This post was originally published on April 5, 2023 and was most recently updated on April 1, 2024. It isn't sponsored—I paid for all of my coffee out-of-pocket.
Maybe it's the rise of taprooms and craft beer culture, or maybe it's the enduring appeal of trying a little bit everything—coffee flights are having a moment at Twin Cities coffee shops. Instead of choosing one full-sized espresso drink, a coffee flight lets you sample multiple miniature-sized beverages.
Ready to start sipping? Here's where you can find coffee flights in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and the Twin Cities suburbs.
Minneapolis
C.R.E.A.M. Cafe (Minneapolis)
This full-service cafe in Minneapolis' Mill District specializes in high-quality coffee—C.R.E.A.M. Cafe stands for "Coffee Rules Everything Around Me." I love the bright, upbeat decor, and they offer a flight with 4-ounce pours of their current four seasonal drinks, which typically include a mix of coffee and tea-based beverages.
428 South 2nd Street, Minneapolis; 612-315-5937; klassicsmn.com
The Last Drop Cafe + Wine Bar (Minneapolis)
Located inside Graze Provisions + Libations, a food hall in Minneapolis' North Loop neighborhood, The Last Drop Cafe + Wine Bar offers coffee flights with four seasonal beverages. There's typically a mix of hot and iced beverages, with more hot drinks in the winter and more iced beverages in the summer. Drinks tend to be relatively sweet and the flavors are straightforward.
My favorite thing about the Last Drop is the atmosphere—there's lots of natural light, eclectic bohemian decor, and a variety of seating options including communal tables, armchairs, and rope swings.
520 North 4th Street, Minneapolis; grazenorthloop.com/the-last-drop-cafe
Rick's Coffee Bar (Minneapolis)
Enjoy a coffee flight for a good cause at Rick's Coffee Bar in Minneapolis' Nokomis East neighborhood—coffee shop proceeds support ETS, a non-profit organization that supports veterans dealing with PTSD and other challenges. Coffee flights are sized to share and include three seasonal eight-ounce drinks, and are very budget friendly, ringing up at $10 as of December 2023. You can even request a design printed on your drinks.
5402 43rd Avenue S, Minneapolis; rickscoffeebar.com
Silver Fern (Minneapolis)
Located in Northeast Minneapolis, Silver Fern offers flights of their four seasonal coffee drinks, which may include lattes, mochas, and cold brews. Drinks are available hot or iced (with the exception of cold brew drinks, which are served iced) with your choice of milk. I found the beverages interesting and well-balanced, with elegant botanical garnishes and latte art. I also love the surroundings, with exposed brick, blonde wood, an open fireplace and greenery—the stylish space doubles as a wine bar in the evening.
114 East Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis; 612-356-2679; silverfernmpls.com
Third Space Cafe (Minneapolis)
Third Space Cafe in Uptown Minneapolis offers a monthly coffee flight of four seasonal drinks, often with a holiday theme. You get to choose if you want your beverages hot or iced—I always go with hot since I love their latte art. Drinks feature unique flavor combinations, clever names, and cute garnishes like cookies or candy. Flights always include a matcha drink. I'm not a huge matcha fan, but I enjoy the interesting flavor pairings that Third Space creates.
Service is always warm and gracious, even when the cafe is busy. On weekends, it may be a 20-30 minute wait after ordering to get your coffee flight, so consider visiting early on a weekend morning or during a weekday.
2930 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis; 612-353-5677; thirdspacempls.com
Wild Grind Coffee (Minneapolis)
Wild Grind Coffee in south Minneapolis offers coffee flights of three seasonal drinks. Flights can be ordered hot or iced, with your choice of milk. Hot flights feature latte art, and there are garnishes like fresh herbs and dried flower petals.
Wild Grind's coffee flights are the most nuanced I've tasted in the Twin Cities: the drinks have complex, layered flavors and are made with high quality, sustainably-sourced espresso. The coffee shop shares a space with Wild Mind Ales, so the taproom-style seating area is expansive, although the acoustics can be a bit challenging.
6031 Pillsbury Avenue South, Minneapolis; wildgrindcoffee.com
St. Paul
True Stone Coffee (St. Paul)
Located in St. Paul's Lowertown neighborhood, True Stone Coffee offers a hot flight with a featured drink, salted caramel latte, dark chocolate mocha, and cortado, as well as a cold flight with a featured drink, Stone Hammer (cold brew, espresso, vanilla, and cream), nitro cold brew, and spiced brown sugar latte. Coffee beans are sourced from small farmers and co-ops, and then carefully roasted in the company's nearby roastery in small batches.
289 5th Street East, St. Paul; truestonecoffeelowertown.com
Twin Cities Suburbs
Annabelle House (Osseo)
Located in downtown Osseo, Annabelle House offers a monthly flight of four seasonal drinks. Some drinks are served warm, others iced, and the flight can often be made dairy-free by request. They take a something-for-everyone approach, from very sweet lattes to more subtle cold brews. There are also cold press flights with four seasonally-flavored cold press drinks. As of December 2023 this is one of the more budget-friendly spots to get coffee flights: $12 in house and $16 to go (to go sizes are slightly larger).
Annabelle House is a relatively small space and quite popular, so on the weekends I recommend going early or on the later side.
232 Central Avenue, Osseo; 763-205-6769; annabellehouse.com
Base Camp Coffee & Provisions (Minnetonka)
With outdoorsy decor and extra seating in the adjacent Unmapped Brewing taproom, Minnetonka's Base Camp Coffee & Provisions has a fun, low-key feel. A flight of four seasonal beverages can be ordered hot or iced, with your choice of milk. I enjoyed the drinks' interesting flavor profiles, which ranged from spice-forward to dessert-in-a-glass, and each drink is perfectly garnished with whipped cream, colored sugar, and/or fancy sprinkles. However, the price (I paid $20 for a flight in December 2023) puts Base Camp out of my budget for a return visit.
14625 Excelsior Boulevard, Minnetonka; basecampmtka.com
Edina Coffee Roasters (Edina)
Appropriately for a spot that roasts their beans in-house, Edina Coffee Roasters has a menu of coffee-forward flights with two or three drinks. Two-drink flights include the "1 and 1" with an espresso and macchiato, the "2 and 2" with two different varieties of espresso, and the cold brew duo with a nitro and a featured cold brew. The three-drink flight includes a hot brew, cold brew, and espresso.
7031 Cahill Road, Edina; 320-293-4302; edinacoffeeroasters.com
Froth & Cork (Hastings)
Located in historic downtown Hastings in a cozy converted house, Froth & Cork offers a different coffee flight each month featuring four iced seasonal beverages. Typically most or all of the drinks are coffee-based.
110 4th Street East, Hastings; 651-273-8040; frothncork.com
Shakopee Brewhall (Shakopee)
A combination taproom and coffee shop in historic downtown Shakopee, Shakopee Brewhall offers cold brew flights featuring four seasonal cold brew drinks, including iced lattes and mochas.
124 1st Avenue East, Shakopee; 952-582-4292; shakopeebrewhall.com
Further reading: Best places for a coffee date in the Twin Cities
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