Caffe Trieste

Caffe Trieste is a San Francisco institution—it’s the first espresso-based coffee shop on the West Coast and has been open since 1956. This place is less your typical coffee shop and more of a local late-night haunt for the literary-inclined (it’s open until 10pm). The chairs are crickety, the floor looks like it hasn’t been redone in decades, and the murals on the wall could use some retouching—but it all adds to the charm as you yearn to join the people reading Nietzsche over a doppio. The extensive drink menu can be a bit overwhelming, but just grab a dark roast espresso or a cup of Italian drip, cozy up with a book, and see where the night takes you.