Thailand is the “it” destination of the year, with all eyes on the Southeast Asian country thanks to The White Lotus. From seductive beaches and fragrant food to glittering temples and unparalleled hospitality, a slew of reasons have enticed travelers to book tickets to Bangkok and beyond. I spent the month of January traveling the country, mercifully before the set-jetters had arrived, and discovered another reason to immerse oneself here: coffee.
As a coffee writer, I knew Thailand produced beans in the hinterland of the north, though I rarely encountered them in U.S. cafes. However, the swath of mountainous, jungle-covered land that spans northern Thailand, Laos, west-central Vietnam, and the southern tip of Yunnan province, China, forms the core of Southeast Asian coffee production. And that coffee has gotten really, really good.
I hadn’t given much thought to Thai coffee upon arrival, concerned more with identifying the proper night market noodle vendor. However, an afternoon in the lobby lounge of the Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok at Chao Phraya River piqued my interest. The hotel has invested in pour over equipment and staff training to brew the optimal cup from a rotating lineup of beans, ethically sourced from Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai farms. Not only is this a new era for Thai coffee, showcased in a prestigious hotel no less, but it exemplifies a new attitude by a major hotel group to not only support local beans but offer a single origin coffee program.
A few weeks later, I chatted with the owner and roaster of Roastery Village in Koh Samui who further praised the coffee scene in Chiang Mai, calling it the “Melbourne to Bangkok’s Sydney.”
A bit of digging revealed an open secret to anyone who spends time in Thailand: Chiang Mai is the artsy, soulful sibling to Bangkok’s high-rise, high-tech glamor. It’s also at the center of the coffee universe in Thailand. With its proximity to farms, roasters and baristas have access to freshly harvested beans while benefiting from the reduced transit time between crop to cup.
Most of us drink coffee that’s been harvested, bagged, shipped, and eventually roasted in a cafe far from the source. Stored properly, green coffee stays fresh for up to 12 months, but mishaps along the supply chain can diminish quality. The shorter the route to the consumer, the greater the chance that the coffee arrives in peak condition.
With its focus on high-quality Arabica specialty beans, there’s a big future for coffee in Thailand and beyond, and Chiang Mai is the place to experience it.
Where to drink coffee in Chiang Mai
There are coffee shops all over the city, and the neighborhood of Nimman, 10 minutes northwest of the ancient city walls and popular with digital nomads, supports the preponderance of roasters. Here are five shops to find on your next trip.
Roast8ry Flagship Store
Courtesy of Lauren Mowery
Coffee lovers who favor minimalist design with their single origin pour over (likely anyone who has spent time in Scandinavia), will appreciate the concrete and wood austerity of Rost8ry’s flagship location in Nimman. While there are a few locations, this venue, with its seamless blend of indoor and outdoor spaces, fast Wi-Fi, and laptop warriors, offers a distraction-free environment for purists sipping on some of the world’s best coffees. Arnon “Tong” Thitiprasert (@ristr8to), the founder of Roast8ry, has earned accolades including the Thailand National Barista Champion title. As such, the staff entails well-trained and enthusiastic ambassadors for their craft.
Akha Ama
Akha Ama is a mission-driven coffee roastery and cafe in the Chang Phueak district, a lively neighborhood just north of Chiang Mai’s old city walls. Managed by Lee Ayu, a talented roaster and social worker, the enterprise uplifts Indigenous Thai communities, including the Akha, which Lee is a member of, by supporting sustainable agriculture and farmers through direct trade and sales. Ayu and his team have empowered over 300 families across several provinces to develop sustainable farming practices through training in agroforestry, or the diversification of crops away from monoculture. The result is a delicious cup that simultaneously supports the livelihoods of Indigenous Thai coffee communities.
Ministry of Roasters
Courtesy of Ministry of Roasters
Eye-catching with its architectural details, Ministry of Roasters dazzles first with its white modern interior, allegedly inspired by Frank Gehry, then with its impressive list of single origin coffees. Clearly the love child of design and coffee lovers, Ministry of Roasters takes a joyful approach to the serious business of specialty coffee. For example, fruits and spices representing a deconstructed flavor wheel are featured prominently on walls as educational decor. After ordering, your coffee comes with a tasting card outlining the details of the drink: the origin, processing method, and brew method, plus the barista’s name, water temperature, and date of service. If that sounds like it’s leaning into the realm of a wine tasting, then you won’t be surprised when your brew arrives in a literal wine glass, capped with a lid to trap the heat. The goal is a multi-sensory experience that’s a fun reminder of how beautiful, delicious, and complex coffee, like wine, can be.
Graph Coffee
Courtesy of Graph Coffee
Graph Coffee owns several spaces across Chiang Mai, each with its own personality. The One Nimman shop offers a spare, down-to-earth hangout in a converted warehouse that feels more like a neighborhood joint than a flashy futuristic lab. The simple yet warm brick space emphasizes coffee through the process of brewing and savoring it. The focus here is on Thai specialty beans, a bid to support communities in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai further north. The shop serves both espresso drinks and pour-overs and sells excellent single-serve pour-over packets. These come in handy at hotels or airports when faced with notoriously subpar coffee.
Terroir Coffee
Courtesy of Terroir Laboratory
This Chiang Mai counterpart to the Bangkok shop (set in trendy Songwat), Terroir sits on a prime cafe-laden street in the Nimman district. The crowd chilling out in the diminutive rectangular space clearly loves its specialty brews — and singular drinks in general — as evidenced by one patron in a Pliny the Younger sweatshirt and a friend in a black COFFEE tee. Though small, the weight of intention behind the program is obvious based on the number of pour over stations standing at attention, the dog-eared books devoted to the origins and craft of coffee, and the spent boxes of Best of Panama beans on the shelf. An all-glass room provides views to the tree-shaded street outside where customers, on cooler days, relax beneath the boughs.
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