Oxford takes its coffee seriously, and the fantastic independents are the reason why. The city has a real community of roasters and baristas who care about where their beans come from and how they end up in your cup, and a few new names have joined the scene since we last wrote about it. Here are the independent coffee shops and roasteries we keep going back to, all of them members of the Independent Oxford directory.
Kelpie Coffee
Kelpie has grown from a single spot in Hinksey Park into one of the friendliest names in Oxford coffee. Ben and Clare run it with their manager Ellie, and they want each site to feel like a second living room rather than somewhere you grab a cup and leave. You will find them at Oxford Castle and on Abingdon Road, with the original Hinksey Park location still pouring, and they fill the shelves with art and craft made by people across Oxford’s creative scene, so there is usually something worth a second look while you wait for your flat white (or whatever your drink of choice is!).
The Missing Bean
The Missing Bean has been part of Oxford’s coffee scene since 2009, when Ori and Vicky came back from Sydney and brought a relaxed, Antipodean approach to the espresso bar with them. The café on Turl Street is still where most people meet it, easy to find and easy to settle into, while the roastery in East Oxford is where the beans are handled. They were ahead of the curve on speciality coffee in the city, and they have kept the quality up as plenty of newer places have arrived.
Jericho Coffee Traders
Jericho Coffee Traders started in 2012 as coffee served from the back of a Vespa tricycle, which tells you something about how James and Lizzie like to do things. The espresso bar on the High Street is the place to drink it, and the roastery on Osney Mead now supplies a long list of other Oxfordshire cafes, event caterers and restaurants too. If you have had a good coffee somewhere else in the county, there is a fair chance it started here.
Colombia Coffee Roasters
Colombia Coffee Roasters do exactly what the name suggests, focusing on single-origin Colombian coffee from a family with its own roots in growing it. They care about Fair Trade conditions and about teaching people what they are drinking, and the baristas know the beans properly. You can find them in the Covered Market, which is worth a visit in its own right, and up in Summertown.
Coffeesmith
Coffeesmith sits in a twelfth-century building in the Golden Cross, slightly tucked away from the main shopping streets, which is part of its charm. It is the family’s second shop after their first in Witney, and they pour their house blend, Resolute by Origin, alongside cakes and pastries. The welcome is warm and unfussy, and it is an easy place to lose half an hour.
Horsebox Coffee Co. & Dark Horse Roastery
Horsebox began on a working farm in South Oxfordshire, where Emily Stewart started roasting under the Dark Horse name with a careful eye on where the green coffee comes from. You will most often find the Horsebox itself parked outside the Museum of Natural History, which makes it a good stop before or after a wander round the museum or University Parks. They also appear at Harcourt Arboretum through the warmer months.
Coffee to brew at home
Not every great coffee business in the directory is somewhere you sit down. A couple are roasters first, and they are worth knowing if you want to brew something good in your own kitchen.
Routes Coffee
Routes is a speciality roastery in Cowley run by Will and Alex, with a focus on coffee that is grown regeneratively, which means working with producers who look after soil health and biodiversity rather than stripping it out. They roast to bring out the character of each origin and supply cafes, offices and people brewing at home. Will talks about the business growing through the strength of the local community, and that shows in how they work.
Red Step Roasters
Red Step is a small family roastery in Horspath, just outside the city, run by Rachel, Stuart, Sasha and Esme. They hand-roast premium Arabica in small batches and buy directly from farmers using sustainable, community-led methods. They have thought about the rest of it too, using compostable packaging and running carbon-neutral deliveries across Oxfordshire, and you can buy single-origin micro-lots or set up a subscription so you never run out.
Find more
You can find all of these businesses, and plenty more across the county, in the Independent Oxford directory. Every name on this list is an independent worth supporting, so if you are out in the city this week, pick one you haven’t tried yet!
