Cafeography
Uruguay

Cafés in Montevideo a cortado at merienda

A cortado at Café Brasilero in the Ciudad Vieja, roasters around Parque Rodó, confiterías on Colonia and the rambla from Punta Carretas to Pocitos.

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146Cafés listed
0Open by 6am
6Open past 10pm
9Specialty & roasters

Montevideo runs on two hot drinks. Uruguayans get through about 10 kg of yerba mate per person a year, ahead of Argentina at 7 kg, according to 2019 estimates.1 Mate is drunk at any hour, often from a thermos of hot water carried along, and the rambla on the Río de la Plata is one of its favorite settings.23 Coffee is the drink of the café, the bar and the confitería (pastry shop with tables).

The café tradition runs deep. Café Brasilero has served the Ciudad Vieja since 1877 and is the only Montevideo café of that era still open; Eduardo Galeano was a regular there for more than twenty years.45 At the corner of 18 de Julio and Plaza Independencia, the Palacio Salvo stands on the site of La Giralda, the confitería where the tango "La Cumparsita" was first played in 1917.6 Bar Facal has poured coffee on 18 de Julio since 1882.7

Specialty coffee is newer. Third-wave cafés and roasteries have multiplied in Montevideo since about 2013, and MVD Roasters opened in 2014.89 The Lab Coffee Roasters, founded in 2015, ran six cafés in the capital by 2024, in a market still led by independents although Starbucks has opened 16 Uruguayan stores since 2018.10 Sugar is the old habit: MVD's Alvaro Planzo told Sprudge that Uruguayans "are crazy about coffee" but usually drink it "with loads of sugar."9

Start with a barrio

Montevideo by area

Montevideo counts 62 barrios, grouped into eight municipios.20 The 1877 Café Brasilero is in the Ciudad Vieja and Bar Facal on 18 de Julio in the Centro, while most specialty cafés picked out by a 2019 tour sat near Parque Rodó.578

Ciudad Vieja

Café Brasilero on Ituzaingó, the pedestrian Sarandí, Bacacay and the port market.

27 cafés

Parque Rodó

Cordón Soho bookstore cafés and roasters on Pablo de María, Salterain and Jackson, by the park.

20 cafés

Centro & Cordón

Avenida 18 de Julio, the confiterías on Colonia and the Sunday market on Tristán Narvaja.

31 cafés

Punta Carretas

The lighthouse point, a prison turned mall, the Villa Biarritz fair and late hours on Zudáñez.

16 cafés

Pocitos

The beach on Rambla República del Perú, apartment towers and cafés inland on Rivera and Juan Benito Blanco.

20 cafés

Buceo

The Lab on Luis Alberto de Herrera, the yacht harbor, Montevideo Shopping and afternoon cafés.

9 cafés
Or start with what you need

Browse by mood and hour

Café de especialidad

Specialty coffee

House roasters from Ciudad Vieja to Prado and Malvín.

9 cafés
Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi from an 1877 café to bookshop tables in Parque Rodó.

16 cafés
Mesas afuera

Outdoor seating

Mesas afuera on Bacacay, the rambla and Herrera.

18 cafés

New in Montevideo

Recently opened and recently added

Ciudad Vieja 27 cafés

More about cafés in Ciudad Vieja

Almazara

  • Sarandí 301
  • Mon–Fri 08:00–23:55 · Sat–Sun 10:30–23:55
  • +598 2915 2197
  • Open late
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Parque Rodó 20 cafés

More about cafés in Parque Rodó

Centro & Cordón 31 cafés

More about cafés in Centro & Cordón

Punta Carretas 16 cafés

More about cafés in Punta Carretas

Pocitos 20 cafés

More about cafés in Pocitos

Buceo 9 cafés

More about cafés in Buceo

Malvín 7 cafés

Haus

  • Mon–Wed 09:00–20:00 · Thu–Sat 09:00–23:00 · Sun 09:00–20:00
  • Open late
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Tres Cruces & Parque Batlle 8 cafés

Prado & the north 8 cafés

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Coffee chains in Montevideo

Branches by area

Before you sit down

How to order coffee in Montevideo

Ask for a cortado, an espresso with a dash of milk, and you have the order at the heart of the merienda.1112 Merienda is the light meal between lunch and supper, which Uruguayans typically take around 17:00 with tea, coffee or mate.13 Specialty cafés use the international names; Café Gourmand's 2026 menu runs from a double espresso at UY$150 to a cortado doble, flat white or cappuccino at UY$210.14

The pastry beside it is usually a medialuna, the local croissant, made either with butter or with lard.2 Bizcochos, flaky pastries sold in every panadería (bakery), are the commonest pastry in Uruguay and go with mate, coffee and tea alike.2 Cafés and bakeries sell a coffee and a medialuna together as a combo, typically for UY$120–250 at the end of 2025.15

Tipping is customary, at about 10% of the bill.16 Read the menu before you add it: restaurants often charge a cubierto (cover), while Café Gourmand states that it charges none, that service is not included and that 10% is recommended.1714 The same menu prints the Wi-Fi password and asks guests not to use laptops, so look for a sign before opening one.

What coffee costs in Montevideo

DrinkTypical price
Espresso doble
Double espresso, specialty café		UY$150
Café Gourmand, Cordón Soho, 2026
Cortado doble / cappuccino
Double cortado or cappuccino		UY$210
Café Gourmand, 2026
Café con leche
Large coffee with milk		UY$130–180
Montevideo cafés, 2025
Café + medialuna
Coffee with a croissant, combo		UY$120–250
Cafés and bakeries, December 2025
Alfajor de maicena
Cornstarch shortbread sandwich		UY$110
Escaramuza, Parque Rodó, 2026

Prices as of 2025–2026. Specialty drinks come from Café Gourmand's 2026 menu.14 The café con leche range is from Quanto Custa Viajar's Montevideo food-cost page, which works with April 2025 exchange rates, and the combo range from its December 2025 guide to eating cheaply in the city.1815 The alfajor is Escaramuza's 2026 shop price.19

Sources

  1. Los uruguayos consumimos 10 kilos de yerba mate per cápita por año, Montevideo Portal (August 26, 2019), accessed October 2026
  2. Uruguayan cuisine, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Rambla of Montevideo, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  4. Cafés montevideanos con historias (Juan Antonio Varese, Planeta, 2023), Hilario Books, accessed October 2026
  5. Café Brasilero, Wikipedia (Spanish), accessed October 2026
  6. Palacio Salvo, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  7. Bar Facal, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  8. A Specialty Coffee Shop Tour of Montevideo, Uruguay, Perfect Daily Grind (July 26, 2019), accessed October 2026
  9. The Good Coffee Lover's Guide to Montevideo, Uruguay, Sprudge (July 31, 2017), accessed October 2026
  10. Uruguay's The Lab Coffee Roasters launches first franchise programme, World Coffee Portal (July 1, 2024), accessed October 2026
  11. Things to do in Montevideo, World Travel Guide, accessed October 2026
  12. Best Trips 2016: Uruguay, National Geographic (November 23, 2015), accessed October 2026
  13. Merienda, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  14. Carta 2026 (Spanish menu), Café Gourmand, accessed October 2026
  15. Restaurantes baratos em Montevidéu: onde comer bem e economizar na capital, Quanto Custa Viajar (December 26, 2025), accessed October 2026
  16. Paraguay, uno de los países con menor predisposición a dejar propina, La Nación, Paraguay (September 24, 2023), accessed October 2026
  17. Montevideo, Wikivoyage, accessed October 2026
  18. Alimentação em Montevidéu: quanto custa comer, Quanto Custa Viajar (2025), accessed October 2026
  19. Café: panadería, cocina y pastelería, Escaramuza Libros y Café, accessed October 2026
  20. Barrios de Montevideo, Wikipedia (Spanish), accessed October 2026
FAQ

Cafés in Montevideo: common questions

How much does a coffee cost in Montevideo?

On Café Gourmand's 2026 menu, a specialty café in Cordón Soho, a double espresso costs UY$150 and a cortado doble, flat white or cappuccino UY$210. A café con leche cost UY$130–180 in Montevideo cafés in 2025, and a coffee-and-medialuna combo at cafés and bakeries cost UY$120–250 at the end of that year.

Which barrio of Montevideo has the most cafés?

Centro & Cordón and Ciudad Vieja have the most cafés, followed by Parque Rodó. In the Ciudad Vieja the pedestrian Sarandí has the densest run, from The Lab at Sarandí 285 to La Molienda at 550; in the Centro, Colonia is the street to walk, with Oro del Rhin, Cafelino and Healthyway.

What is the oldest café in Montevideo?

Café Brasilero, in the Ciudad Vieja, has been open since 1877 and is the only Montevideo café of that era still in business. Eduardo Galeano was a regular there for more than twenty years. Bar Facal, on Avenida 18 de Julio, followed in 1882, and the Palacio Salvo stands where the confitería La Giralda heard the first performance of "La Cumparsita" in 1917.

How much should you tip in a Montevideo café?

Tipping is customary in Uruguay at about 10% of the bill. Restaurants often charge a cubierto (cover), so read the menu first. Café Gourmand's 2026 menu, for example, says it charges no cover, that service is not included and that 10% is recommended. The same menu asks guests not to use laptops.

What is a cortado, and when is merienda in Montevideo?

A cortado is an espresso with a dash of milk, and it is the standard order at merienda, the light afternoon meal Uruguayans typically have around 17:00 with tea, coffee or mate. The usual pastry is a medialuna, the local croissant, made with butter or with lard; bizcochos, flaky bakery pastries, are the other staple.

How much mate do people drink in Montevideo and Uruguay?

Uruguayans get through about 10 kg of yerba mate per person a year, according to 2019 estimates, ahead of Argentina at around 7 kg. Mate is drunk at any hour, often from a thermos of hot water carried along, and the rambla on the Río de la Plata is one of the places people drink it.

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