Café
Piroshky Piroshky
Baking in Pike Place Market since 1992, Piroshky Piroshky is a small Eastern European bakery selling savoury and sweet piroshky and pastries to take away.
Caffe Vita (Capitol Hill)
Founded in 1995, Caffe Vita runs its flagship café and roastery on East Pike Street in Capitol Hill, with farm-direct coffee roasted on the premises.
At a glance
- Type
- Coffee roaster and café
- Area
- Capitol Hill, Seattle, United States
- Price
- $ · Budget
- Official site
- caffevita.com
Good to know
- On-site roastery
- Farm-direct coffee
- Retail beans
Why we recommend it
Caffe Vita was founded in 1995 in Seattle's Queen Anne neighbourhood by Mike McConnell, and it has grown to about ten locations, including seven other cafés in Seattle. Its flagship café, roastery and company offices are at 1005 East Pike Street on Capitol Hill, which makes this branch the place to see the business at its source. Since January 2020 the company has been led by Deming Maclise.
Caffe Vita was an early champion of buying coffee directly from farmers, which it calls Farm Direct, and it has relationships with growers in more than 11 countries. The company has also experimented with barrel-aged coffee, working with the local Batch 206 Distillery since 2019 on bourbon, rum and gin barrel versions, and it partnered with Woodland Park Zoo on a coffee from Papua New Guinea.
You may already have tasted Caffe Vita without knowing it, as it has supplied Washington State Ferries since 2017. Beyond Seattle there are cafés in New York, including one in Bushwick, Brooklyn, with its own roastery, and another roastery in Phoenix.
The Capitol Hill café is a good base for exploring the streets around Pike and Pine. It suits solo travellers and coffee lovers who want to taste coffee at the roastery where it is made. Check opening hours on the company's website before visiting.
Allow 20 to 45 minutes. If you want to take coffee home, bags of beans are sold in the café and online, and staff can help you choose a roast for your brewing method. The company opened its first New York café in Manhattan in 2012 and its Bushwick roastery and café in 2015, and it has been named in a list of ten places offering the best coffee in America. Back in Seattle, the East Pike Street flagship remains the base for the whole operation, which is why it is the branch to visit if you only have time for one.
Capitol Hill is one of Seattle's liveliest neighbourhoods, with restaurants, bars and independent shops along Pike Street and Pine Street. Taylor Shellfish's Capitol Hill oyster bar is a short walk away, and light rail links Capitol Hill station with downtown and the University District in a few minutes, making the café easy to reach from most hotels.
Caffe Vita (Capitol Hill) FAQs
Where is the Caffe Vita flagship?
At 1005 East Pike Street, which houses the flagship café, roastery and company offices.
When was Caffe Vita founded?
In 1995, in Queen Anne, by Mike McConnell.
Is the coffee roasted on site?
Yes. The East Pike Street building includes the company's roastery.
What is Farm Direct?
Caffe Vita's approach of working directly with coffee growers, in more than 11 countries.
Does Caffe Vita supply the ferries?
Yes. It has supplied Washington State Ferries since 2017.
Can you buy beans?
Yes. Beans are sold in the café and online.
Does it have branches outside Seattle?
Yes. It has cafés in New York, including Bushwick, Brooklyn, and a roastery in Phoenix.
How do you get there?
Take light rail to Capitol Hill station and walk along Pike or Pine Street.