Bath is a genuinely significant name in UK coffee, not just a city with a few nice cafes. Colonna & Small's is the reason why, and Cortado and Society Cafe round out a real cluster of independents worth seeking out if you care about your coffee. Here's where to go.
Colonna & Small's: where it started
Colonna & Small's, at 6 Chapel Row, is the original shop of Colonna Coffee, founded in 2009 by Maxwell Colonna-Dashwood, a three-time UK barista champion who set it up after encountering third-wave coffee culture in Melbourne. It was one of the earliest specialty coffee shops in the country and has kept that reputation since, roasting its own beans (at a roastery just outside Bath) and running a rotating, ever-changing selection rather than a fixed house blend, including a freezer menu of rare, vacuum-sealed single-origin releases. Staff are genuinely set up to talk you through what you're drinking rather than just take an order, and it's since expanded with a second branch on Leather Lane in London. It's open Monday to Friday 8:30am-5:30pm, Saturday 9am-5:30pm and Sunday 10am-4pm.
Cortado: coffee and empanadas
Cortado Café, at 7 Bridge Street, is an independent cafe run by Fran and Sophie, an Argentinian-British couple, serving specialty coffee alongside brunch, lunch and their own Argentinian empanadas - a genuinely distinctive combination in a city where most cafes serve the same scones-and-sandwiches menu. It's open daily, Monday to Friday 8am-4pm and weekends 9am-4pm or 9am-5pm on Saturdays, making it a solid mid-morning or lunchtime stop rather than an evening destination.
Society Cafe: the reliable local chain
Society Cafe runs two Bath branches, in The Corridor at 19 High Street and at 5 Kingsmead Square, alongside sister sites in Bristol. It's a small, quality-focused local chain rather than a single destination cafe, which makes it a useful option if you want a dependable specialty coffee close to wherever you happen to be in the city centre, with hours generally running from around 7:30am or 8am into the early evening.
How they compare
| Cafe | What it's known for | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Colonna & Small's | The original, nationally known roastery shop | Serious coffee, worth the detour |
| Cortado | Specialty coffee and Argentinian empanadas | A distinctive brunch or lunch stop |
| Society Cafe | A dependable local mini-chain | Convenience without compromising quality |
Getting the most out of it
If you only have time for one stop, make it Colonna & Small's - it's a genuine piece of British coffee history rather than just a good cafe, and the staff will happily talk through the day's rotating beans if you ask. Combine a visit with a wander through Walcot Street's independent shops, covered in our Walcot Street guide, or fold it into a wider look at the city's food scene in our best cafes in Bath guide. None of these three take reservations, since they're all counter-service cafes rather than restaurants, so there's occasionally a short queue at Colonna & Small's on weekend mornings but rarely more than a few minutes.