Are you the kind of person who can’t work at home, with family interrupting you every few minutes, parents asking you to run errands, and the lure of your bed calling you back to sleep? Are you looking for a change of scenery and are getting uninspired with the same office every day? With WiFi and a plug, you can work anywhere, but sometimes you need an encouraging environment and the right vibe–which is where cafes, and coffee shops generally,aka, the millennial offices come in.
Perhaps it’s the inviting smell of the coffee, the whiff of excitement you get when you see the baristas doing their thing, or the blissful sound of murmurs and keyboards clicking, in cafes that does the trick to get people going.
Whether you’re cafe-crawling, working, studying, or just grabbing a cup of coffee, we’ve rounded up the best cafes to keep you caffeinated–and hopefully productive! These spots offer high-speed WiFi, eclectic ambience and crowd, quality coffee, and reasonable working hours.
Here are some places to frequent if you want to switch things up:
Grind: Rustic, trendy cafe attached to Hopscotch with cool menu offerings like oatmeal lattes, sea salt mochas, and honey matcha. The background music consists of motivating jams of the 60s that will really get your creative juices flowing! For extra vibes, stare at the “blah, blah, blah” sign on the wall. There are many comfortable wooden tables that give you a very hippie feel when working.
Location: Saar
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Yes
Good Hiding Spots For Focused Work: None
Price (Sandwich, Coffee, & Water): BD 2-5
Power Outlets: Yes
Hours: 7:30am-10:30pm
Starbucks: We can’t help but deny the allure of our go-to standard coffee shops: sometimes, all you want is a Starbucks Frappuccino. They have free working WiFi, more than enough power outlets , a couple of comfortable couches, high tables, not to mention a good hiding spot and corner section tailored for those working. Conveniently and strategically located next to Al Jazeera Supermarket, the Starbucks Mahooz branch just screams productivity with its modern design and study/work corner. The place is frequented by a diverse range of businesspeople, students, and cafe crawlers, getting, which is both good and bad — depends on your personal cafe-crawling preferences.
Location: Manama (Zinj), Courtyard, El-Mercado
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Several
Good Hiding Spots For Focused Work: None
Price (Sandwich, Coffee, & Water): BD 3.5-4BD
Power Outlets: 8-10
Hours: 6am-12am
Get a triple caramel macchiato. If an over-sweetened coffee drink isn’t going to encourage you to work, what will?
Nestle Toll House: The Fro-Yo + coffee heaven duo has decent wireless internet (which, similar to Caribou, requires frequent login), many group tables. It’s also quite convenient for groups, whether families or working individuals, because the second floor space is filled with comfortable couches and group tables. Definitely recommended as it’s never quite packed (but not deserted altogether)!
Location: Manama (Tala Plaza)
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Many
Good Hiding Spots For Focused Work: Several
Price (Sandwich, Coffee, & Water): BD 3-3.5
Power Outlets: 10
Hours: 7am-11pm
Crust & Crema: One of the startup ecosystems favorite spots, you can’t venture there without seeing one of our startup founders: gorgeous wooden interiors with a very rustic and urban vibe, plenty of space with a massive seating area upstairs. The place also includes many plugs on the corners with comfortable couches suited for meetings. There’s a couple of hiding spots too. The fancy coffee preparation methods are just icing on the (coffee-centered) cake. The cafe attracts families,casual groups, and a lot of entrepreneurs and students, so you’d fit right in. So if you want to go for a fully quiet time, go in the morning when it first opens. And when you get peckish, we suggest you try the coffee pizza, weird we know, but trust us.
Location: Saar/Zinj/Seef
Wireless Internet: No
Group Tables: Many
Good Hiding Spots For Focused Work: Plenty
Price (Sandwich, Coffee, & Water): BD 3-3.5
Power Outlets: 7
Hours: 8am – 12am
Poke Kafe: Grab a bowl of poke and get your work done, you can pick between Classic Salmon, Tropical Chicken, or Hippie Tofu, and more! If you need a caffeine fix, you can also get and Iced Latte or Iced Coffee in this hot weather. It has the perfect co-working space, with USB sockets, group tables and healthy snacks. So what are you waiting for? Go to Poke Kafe and try it for yourself!
Location: Hamala
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Yes
Good Hiding Spots for Focused Work: No
Price: 4-5 BD
Power Outlets: yes
Caribou Coffee: The place is beautifully planned, with an outdoors and indoor area (and a particular areakk for smokers). There are many comfortable group couches that are excellent for meetings. The WiFi speed is excellent, but only lasts for an hour as to encourage you order, but you can ask for a new password after yours expires and the baristas will happily give you another one. It’s not crowded in the morning, but gets pretty busy in the afternoons. The crowd is casual and gets most busy midday from.
Location: Riffa (Reem Center), Hala Plaza, Hamala
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Several
Good Hiding Spots For Focused Work: Several
Price (Sandwich, Coffee, & Water): BD 2-4.5
Power Outlets: 6-10
Oh, and the added plus of Caribou Riffa is that it’s open 24/7!
Coffee Republic: This is perhaps one of the largest coffee shop spaces in Bahrain, with excellent facilities, plenty of tables, couches for both groups and individuals spread out over two floors with an outdoors area. Uniquely, has an exclusive quiet space where mobile phones have to be turned off. This cafe is definitely worth making the trip to Riffa to. The WiFi speed is also excellent and of course, free of charge.
Location: Riffa (RUW Corner)
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Many
Good Hiding Spots For Focused Work: Countless
Price (Sandwich, Coffee, & Water): BD 4-5
Power Outlets: 15-20
Hours: 6am-2am
Nomad: Nomad, known as an urban eatery is the perfect spot to grab your favorite wholesome dish with fresh ingredients and a satisfying cup of coffee. Located in the Courtyard next to Starbucks, the area is perfect for a casual night with friends or to utilize their modern space to get your work done. Their honey cake is one of the best you will have, and you will thank us for trying it!
Location: The Courtyard (Seef)
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Yes
Good Hiding Spots for Focused Work: No
Price: (Sandwich, Coffee, & Water): BD 6-7
Power Outlets: Yes
Hours: 8am- 11pm
Arabica: Originating from Tokyo, Japan, Arabica quickly spread to the GCC with its unique taste of coffee and interiors. Located in Avenues Mall Bahrain and the Courtyard, Arabica is the perfect spot to escape the mainstream and explore the flavors of their coffee while getting some work done. Whether it’s the classic black coffee or the Spanish Latte, you are sure to be impressed if you’re a coffee fan.
Location: The Courtyard (Seef), The Avenues Mall
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Yes
Good Hiding Spots for Focused Work: No
Price (Snack, Coffee, & Water): BD 3-6
Power Outlets: No
Hours: 7am- 10pm
The Dot: Considered a new spot in the island to get work done, The Dot is the perfect place to sit back, relax, read a book, and get productive while enjoying a freshly brewed cup of coffee. If you want to go crazy, they have a breakfast menu, and try their French Toast, pancakes, and all those delicious breakfast foods!
Location: Juffair
Wireless Internet: Yes
Group Tables: Yes
Good Hiding Spots for Focused Work: No
Price: BD 4-5
Power Outlets: Yes
Hours: 7am- 11pm
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We hope this list helps you the next time you get stuck finding places to work. Just remember: you’re paying premium for coffee and ambience– so might as well get some work done. Who knows, perhaps your over-priced, sugar-drenched caffeine excuse of a coffee drink can help you work better (or at least give you the illusion of it).
Those are some of our favorite stops, what are yours?