Cafeography
Seattle · Downtown & Pike Place

Cafés in Downtown & Pike Place

Post Alley espresso, a walk-up window on Pike Street since 1997, Scandinavian pastries on Fifth Avenue and East African coffee on Overlook Walk.

Photo: Ian Findley, Pexels License

Pike Place Market opened on August 17, 1907, and its main street, Pike Place, runs about 940 feet (290 m) between Pike and Virginia streets.1 The market drew 20.9 million visitors in 2023, and a popular initiative on November 2, 1971, created a historic preservation zone and returned it to public hands.1

Downtown spreads south and east from the market through the office blocks of Third, Fourth and Fifth avenues. Its cafés follow two patterns: counters in and around the market for visitors, and espresso bars in office lobbies that open at 06:00 or 06:30 on weekdays and close at weekends, like Caffe Migliore at 1215 4th Avenue and Pegasus Coffee at 711 3rd Avenue.

Local tip: Market counters are busiest on weekend mornings; Monorail Espresso’s window at 510 Pike Street, a walk up Pike Street from the market, opens at 07:00 on Saturdays and Sundays.

At a glance

101Cafés listed
46With opening hours
06:00Earliest opening
22:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: 4th Avenue Espresso Bar, from 06:00 (Mon–Fri 06:00–12:00 · Sat–Sun 07:00–13:00).
  • Closes latest: Metropolitan Cafe, until 22:00 (Mon–Fri 06:00–22:00 · Sat 08:00–22:00 · Sun 08:00–20:00).
  • Most listed streets: Pike Place (5), Western Avenue (5), Pike Street (3).
  • Most common features: wheelchair access (10%), open by 6am (7%), card payment (6%).

Gelatiamo

  • 1400 3rd Avenue
  • Mon 11:00–18:00 · Tue–Thu 11:00–20:00 · Fri–Sat 11:00–21:00 · Sun 11:00–20:00
  • +1-206-467-9563
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Pike Street Coffee

  • 1501 Western Avenue
  • Mon–Wed 07:30–17:30 · Thu–Sat 07:00–18:00 · Sun 07:30–17:30
  • +1-206-829-9594
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Storyville Coffee

  • 94 Pike Street
  • Mon 07:59–18:00 · Wed–Thu 07:59–18:00 · Fri–Sun 07:59–16:00
  • +1-206-780-5777
  • Wi-Fi
  • Takeaway
  • Air-con
  • Card payment
  • Wheelchair access
  • Smoke-free indoors
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The Crumpet Shop

  • 1503 1st Avenue
  • Mon 07:00–15:00 · Wed–Thu 07:00–15:00 · Fri–Sun 07:00–16:00
  • +1-206-682-1598
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Nothing matches those filters here. See all cafés in Seattle.

Coffee chains in Downtown & Pike Place

Coffee inside Pike Place Market

Ghost Alley Espresso fills a 147-square-foot room at 1499 Post Alley, beside the Gum Wall, that Mercedes Carrabba converted into a café; it is now owned by Michael Buchwald.2 It is named for Arthur Goodwin, a former market manager said to haunt the shop, and its menu leans to flavored mochas, such as a turmeric mocha.2

Storyville, a roaster founded on Bainbridge Island, opened its coffee bar on the top floor of the Corner Market building, 94 Pike Street, on October 1, 2013, in the former Chez Shea space.3 The bar opens at 07:59 and closes on Tuesdays.

Monorail Espresso and Moore Coffee

Monorail Espresso started on December 1, 1980, as Chuck Beek’s cart under the monorail at Westlake Mall, moved several times as construction and permit costs rose, and became a walk-up window in 1997.4 Aimee Peck, a barista there from 2008, bought the business in 2012. The window at 510 Pike Street opens at 06:00 on weekdays and 07:00 at weekends, and a branch in the Columbia Center lobby, at 701 5th Avenue, opened in 2015.4

Lupe Chavez opened Moore Coffee in 2011 in the Moore Theatre building at 2nd and Virginia, and its lattes come with cartoon animals drawn in the foam; the menu adds cajeta and horchata lattes and a chili-spiced Mocha Diablo.5 The 1930 2nd Avenue shop serves Thursday to Sunday, and the branch at 112 Stewart Street on weekdays.

From the market down to the waterfront

Overlook Walk, the elevated park that links the market with the 20-acre Waterfront Park, opened on October 4, 2024; its Salish Steps double as amphitheater seating.6 In 2026 Boon Boona opened its fifth café there, with coffees from Ethiopia, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Kenya and single origins from women-led farms.7 The café, at 1515 Western Avenue, serves daily 08:00–18:00.

Western Avenue has more coffee stops between the market and the piers. Anchorhead Coffee at 2003 has outdoor seating, Pike Street Coffee at 1501 opens at 07:00 from Thursday to Saturday, and Aroom at 904 serves daily 08:00–17:00.

Office-district cafés on Fourth and Fifth

Freya, a Scandinavian bakery whose other café is at 1426 Western Avenue, has a much larger downtown shop at 1400 5th Avenue, where it sells cardamom knots, croissants, a churro cruffin and spanakopita.8 It opens at 06:00 on weekdays and 07:00 at weekends, as does Olympia Coffee at 1420 5th Avenue.

Farther in, Victrola has two cafés on Pine Street, at 108 and 300, Diva Espresso pours from 06:30 at 401 5th Avenue, and Coffee Tree at 905 8th Avenue opens at 06:00 on weekdays. At weekends many lobby counters stay shut, and others keep short hours: 4th Avenue Espresso Bar at 1208 4th Avenue closes at 12:00 on weekdays and 13:00 at weekends.

Sources

  1. Pike Place Market, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. Ghost Alley Espresso, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. First Look: Storyville Coffee’s Splashy Coffee Bar at Seattle’s Pike Place Market (September 20, 2013), Daily Coffee News, accessed October 2026
  4. Monorail Espresso, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  5. Moore Coffee, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  6. Overlook Walk opens Friday (October 1, 2024), Queen Anne & Magnolia News, accessed October 2026
  7. Renton coffee roaster now sits on Seattle’s World Cup fan route (Brian Cook, August 17, 2026), Hoodline, accessed October 2026
  8. Freya Downtown (Kayla Sager-Riley, August 7, 2025), The Infatuation, accessed October 2026
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In Downtown & Pike Place, also browse: Specialty coffee Outdoor seating Wi-Fi Bakery cafés Open by 6am Open late

FAQ

Downtown & Pike Place cafés: questions

What is Ghost Alley Espresso at Pike Place Market in Seattle?

Ghost Alley Espresso is a 147-square-foot café at 1499 Post Alley, beside the Gum Wall at Pike Place Market. Mercedes Carrabba converted the space into a café, and Michael Buchwald now owns it. It is named for Arthur Goodwin, a former market manager said to haunt the shop, and is known for flavored mochas such as a turmeric mocha.

When did Monorail Espresso open in downtown Seattle?

Chuck Beek set up Monorail Espresso as a cart under the monorail at Westlake Mall on December 1, 1980. After several moves it became a walk-up window in 1997, and Aimee Peck bought the business in 2012. The window at 510 Pike Street opens at 06:00 on weekdays and 07:00 at weekends; another branch is in the Columbia Center lobby.

How do you walk from Pike Place Market to the Seattle waterfront?

Take Overlook Walk, the elevated park that opened on October 4, 2024, linking Pike Place Market with the 20-acre Waterfront Park; its Salish Steps work as amphitheater seating. Boon Boona opened a café there in 2026, at 1515 Western Avenue, serving East African coffees daily 08:00–18:00.

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