Café entertainment in Syria
- Sort by:
- Popular
-
A
Inhouse Coffee
This funky café with its lime-and-black décor is always busy with local hipsters smoking, chatting and checking their email on their PowerBooks. It serves excellent espresso and myriad variations of macchiato, latte and decaf coffees. Try the iced spiced chai latte or spicy espresso with cinnamon on top.
There are happy hours between 16:00 and 17:00 and between 21:00 and midnight, when you get 50% off coffee and food - ideal if you're on a budget and hanging out for good coffee. There's also complimentary wireless internet.
reviewed
-
B
Ash-Sharq al-Awsat
In Central Damascus you'll find a number of simple, old-fashioned coffeehouses, noisy with the staccato clacking of dominoes and backgammon counters. They're frequented mainly by males who sit around puffing nargileh, and women won't always feel comfortable. The rooftop coffeehouse Ash-Sharq al-Awsat, between the blue-tiled Iranian cultural centre and Shoukri al-Quwatli flyover, sees the occasional budget traveller dropping by.
reviewed
-
Arabica
In Al-Aziziah, Syria's Starbucks does delicious iced lattés as well as providing a fascinating slice of life that you won't experience in the Old City, especially after 18:00, when the music goes up a few notches and Aleppo's shebab (youth) spill out on to the footpath. The café offers free wireless internet and if you don't have your own laptop they'll even lend you one.
reviewed
-
C
Majmu al-Rawda al-Siyahi
This big, shady, garden café (whose name means something along the lines of 'Tourist Garden Association') is on the north side of the main street, close to the clock tower. A coffee here is a must just to take in the vibe, especially during summer evenings when the place is packed with locals.
reviewed
-
T-Square
This funky contemporary café-eatery next door to Arabica is where Aleppo's hipsters hang out. It's a great place for meeting locals and people-watching. Like Arabica, the place buzzes in the evenings, when the tables are jammed and it's standing-room only on the pavement.
reviewed
-
Salé Sucré
Affluent Damascenes, old and young, love this charming café-bakery. It's the place to head if you're craving good coffee and European café staples such as crusty French baguettes, quiches and German-style grain breads. The tangy citron tarts are sublime.
reviewed
-
D
Beite
Next door to Majmu al-Rawda al-Siyahi, this is a chic, new, two-storey café. The name translates to 'my home'; you have to press the buzzer beside the massive wooden to enter. Its covered rooftop terrace is where Homs' affluent set meet.
reviewed
-
E
An-Nadi Coffeehouse
An open-air coffeehouse, An-Nadi Coffeehouse , is next to the big city-centre noria and facing the Choob Coffeehouse across the river. It is frequented predominantly by men, so some women may not feel comfortable here.
reviewed
-
Al-Sahel
This upstairs coffeehouse is close to Bab al-Faraj and the clock tower. The place is grungy (in an old Aleppan sort of way) and the entrance is in the side street, through the reception of the Al-Sahel Hotel.
reviewed
-
F
Choob Coffeehouse
The open-air Choob Coffeehouse is set in a garden of shady eucalyptus trees and has views of the river and norias. It is frequented predominantly by men, so some women may not feel comfortable here.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
Al-Boustan
Al-Boustan is a simple coffee shop where old men sip thick, Turkish-style coffee at the pavement tables. It's open almost all the time.
reviewed
-
Al-Montada
Al-Montada is a bit of a men's club, where the old guys puff on nargileh as they play chess and cards. It's open almost all the time.
reviewed
-
Narcissus
Groups of young Damascenes head to this big old Damascene house in the evenings to smoke nargileh and snack on Arabic mezze.
reviewed
-
Museum Café
Male travellers will enjoy this simple coffeehouse in the city centre, but it's men-only so women will feel uncomfortable.
reviewed
-
G
Traditional Coffeehouse
This coffeehouse is in a big, old, atmospheric stone building and is largely frequented by backgammon-playing old men.
reviewed
-
Al-Shams
On the corner of the big main square, this men's coffee shop is a popular haunt of Aleppo's chess players.
reviewed
