Downtown St. Petersburg, from Southside

St. Petersburg · 7–9 hours · morning

Ten cafes and one cocktail bar, starting with a short drive. Southside Coffee Brew Bar opens at 6am and shuts at 1pm, so it goes first: a quirky patio cafe about 4km south of downtown. Then a crepe cafe on 4th Street South, a polished hotel coffee bar, a high-ceilinged coffee shop that turns into a cocktail bar, the Steep Pick at Daycation, a roaster-cafe with strong wifi on MLK Street, a dark coffee bar in the Station House, an art-deco roaster, the original Kahwa shop, and a piano cafe that stays open until nine. The high-ceilinged room appears twice, once for coffee and once for the coffee cocktails, which you save for the evening. Treat it as a menu rather than a march. After the first drive it is about five and a half kilometres on foot, and the longest walks are 23 minutes from the crepe cafe to the hotel and 18 minutes from MLK Street to the Station House. Several stops close by 2pm or 4pm, so start early. Open every day, but the cocktail side is closed Mondays.

The route

1. Southside Coffee Brew Bar
Southside
Start here, before it shuts at 1pm (2pm on Sunday). A small quirky cafe with a couple of stools inside and a patio that does the real work. Order the latte, which has brown sugar notes, and the scone. Point Chaud is about 3km north, so plan a short drive.
2. Point Chaud Café & Crêpes
Downtown St. Petersburg
A crepe cafe on the ground floor of the ARK Innovation Center, open from 8:00 (9:00 at weekends) and shut by 2:00 as stored. A clean, lively room with plenty of tables. Order the cappuccino and the savory ham, cheese and egg crepe, and know the portion is enormous. It is a 23 minute walk to the hotel coffee bar, the longest of the route, so a short drive is fine.
23 min walk to the next stop
3. Rose's Coffee Bar
Downtown St. Petersburg
Ground floor of the Moxy hotel, open from 6:30. A spacious, well-dressed room with plenty of seats and a terrace. Our cold brew was flat and a little bitter, so sit for the room and try an espresso drink instead. Intermezzo is a minute away.
1 min walk to the next stop
4. Intermezzo Coffee & Cocktails
Downtown St. Petersburg
It opens at 8:00, has high ceilings, a terrace and wifi. Order the chocolate croissant with the flat white, which is decent rather than special. It closes at 3:00 on Mondays. The cocktail side of the same room is the next stop, best saved for the evening.
5. Intermezzo Coffee & Cocktails
Downtown St. Petersburg
The same room after dark, and a Steep Pick. Come back from late afternoon for the Cafe Mexicana, a coffee cocktail with reposado tequila, coffee liqueur, dry curaçao and a 16 hour cold brew under vanilla cream. Open Tuesday to Sunday for cocktails. Daycation is a 6 minute walk away, so on a one-day run do this stop last if you prefer.
6 min walk to the next stop
6. Daycation Coffee
Downtown St. Petersburg
The Steep Pick of the route and a tiny shop that looks like nothing from the street. Order the cortado on the Daycation Blend and a slice of banana bread. It closes at 3:00, so do not leave it late. Gypsy Souls is a 7 minute walk north along MLK Street.
7 min walk to the next stop
7. Gypsy Souls Coffeehouse St. Pete
Downtown St. Petersburg
A locally owned roaster-cafe with strong free wifi and long communal tables, open from 7:00 and shut at 2:00 (8:00 to 2:00 on Sunday), so get here by early afternoon. Order the cold brew over the latte, and Mom's chicken sandwich. Bad Mother is a 17 minute walk south and east, the longest on foot after the crepe cafe.
17 min walk to the next stop
8. Bad Mother
Downtown St. Petersburg
A dark, posh coffee bar on the first floor of the Station House, and a Steep Pick. Open from 7:30 (8:30 at weekends) and shut at 4:00, with a pour-over bar, The Vault, from 10:00 to 2:00 Monday to Saturday. Order the flat white, and ask which roaster is on. Paradeco is a 6 minute walk away.
6 min walk to the next stop
9. Paradeco Coffee Roasters
Downtown St. Petersburg
An art-deco room with real plants and terrazzo, and a good brunch menu. Our latte came out flat, so lean on the food. The kitchen closes at 4:00. Kahwa is a 6 minute walk away.
6 min walk to the next stop
10. Kahwa Coffee
Downtown St. Petersburg
The original downtown shop of a Gulf Coast roaster, with sunny indoor seating, sidewalk tables and reliable wifi, a good place to work or watch the street. The flat white was decent and the waffle ok. It closes at 5:00 as stored, so check before a late visit. Black Crow is a 3 minute walk.
3 min walk to the next stop
11. Black Crow Coffee Co.
Downtown St. Petersburg
End here because it is the one stop still open in the evening, until 9:00. Vintage furniture, local art and a piano in the corner, with a latte and a banana chocolate bread worth the walk.