A bit like in London - where tidy houses line quiet neighborhoods around well-kept little parks and where tiny cafés display pastel-colored cupcakes in flower-framed windows - that’s the feeling at Alexa von Harder. 

It’s no surprise, as Alexa spent her passionate years training as a confectioner and patissier at Peggy Porschen in the British capital. 

From there, she brought back just the right amount of "snugness" to keep us coming back to her romantic café.

In Glockenbachviertel and Lehel, you’ll find this charming French café.

The two locations are quite similar, with wooden furniture, fabric-covered lamps casting a warm glow and blackboards elegantly scribbled with chalk – places where the daily newspaper is still clipped into a wooden holder and rustles gently as we sip coffee from large cups.

Bright display cases are filled with the most beautiful pastries and baskets overflow with baguettes and breads.

In Lehel, it’s a joy to sit outside on the terrace under the trees, while at Klenzestraße, bistro chairs line the sidewalk.

No matter which one we visit, we always feel wonderfully Parisian.

“Da wo’s an Kaffee gibt,” (where there is coffee), boasts Standl 20 at the Elisabethmarkt.

And in typical Bavarian confidence, that’s their way of saying – this is where you’ll find the only true coffee.

In Munich, you can enjoy this coffee experience not just here, but at three lovely market locations, each offering a slice of the most delightful market atmosphere.

If you love sipping your coffee while watching the city wake up, these Specialty Coffee spots will surely make you happy.

Actually, there’s something so peaceful and beautiful about mornings when the Bärenbrunnen fountain at Elisabethmarkt, the Fischerbuberl fountain at Wiener Platz or the eight fountains of Viktualienmarkt gently splash away as the flower stalls roll up their shutters.

„Da wo‘s an Kaffee gibt“ (where there’s coffee) is how Paul and Johannes subtitle the unpretentious name of their little coffee booth.

Though honestly, they could say it with far more pride - where there’s some of the best coffee in Munich.

We’re big fans of Standl 20 and don’t think twice about cycling across town - just to settle into the cozy little hut or bask on the sunny terrace right in the middle of Elisabethmarkt, sipping Munich’s finest cappuccino.

Add a cinnamon-laced Franzbrötchen to the mix, and it’s hard to imagine anything better.

The Standl 20 team is always in high spirits, warm and welcoming and always ready for a quick chat - maybe about their beans, which Johannes roasts himself or about the perfect brewing technique, passionately perfected by Paul and passed on to the whole crew.

This is how truly great coffee is made.

The term Sweet Spot describes a moment of perfect balance .

And that’s exactly where Markus Pyttel’s coffee can take us.

With a view of Old Peter’s spire, sipping a cup at his Viktualienmarkt stand or on a break at his café on Reichenbachstraße, we might just feel it.

Markus himself strives to hit that sweet spot for his  coffee every single day.

He sources top-quality beans from a rotating cast of roasters and pours his full attention into every preparation.

Tiny homemade marble cakes are for us the perfect little bite to go with it.

But if you’re hungrier, there are croissants, pain au chocolat, cinnamon and cardamom rolls, banana bread or Franzbrötchen.

And when the bottom of  our cup reveals  his chosen logo  -  a smiling face  -  it might just reflect our own, after the perfect brew.

I love that scene from Shrek where Donkey tries to cheer up the grumpy ogre.

„We can stay up late, swapping manly stories and in the morning I'm making waffles!“

That works just as well after a girls’ night out and always makes me cheerful - waffles for breakfast!

Hot and buttery is exactly how André and his husband serve them at Café Helma.

Helma is a place for long, leisurely breakfasts, rotating lunch specials and homemade cakes paired with carefully selected teas in the afternoon. 

And if the night is young? A Yuzu-Prosecco and a cheese platter make for a perfect start.

We wouldn’t mind spending the whole day here in cozy Helma.

100% Arabica - whole beans - roasted in Bavaria - that’s how Lucas, Pete and Emanuel sum up their approach to specialty coffee. 

But their concept goes a little deeper than that. The three friends from Schwabing have crafted a vision that extends beyond the beans themselves.

In their bright, minimalist Suuapinga cafés, now dotted across Munich’s most charming neighborhoods, expertly trained baristas serve up coffee with precision and care. 

But their passion doesn’t stop at the perfect cup, it flows seamlessly into a love for fresh, handmade pastries. 

And let’s be honest, that’s a combination we’ll never say no to.

Katrin, Flo, and Johannes run Sorry Johnny together. Katrin takes care of the guests, Flo mans the bar, and Johannes handles the kitchen.

Well, technically… because just as often, they switch roles, with each stepping in for the other.

Everything here flows effortlessly, hand in hand.

It’s clear at first glance - and taste, that these friends love being hosts.

That’s why this tiny café in Haidhausen isn’t just our top breakfast spot in Munich, but, above all, a place where you feel right at home, in the truest sense - with friends.