A Coffee Crawl Through Downtown Birmingham, MI
Updated September 26, 2026
Birmingham's coffee shops sit close enough together that you can compare them in a single morning. Do them in this order and you will never backtrack.
### Stop 1: Commonwealth Cafe
**300 Hamilton Row.** The busiest and best-reviewed of the group — 4.5 stars from 1,065 reviews. Start here while it is still early enough to get a seat.
### Stop 2: Cafe Origins
**163 W Maple Rd.** A three-minute walk, 4.7 stars from 192 reviews, and right on the Maple Road stretch where the shops open. Good midpoint if you want something to eat.
### Stop 3: Bakehouse 46
**250 W Maple Rd.** Further west on the same block, 4.4 stars from 195 reviews. Order pastry here and coffee elsewhere if you are being efficient about it.
### Stop 4: Paris Baguette
**183 N Old Woodward Ave.** Back toward Old Woodward, 4.4 stars from 864 reviews. The most reliable place on the crawl to sit for twenty minutes.
### Stop 5: the Rail District
Two worth the short drive east. **Cannelle Patisserie** (159 N Eton St) rates 4.7 from 866 reviews and is the strongest pastry on this page. **Lucky Detroit Coffee Roasters & Espresso** (1728 W Maple Rd, 1st Floor) is the roaster-forward option at 4.4 stars, a few minutes west instead.
### Also downtown
**St. Roger Abbey** (215 N Old Woodward Ave, 4.7 from 95 reviews) and **Try It Raw** (213 E Maple Rd, 4.7 from 300 reviews) both work as substitutes — Try It Raw if you want juice or a smoothie rather than another espresso. **Starbucks** (101 N Old Woodward Ave) is on the corner if you need a known quantity.
### The route
Hamilton Row to W Maple to N Old Woodward is a loop of about fifteen minutes on foot, so four stops fit comfortably in a morning with a magazine. Save the Eton Street stop for the drive home.
Five shops, two coffees each if you are ambitious, and the whole thing ends before noon.
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Frequently asked
- How many coffee shops are within walking distance downtown?
- At least six sit inside a fifteen-minute walk of Maple and Old Woodward, including Commonwealth Cafe, Cafe Origins, Bakehouse 46, Paris Baguette, St. Roger Abbey and Starbucks.
- Which Birmingham coffee shop has the best reviews?
- Commonwealth Cafe on Hamilton Row has the most at 4.5 stars from 1,065 Google reviews; Cafe Origins and Cannelle Patisserie both rate 4.7 on smaller counts.
