Specialty coffee in Kathmandu.
Kathmandu has 14 specialty cafés and roasters on Roasters. That is a compact scene, but a real one, and the community keeps adding to it.
Kathmandu in context
No city in Nepal has more specialty coffee on Roasters than Kathmandu. Its 14 cafés are 93% of the national total of 15, 14 times the count of Lalitpur in second place.
Regionally, Kathmandu is #26 among 251 cities in Asia. Scenes of a similar size elsewhere in the region include Fukuoka (14), Batumi (13) and George Town (13).
Globally, Kathmandu has more specialty cafés on Roasters than 92% of the 3,601 cities in the app.
Themed guides (espresso, filter, brunch and more) open at 30 cafés. Kathmandu is 16 cafés short of that line.
What makes a great café in Kathmandu
The best coffee in Kathmandu isn't a chain. It's the independent café where the barista dials in espresso every morning, the roastery that names the farm on the bag, the brew bar that takes filter as seriously as espresso. Roasters maps 14 of them.
A quick test for any café in Kathmandu: ask what is on filter today. A specialty bar will name the origin, the process and often the producer, and brew it to order.
- Roast dates within the last few weeks
- A grinder dialled in daily
- Baristas who can talk through the menu
- Origin and process on the bag
Find every specialty café
in Kathmandu.
Save the places you want to try, log what you drank, and follow the community’s latest additions. Free on iOS and Android.
Questions about coffee in Kathmandu
How many specialty coffee shops are there in Kathmandu?
Roasters currently lists 14 cafés and roasters in Kathmandu, added and reviewed by the community. That is 93% of all specialty listings in Nepal.
Which city in Nepal has the most specialty coffee?
Kathmandu does, with 14 cafés on Roasters, ahead of Lalitpur with 1 café.
Which cities in Asia have a similar-sized coffee scene?
By café count on Roasters, the closest matches outside Nepal are Fukuoka, Japan (14), Batumi, Georgia (13) and George Town, Malaysia (13).
Can I add a café in Kathmandu to Roasters?
Yes. Anyone can submit a café or roaster. Submissions are reviewed before going live to keep the listings in Kathmandu focused on specialty coffee.
What is the easiest way to plan a coffee crawl in Kathmandu?
Open Kathmandu in the Roasters app, save the cafés you want to try to a list, and use the map to route between them. The app shows which ones are open right now.
What counts as specialty coffee?
Specialty coffee is graded 80+ points on the Specialty Coffee Association’s 100-point scale. In practice it means traceable beans, lighter roasts that keep origin character, and baristas who dial in espresso and filter with care.
