Sólo Espresso

Solo Espresso definitely has the best coffee in New Orleans. It has the richest drinks and the best latte art. It is in Bywater and not really close to anything else. The shop is in the basement of a house in a residential neighborhood across from a school. It is almost 3 miles from the French Quarter. It took me 40 minutes to walk there and I had to cross the 4 lane St Claude Avenue. If you go, I recommend driving or using an Über. Even though it is great coffee, I do not know if it is worth a round trip Über ride just for a cup of coffee unless you really love coffee. Keep in mind that it closes at 3 PM and is not open on Sunday.
If you are visiting New Orleans and looking for recommendations, please see

Very cute coffee spot and there’s an adorable shop dog who I assume is co-​owner. The interior is really beautiful – nice furniture and a ton of interesting artwork up. The drinks themselves (over a few days, I tried the iced coffee, iced latte, and iced mocha) are pretty good. Nothing out of this world but definitely still good quality. The lower rating is because of the high prices… I’ve been to a lot of locally-​sourced coffee shops and even though they obviously (and reasonably) charge more than, say, Starbucks, this was a bit excessive. Seemed to be the only good coffee shop in the area, so that’s great… but not quite worth the $$$.

You’ll probably need to drive here, but it’s worth the trip. Serious coffee drinks delivered in a warm little space.

I love this place. After moving to New Orleans from Oregon I had mostly given up on drinking decent to good coffee. Until I found the coffee at Solo. Panther coffee is there regular beans which rotate from where they are imported from depending on what’s in season. They also have a rotating guest brand which I’ve been equally impressed with. So far I’ve seen beans from my hometown Oregon from heart roasters as well as an amazing bag of beans from a company in Wisconsin called Ruby that was fantastic. I mostly go to Solo to get my beans in bulk to make at home and there selection is hands down the best I’ve discovered in New Orleans. Friendly staff as well. The prices vary from $ 15/​$ 20 a bag which is more expensive than some but well worth the cost for me to have fresh, full flavored, delicious beans in a city famous for the horror of chicory coffee.

One of the most unassuming places in town. LOVE that they have Panther beans, I think it’s the only place in town to use them.
Great specialty drinks, cold brew, iced pour-​overs, but the most unique thing here is vanilla curry iced coffee. Phenomenal.
Thank you, Solo, and your endless rotation of interesting and exciting pop-​up food vendors!

I got a Americano and it was okay. Could have been back flushed. Super simple set up coffee and a few little treats. This is probably just how I perceived it but it kind of felt like they were a little pretentious. I’m a stiffer for friendly baristas who want to chat or say more then one word. Overall though okay coffee.

love this cute little hidden spot! always perfect espresso drinks, friendly people who work here, and this one seeded looking blondie desert is unreal tasting!

I can honestly say I have never had a better cappuccino in my life. There is a sweet shop dog that hangs in the corner and the place is tiny and cozy and community driven. No wifi, which is great for my writing. Others might rate the place lower for some of these qualities but it’s just what I need when I want an espresso drink while I get some offline work done.

As someone who enjoys their coffee black, I find their brew delightful. The place is small and neat and the staff is very friendly. I’m very happy that this place is only 5 minutes away from me.

Great little place, inviting décor and friendly staff. I prefer to support small businesses over the giants ANY day. Would be a regular but they don’t have caramel syrup and being a slave to my favorite I just am not happy with chocolate or vanilla. What they have was definitely delicious though, just not my first choice.

My cappuccino was very smooth. Whole milk and brown sugar only! The barista was very personable, as well.
Not the best place for schoolwork though, as the small space causes the conversations to be loud and fairly distracting.
The atmosphere is extremely hipster, much more so than anywhere on Magazine Street, so if that’s not your scene, it may not be the best fit. That being said, if you’d just like to grab a cup to-​go, then this is great spot!

Coffee is great, space is small, staff is friendly. I got a cappuccino and my husband got a pour over. There’s not a ton of seating so I would recommend coming and getting it to go.

Tiny little coffee shop in the middle the residential neighborhood. I love the décor. It feels homey. The coffee is great. I love to support local business, as should everyone. If you visit Nola, try this place. It’s not far from the French Quarter. Beware: it’s not open til 8 in the morning, which is later than most coffee places.

New Coffee Shop on Poland Ave. The People are Awesome and so welcoming. Very Retro which add lots of Charm to this place. It’s a must do New Orleans. #SoloEspresso So tell your friends near and far. That there’s a New Coffee Boss in town.

Can’t miss this place on a trip to NoLa. I took a 20 minute taxi to get here. Well worth the trip. I’m from NYC where we have some solid shops, but none in Manhattan with the feel of this place. Love it. Also they have a special breakfast on Saturdays. Today was Laotian Omelets. So good.

Half dead and in search of something to wake us up, we rolled around searching for some good coffee. We drove up to this little house which oddly enough used to belong to my husbands babysitter aeons ago lol. I won’t claim to be a coffee expert by any means, but I do know good coffee when I see it and this place has it. With a very small but awesome menu, everything on it screams DRINK ME!!! I decided on the drip coffee of the day which if I’m not mistaken was from Peru (Don’t quote me). It was strong and perfect and woke me up within 30 seconds.
This is not a place where u bring ur study group and stay for hours due to the space, but rather somewhere u come solo hence the name. Nonetheless if your looking for a unique spot with people who actually don’t mind taking the time to explain and educate and who actually care, give this place a go.

Tiny gem where quality to the craft matters.
It’s NOT this place to work or prowl the internet. Go there, sit back and unwind. It’s a tiny postage size retreat to enjoy a fabulous cup of coffee or espresso.
If you go on the weekend like I did, EXPECT long lines. Wait, patiently. It’s so worth it.

This is not where you hunker down to research dogs online for your thesis on «How Dogs Truly Are Man’s Best Friend» nor is this where you take your a cappella club that rolls deep and everyone’s always trying to talk just a little higher than the other one.
This is where you go to decompress, deactivate, and de-​rink some good coffee. This little bean burrow (my twist on Larissa’s hippie coffee cave ref) is the size of a thimble compared to some of the Uptown coffee shops, and was such a great spot to have a morning convo with Allison P. While the space is small, I don’t feel like our conversation was being overheard nor did my satellite ears necessarily pick up on other convos.
I had a mocha, ’cause I’m a coffee plain Jane, and it was pretty darn good. No weird syrupy flavoring or that filmy taste you get with some mochas. I also didn’t get any weird jitters that day, that sometimes happens, when I try a new place. I’d definitely like to try some other types of coffee preparations there on my future visits.
This place is quite a stretch for me from where I live, so I don’t know how often I’ll be able to get over here, but I feel like I must try Joi’s vanilla curry iced coffee with almond milk post haste. I also wish there was internet here so I COULD post up all day, but alas, that’s not what this space is about. Ya’ heard?

So happy I can walk to Solo to start off my morning. This place feels like home to this New Yorker. Lots of artisan blends and many interesting brewing methods for you to choose from. Great place to try something different and learn something new.

This place is craft. They are doing it the right way on all levels. They know how to pull a shot and how to froth milk. The latte was the perfect weight. Not to wet and not to dry. No giant air bubbles in the drink. Espresso had a nice crema and was perfect. The people are friendly and the the space is intimate. This is a place that takes its time to do it the right way. I will be back again and again.

Full disclosure: I don’t drink coffee. And yet I really like this coffee shop. Their selection of herbal teas isn’t exactly massive but seems to be well-​curated. I got the lemon hibiscus and was very happy with it. The woman behind the counter was just as knowledgeable about — and just as happy to take a moment to talk about — the tea as she was about the coffee drinks my friends ordered.
There was a large, sweet dog hanging out in the shop when we were there, which contributed to the cozy feel. And there was a pop-​up: Sugarman’s bagels! Not sure how often this happens, but it’s great to see businesses like this giving other local folks a chance to get the word out and build their fan base.
Overall, this is a nice, relaxing shop with good tea and (on the day we were there) delicious bagels.

This place is a total gem in a city of not enough coffee (in my humble opinion). I finally ended up here on my last day in the city and I have since recommended it to all the locals I know. Yes, it is off the beaten path a bit, and it’s like a little hippie coffee cave. Everything about this place made me happy.
They open and close early (like a real coffee shop). The interior is small, personal, and full of good vibes. There was an adorable dog just hanging out on one of the chairs inside. Drinks are made to order, beautiful, and delicious. The second my latte was gone, I wanted another. I brought a bag of beans home with me, which was a great decision. If I lived here, I would definitely make this my regular spot. Just knowing it exists makes me like New Orleans more.