We stumbled upon it by accident, but I enjoyed great coffee right in the heart of Las Palmas on Gran Canaria.
Best Coffee In Las Palmas, Gran Canaria
It was the day before we were to fly home and we made the journey from our rental on the other side of the island into Las Palmas in order to get a COVID-19 test. Thankfully, one of the main hospitals, affiliated with San Roque University, was offering rapid antigen tests for only 20€ each. It only took five minutes to get our results (whether accurate or not, we now would be allowed to travel home…).
Across the street, I noticed a cafeteria called Borito. Hoping for some good coffee, I wandered inside.
Cafeteria Borito
C. Dolores de la Rocha, 8
35001 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
+34 928 33 50 84
6:45AM – 9:00PM (Monday – Friday)
6:45AM – 4:00PM (Saturday, Sunday)
Cafeterias like this are such a cool feature of Spain. I love the concept of a cafeteria. Los Angeles used to be full of them, but there are very few left. Anyway, the food is usually reliable, but not necessarily the coffee. Importantly for me, you have to specifically request sin azucar (no sugar) or else it usually is far too sweet for me.
I ordered a cortado, which is an equal part espresso and steamed milk. It was so excellent I had another one.
The rest of my family, including Heidi (sorry, no pictures) decided to play with spoons…
And coffee is cheap too. Just 1,20€…ah, I love the cheap coffee in Southern Europe.
CONCLUSION
I am so glad I stumbled upon this coffee shop in Las Palmas. A strong coffee certainly beat the drip coffee I had been drinking all week in the house or the disappointing coffee at Burger King…
This is part of my summer in Germany trip report.
rapid antigen tests for only 20€ each. It only took five minutes to get our results (whether accurate or not, we now would be allowed to travel home…).
What country are you flying home to?
USA.
Did you try a “leche y leche” coffee (or a “barraquito”, with added liqueur) while in Gran Canaria?
No sir. No sugar or liquor in my coffee (except for the occasional Irish Coffee when in Ireland).
Oh, you wouldn’t need/want sugar on your “leche y leche” anyway, the condensed milk takes care of that 😉 And there’s no liquor on this one!
The “barraquito” is a good contrast to Irish coffee. It subs coffee cream liquor or a citrousey “Licor 43” for whiskey, and adds cinnamon and a lemon peel to the frothed milk on top.
Both options better imo and way cheaper than coffee made with beans from Agaete. Production there is tiny, and the resulting price isn’t worth it. Proof of this is that it’s seldom bought by locals, or offered in cafes.
A little story about the coffee in Spain, all parts, is the use of Torrefacto. It’s strong coffee flavor is usually met with a bitterness that is biting or just right when they add a little salt to the coffee grounds. If you appreciate strong coffe, you might not notice the difference. It’s used everywhere and may be what you enjoyed. The history of its use is similar to the United States history with the coffee replacement Chickory.
Personally I like the coffee in Spain. Cafe con leche, Cafe Quemado, Cafe Bombon, or my ultimate indulgence Carajillo! When I feel really brave it’ll be a Carajillo Quemado, aye por la madre que pario!
Did you try coffee from Agaete region? Volcanic terrain tends to produce well balanced flavored beans.
I did not. Wish I had!
The coffee from local outlets (rather than the tourist traps) in Spain is usually excellent and €1.20 is about right. That’s why Spain is not covered in Starbucks outlets!