What is the oldest coffeehouse in Seattle’s University District?

Café Allegro, which Dave Olsen opened in 1975 in an alley off University Way NE, opposite the busiest entrance to the University of Washington. It occupies a 1909 building that once held a bank and a mortuary, has roasted coffee on its second floor since 2014, and opens at 07:00 on weekdays and 08:00 at weekends.

How do you get to the University District in Seattle by light rail?

U District station, on Brooklyn Avenue near NE 45th Street, opened in October 2021 as part of the Northgate Link extension and sits a block west of The Ave. University of Washington station, which opened in 2016, serves the campus.

Which University District cafés in Seattle are open late?

Café on the Ave at 4201 University Way NE is open daily until midnight, and Café Happy on NE 40th Street until 01:00. Bubble-tea shops on The Ave stay open late too: Bobalust, Tea Republik and Seattle Best Tea Co. serve until 22:00, and Boba Up until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

Cafés in University District, Seattle: Hours and Map

The University District takes its name from the University of Washington and from University Way NE, known as The Ave, a name picked in a 1919 contest to replace 14th Avenue.¹ The Ave runs 1.2 miles (1.9 km) from just below NE Pacific Street to NE Ravenna Boulevard, and its cheap restaurants have earned it the description of an eight-block global food court.²

In the 1960s the district was the center of Seattle’s counterculture coffeehouses, and the Seattle Coffee House Association, formed in that decade, fought a city ordinance that treated coffeehouses as cabarets, winning lower license fees and the end of a minimum age.³ The University Book Store has been on The Ave since 1924.²

Local tip: Café Allegro fills with students during the academic year; for a seat after 20:00, Café on the Ave at 4201 University Way NE serves until midnight every day.

At a glance

71Cafés listed

49With opening hours

05:00Earliest opening

01:00Latest closing

Opens earliest: Donut Factory, from 05:00 (Mon 05:00–18:00 · Tue–Fri 05:00–15:00 · Sat–Sun 06:30–18:00).

Closes latest: Café Happy, until 01:00 (Daily 11:00–01:00).

Most listed streets: University Way Northeast (15), Roosevelt Way Northeast (3), University Way NE (3).

Most common features: wi-fi (21%), wheelchair access (17%), card payment (17%).

Getting to the U District

U District station, on Brooklyn Avenue near NE 45th Street, opened in October 2021 on the Northgate Link extension, a block west of The Ave; University of Washington station opened earlier, in 2016.¹ Since 2017, zoning has allowed buildings up to 320 feet between Interstate 5 and 15th Avenue NE, except on The Ave itself, and student towers have followed.¹

The U District Street Fair, started in 1970 by Andy Shiga with 300 vendors, fills The Ave over a weekend in May and draws more than 50,000 visitors; a weekly farmers market has run since 1993.¹

Café Allegro, Seattle’s oldest coffeehouse

Dave Olsen opened Café Allegro in 1975 in a 1909 building that had held shops, a bank and a mortuary, choosing an alley site opposite the busiest entrance to the campus.⁴ Nathaniel Jackson and Chris Peterson bought it in 1990, and in 2014 the second floor became a roastery.⁴

The café, listed at 4212 University Way NE, is entered from the alley and opens at 07:00 on weekdays and 08:00 at weekends. A Seattle Times guide notes plenty of seating, including an upstairs patio, but heavy competition from undergraduates for it.⁵ Boon Boona, the East African roaster, runs a café inside the University Book Store.⁵

Coffee and bubble tea on The Ave

Avole, the Ethiopian café named after the first cup of the jebena ceremony, has a branch at 4555 University Way NE that opens at 06:00 on weekdays and stays open until 20:00.⁶ Bulldog News & Cafe, next door to Café Allegro at 4208, opens at 07:00 on weekdays.

After dark The Ave belongs to tea. Bobalust, Tea Republik and Seattle Best Tea Co. serve until 22:00, Boba Up at 4139 until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, and Café on the Ave at 4201 is open daily 06:30–00:00. Café Happy, two blocks west on NE 40th Street, stays open until 01:00.

Campus counters and the north end

On campus, Husky Grind at 4295 Little Canoe Channel NE serves until 20:00 every day, and Rotunda Espresso on NE Pacific Street serves weekdays 07:30–16:00. The Ugly Mug, at 1309 NE 43rd Street, has Wi-Fi and opens at 08:00 on weekdays.

North toward Ravenna, the early openers are on side streets: Donut Factory at 4336 Roosevelt Way NE opens at 05:00 on weekdays, Muddy Waters Coffee at 2258 NE 65th Street opens at 05:30, and Zoka’s café at 2901 NE Blakeley Street opens at 06:00 every day.

Cafés in University District

At a glance

Ancient Gate Coffee Company

Avole

Bagel Oasis

Boba Up

Bobalust

Bulldog News & Cafe

Cafe Allegro

Cafe Arta

Café Happy

Café On The Ave

Cafe Solstice

City Grind at the Henry

Donut Factory

Egg Street

Evolutionary Grounds

Fred by Broadcast

George Coffee and Pastries

Herkimer Coffee - Ravenna

Husky Den Café

Husky Grind Café

Husky Grind Café

Husky Grind Café

Jujubeet - University Village

Leon Coffee House

M Cozy Fusion Cafe

Microsoft Café

Mr. West

Muddy Waters Coffee Co

Off the Rez Cafe

One Bite Cafe

Orin's Place

Poindexter

Public Grounds

Rotunda Espresso

Santo Coffee Co

Scorpio Cafe

Coffee chains in University District

Starbucks

Caffe Ladro

Tully's Coffee

Kitanda

Zoka Coffee

Getting to the U District

Café Allegro, Seattle’s oldest coffeehouse

Coffee and bubble tea on The Ave

Campus counters and the north end

Sources

More of Seattle

Downtown & Pike Place

Pioneer Square & International District

South Lake Union & Eastlake

Queen Anne & Uptown

Capitol Hill

Fremont

Ballard

University District cafés: questions

What is the oldest coffeehouse in Seattle’s University District?

How do you get to the University District in Seattle by light rail?

Which University District cafés in Seattle are open late?

Own a café in University District?