Cafeography
Kampala · Nakasero & City Centre

Cafés in Nakasero & City Centre

Parliament Avenue, Buganda Road and Kyadondo Road on the hill of ministries and markets.

Photo: josh_ dago__, Pexels License

Nakasero is one of the seven hills Kampala grew from, the hill that held Fort Nakasero.2 It rises to 1,228 m. Parliament, State House, the Bank of Uganda and several ministries stand toward the top, along with the Kampala Sheraton, Serena and Hilton hotels, while the lower western and southern slopes carry taxi parks, the railway station, banks and shopping arcades.1 The top is one of the city's most expensive addresses.1

Café Reze is at 18 Buganda Road, Cafe Ballet at 34C Kyadondo Road and Cafe Mocca in the NIC Building, with Happy Blends and Brews downtown on Ben Kiwanuka Street. Ernst May's 1947 plan set the southern slopes aside as the commercial center.2

Local tip: On Sundays Cafe Ballet is closed and Cafe Mocca posts no hours; Endiro at 40 Kyadondo Road opens at 07:00 every day.

At a glance

7Cafés listed
2With opening hours
07:00Earliest opening
23:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Cafe Mocca, from 07:00 (Mon–Fri 07:00–21:00 · Sat 08:00–20:00).
  • Closes latest: Cafe Ballet, until 23:00 (Mon–Sat 08:00–23:00).
  • Most common features: open late (14%), wi-fi (14%), outdoor seating (14%).

Nothing matches those filters here. See all cafés in Kampala.

Coffee chains in Nakasero & City Centre

Parliament Avenue and Café PAP

Café PAP opened at 13B Parliament Avenue on 23 April 2004. The Daily Monitor credits its freshly roasted coffee and experienced baristas with making coffee part of daily life for many people in Kampala, and the Uganda Coffee Federation's president called the founding family pioneers of a nascent coffee culture.3

Café Javas also has a branch on Parliament Avenue. Endiro Coffee has one at 40 Kyadondo Road, open daily from 07:00 to 22:00, and another at Standard Chartered, 5 Speke Road, open Monday to Friday 09:00–17:00 and Saturday 09:00–13:00.

Café Reze on Buganda Road

Café Reze's free network, Cafe Reze Free WiFi, needs no password, and the café says it is set up for video calls and remote work.4 Its house espresso blends are built on Ugandan robusta, with highland arabica from Mount Elgon and the Rwenzori slopes, roasted in small batches.5 There is outdoor seating, smoking is kept outside, and cards are accepted.

As of 2026, a single espresso costs USh 6,000 and a double USh 8,000, a single macchiato USh 8,000 and a latte USh 10,000.6 Beans and ground coffee are also sold to take home.5

Kyadondo Road and the NIC Building

Cafe Ballet, at 34C Kyadondo Road, is open Monday to Saturday from 08:00 to 23:00. Cafe Mocca, in the NIC Building, posts hours of 07:00–21:00 on weekdays and 08:00–20:00 on Saturday, and its breakfast combos come with juice and coffee or tea.7

Silver Spoon Cafe & Restaurant gives its address as 6A Lumumba Avenue, near the Ministry of Public Service. Cafe Bravo and Dash and Dine Cafe are the other quick stops on the lower slopes.

Nakasero Market

At the foot of the hill, about 50 m off Entebbe Road, Nakasero Market has traded on its central site since 1927 and is the oldest market in the capital. It began in 1895 at the Lubiri, the Kabaka's palace, and now employs more than 10,000 people.8 Coffee and spices are sold here along with matooke (cooking bananas), eggs, textiles and electronics: produce in the open, partly covered section, hardware, clothes and souvenirs in the old building.8

Sources

  1. Nakasero, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. Kampala, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Ngabirano, first female café owner, Daily Monitor (February 11, 2018), accessed October 2026
  4. Free Wi-Fi, Café Reze, accessed October 2026
  5. Our coffee, Café Reze, accessed October 2026
  6. Coffee, Tea & Chillers menu, Café Reze (2026), accessed October 2026
  7. Cafe Mocca, Cafe Mocca, accessed October 2026
  8. Nakasero Market, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
Keep exploring

More of Kampala

Kisementi & Kamwokya

10 cafés

Kololo & Lugogo

7 cafés

Muyenga, Kabalagala & Kansanga

8 cafés
FAQ

Nakasero & City Centre cafés: questions

When did Café PAP open on Parliament Avenue in Kampala?

Café PAP opened at 13B Parliament Avenue, Nakasero, on 23 April 2004. The Daily Monitor credits its freshly roasted coffee and experienced baristas with making coffee part of daily life for many people in Kampala, and the Uganda Coffee Federation's president called the founding family pioneers of the country's coffee culture.

Which café in Nakasero, Kampala has free Wi-Fi for remote work?

Café Reze at 18 Buganda Road runs a free network, Cafe Reze Free WiFi, with no password, and says it is set up for video calls and remote work. It also has outdoor seating and takes cards. Its house espresso blends use Ugandan robusta with arabica from Mount Elgon and the Rwenzori slopes.

What does an espresso cost in Nakasero, Kampala?

As of 2026, Café Reze on Buganda Road charges USh 6,000 for a single espresso and USh 8,000 for a double. A single macchiato costs USh 8,000 and a latte USh 10,000. The café also sells its beans and ground coffee to take home.

For café owners

Own a café in Nakasero & City Centre?

Free listings are free for good. A featured page gives you photos, a menu and your own URL, in your café's own design, for less than a coffee a day.

Get listed, free See a page in its own design