one of them, and São Paulo Secreto calls it the building's oldest café.7 Magg Café, for takeaway, has the same address.

On Praça da República, Bonita Café at number 167 has outdoor tables. Por um punhado de dólares (PPD), on Rua Nestor Pestana, is open daily 09:00–22:00 with Wi-Fi, and Preto Café, on Largo do Arouche, opens from 10:00 Tuesday to Saturday. Sorbing, a Korean dessert café on Rua Prates, opens 08:00–21:00 Monday to Saturday.

Sources

  1. Pátio do Colégio, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. Mosteiro de São Bento (São Paulo), Wikipedia (Portuguese), accessed October 2026
  3. Martinelli Building, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  4. Line 1 (São Paulo Metro), Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  5. Café Girondino fecha as portas no centro histórico de São Paulo, Mercado & Consumo (June 10, 2024), accessed October 2026
  6. A origem da tradição paulistana do café pingado com pão na chapa, Gazeta de S.Paulo (November 2024), accessed October 2026
  7. Cafés no centro de São Paulo, São Paulo Secreto (May 20, 2024), accessed October 2026
  8. Copan Building, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
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FAQ

Centro & República cafés: questions

What is the history of Café Girondino in São Paulo’s Centro?

The name goes back to a Café Girondino on Rua 15 de Novembro dated to 1875, where the pingado with pão na chapa is said to have started. The present café opened on Rua Boa Vista, facing the São Bento monastery, in 1998, with no tie to the original. It closed in June 2024 and reopened under the same name that November.

Which cafés in Centro, São Paulo, open early?

Café Bom Gosto, at Rua Boa Vista 319A, opens at 06:30 on weekdays and stays open until 23:30 on Fridays. Café Girondino, at number 365, opens at 07:00, and Cafeteria São Bento at 274 and Grão do Pátio on Rua Roberto Simonsen both open at 07:30 on weekdays. São Bento is the nearest metro station, on Line 1.

Which cafés in São Paulo’s Centro are open on Sundays?

Por um punhado de dólares (PPD), on Rua Nestor Pestana, is open every day from 09:00 to 22:00. The Rua Boa Vista cafés, Café Girondino, Café Bom Gosto and Cafeteria São Bento, are all closed on Sundays, and Grão do Pátio opens on weekdays only.

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