Cafeography
San José · Los Yoses & San Pedro

Cafés in Los Yoses & San Pedro

Student cafés around the UCR, Boulevard Los Yoses donuts, Buenagente and Paseo Rubén Darío.

Photo: Mario Spencer, Pexels License

San Pedro is a district of Montes de Oca, the canton east of San José: 4.7 km² at 1,205 m, with 23,774 residents in 2022, and Los Yoses is one of its barrios.1 The University of Costa Rica, founded on 26 August 1940, has its main campus here, the Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, and the Universidad Latina is in the district too.12

The cafés follow the students. Match Café and Cafeteria and Creperia 95 Grados, which gives its address as 150 m from the Banco Nacional toward the UCR, are close to the campus, while Na Morada and Magikus Cafetería, 400 m east of the Universidad Latina, are farther east. Los Yoses, closer to Barrio Escalante, has the boulevard cafés.

Local tip: Casa Clara, on Calle 59, opens at 07:30 on weekdays and 09:00 at weekends and stays open until 18:30.

At a glance

21Cafés listed
1With opening hours
07:30Earliest opening
18:30Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Casa Clara, from 07:30 (Mon–Fri 07:30–18:30 · Sat–Sun 09:00–18:30).
  • Most common features: bakery café (5%), wi-fi (5%), outdoor seating (5%).

Nothing matches those filters here. See all cafés in San José.

Coffee chains in Los Yoses & San Pedro

Getting to San Pedro

Some trains on the San José–Heredia line run on from the Estación del Atlántico to the UCR and the Universidad Latina, and a Pavas–San Pedro–Curridabat service runs on a limited weekday timetable.3 Buses charge per ride, with no transfers or day passes.3

The Fuente de la Hispanidad, the fountain on the Circunvalación in San Pedro, was built for ₡10 million from material left over from the Orosi I water project, and it has long been the gathering point for celebrations and protests.4 The water utility AyA switched it back on for World Water Day in March 2021, after almost a year switched off.4

The streets around the university

Calle 61, better known as the Calle de la Amargura, runs about 360 m from the Avenida Central of San Pedro to the UCR's Carlos Monge library.5 It is best known for its bars; its other trade is photocopying course readers and selling student supplies, with bookshops at the university end.5 Since the pandemic much of the city's nightlife has moved to Barrio Escalante and La California, though some bars remain.5

Café Krakovia, on the Paseo de la Segunda República, served an 18-course experimental tasting menu by the chefs David Porras and Miguel Alberto Zúñiga in July 2017.6 Bread House Pan Artesanal is 75 m west of the Mall San Pedro, and Bici Tienda & Café pairs a bicycle shop with a café on Calle 69.

Boulevard Los Yoses

Sugar Charm Donuts opened on Boulevard Los Yoses in early 2019, run by María Quirós with her sisters and their husbands.7 The donuts are made by hand each morning, churro and crème brûlée were the best sellers, and cold brew and nitro cold brew were prepared daily; prices ran ₡1,815–2,725 in 2019.7 It has Wi-Fi and outdoor tables.

Buenagente, 25 m south of the Starbucks, opened in February 2022 with a team that includes people with Down syndrome and autism; its owners, Alexander Navarro and Pedro Villalobos, set it up to create jobs for them.8 The menu runs from specialty coffee and pastries to sandwiches, pastas and waffles.8 Café Ruiseñor is on the boulevard and Boca Café on the Paseo Rubén Darío.

Sources

  1. San Pedro District, Montes de Oca, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. University of Costa Rica, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. San José (Costa Rica), Wikivoyage, accessed October 2026
  4. Reactivan Fuente de la Hispanidad en el Día Mundial del Agua, El Mundo CR (March 23, 2021), accessed October 2026
  5. Calle de la Amargura (San Pedro), Wikipedia (Spanish), accessed October 2026
  6. Café Kracovia tiene preparada una noche atrevida para su paladar, La República (July 19, 2017), accessed October 2026
  7. El paraíso de las donas está en Los Yoses, La República (March 29, 2019), accessed October 2026
  8. Buena Gente, la cafetería inclusiva que lo contagiará de alegría, Teletica (Luanna Orjuela Murcia, February 18, 2022), accessed October 2026
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In Los Yoses & San Pedro, also browse: Wi-Fi Bakery cafés

FAQ

Los Yoses & San Pedro cafés: questions

How do you get from downtown San José to San Pedro and the University of Costa Rica?

Some trains on the San José–Heredia line continue from the Estación del Atlántico to the University of Costa Rica and the Universidad Latina in San Pedro, and a Pavas–San Pedro–Curridabat service runs on a limited weekday timetable. Buses charge per ride, with no transfers. San Pedro is a district of Montes de Oca, the canton east of San José.

What is the Fuente de la Hispanidad in San Pedro, San José?

The Fuente de la Hispanidad is a fountain on the Circunvalación in San Pedro de Montes de Oca, built for ₡10 million from material left over from the Orosi I water project. It has long been a gathering point for celebrations and protests, and the water utility AyA switched it back on for World Water Day in March 2021.

Where is Sugar Charm Donuts in Los Yoses, San José?

Sugar Charm Donuts is on Boulevard Los Yoses in San Pedro de Montes de Oca and has Wi-Fi and outdoor tables. It opened in early 2019 and makes its donuts by hand each morning; churro and crème brûlée were the best sellers, cold brew and nitro cold brew were prepared daily, and prices ran ₡1,815–2,725 in 2019.

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