Day two of my quest to find the best espresso in Tucson took me to two spots, yes, it was two espresso day. Cartel Roasting has several store fronts throughout AZ and is opening up in LA soon. While that sounds corporate, the space and the vibe in downtown Tucson is 100% local and community. In fact, they are becoming a community-owned coffee shop. The space has all the features of a cool downtown spot. Exposed brick, lots of local art, plenty of seating, and two of my favs: the bike wheel sculpture and the coffee tables. The staff greeted me as soon as I stepped in the door even though they were busy making orders. They promptly took my order and after a few minutes my name was called. The presentation was perfect. A glass of espresso with a nice head and a taller glass of sparkling. The espresso had a nice acidity and bitterness, a bit more than the other two local spots I tried, but I liked it. Also, perfect temperature. I didn't try a pastry, but they had several on offer from local bakeries. Nothing frozen. read more

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Cartel Roasting serves some of the most delicious coffee in town. The beans are perfectly roasted, the flavors are rich and bold, and the staff are friendly and welcoming. Great spot to grab a cup and enjoy a cozy downtown vibe--coffee lovers won't be disappointed! read more

Cartel Roasting - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

In town for a week and had this coffee everyday. It was so smooth and delicious. I had to buy some to take home. And I live in Hawaii.

Love this place it is my go to when I travel! The chai latte was perfect. The scone was good too! read more

Friendly staff, cool environment, and great coffee. What more do you need? The staff was welcoming and made great recommendations. I ended up ordering a hot latte sweetened with agave syrup and it was lovely. It had just the right amount of sweetness. I also purchased some whole beans, which they offered to grind for me. I didn't realize that each bag comes with a complimentary drip or cold brew so I ended up with two coffees that day! What a happy surprise! read more

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Such a nice little coffee shop! The service was very fast and it's a great spot to read or work. I'll definitely be back next time I want to come downtown. read more

Cartel Roasting - Muffin - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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Such a cool coffee shop and what's even better for us is that we could see Cartel coffee from our room at the AC hotel. When you search for best coffee in Tucson, Cartel Roasting keeps coming up, so I know I had to check them out. I love coffee and matcha so when I go to a new place, I always seek out the most loved coffee shops. Cartel is one of them and it's easy to see why. The people here are absolutely wonderful and so friendly! The space is incredibly spacious, which a very cool retro style. For example, they have bike spokes, tons of them, as decor and they actually work with their theme! Lots of arts on the wall and they also have merch for sale. Coffee and matcha were delicious and so was their pastries. They are becoming a community-owned coffee shop and there are QR codes on every table with info on how you can be a part of their community too! This is such a cool concept! read more

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Top notch coffee! The vibes are really good as well, and they have a small selection of merch available for purchase.

I had a cappuccino and my aunt tried a cashew milk cortado. Both were excellent. Would definitely frequent this spot if I lived in the area. There were nice areas for sitting and relaxing for a while if you have the time. Decent merch selection too. No complaints, hope to be back sometime. read more

Cartel Roasting - Merch - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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Such a cool spot downtown. My go to is either a dirty Chai or a agave latte. My lattes come out both beautiful and tasty everytime. They open early which is nice to stop by after a early morning gym session. Service was quick and friendly. read more

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Great place, Stopped by early morning before work. My Chia Latte was delicious. loved the vibe inside. The dude at the counter was great. read more

Cartel Roasting - Chai Latte - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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Popped in here on a Sunday afternoon. This was my first time in this location. Good music. Chill vibes. I ordered an iced vanilla latte with oat milk that was yummy. They have cookies and muffins/treats for purchase as well. You can also buy bags of their coffee to take home. They have a cute succulent bin/section at the front entrance that caught my eye read more

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I stopped by this cafe for a quick bite and ordered a potato burrito. The service was fine and the location was clean and well decorated. I enjoyed my food and would return to try the drinks. read more

Cartel Roasting - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

I just love coming here for the service and the ambience and especially for the good tasting coffee!! read more

Cartel Roasting - Cold Breve Latte - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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My friend and I stopped in for coffee and a bite. Cute place! Quiet and free wifi. The vegan breakfast burrito was tasty and the muffin good too! I liked the iced latte with vanilla. The girl at the counter was very nice and helpful. Would definitely recommend this coffee shop! read more

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Nice open space for meeting someone, remote work, or just relaxing with a yummy drink and snack. This was my first time here, and I was pleasantly surprised by all of the seating options, from couches to long tables, high tops, and round tables...there's room for everyone. As someone who doesn't drink coffee and is not into tea, the options are limited. I ended up getting a prickly pear herbal tea + lemonade. It was extremely sugarless. The cashier happily provided me some kind of liquid sugar syrup, which I added, but still could not detect so I asked for a second (it was a really small serving). She was very kind and helpful, and provided me another, which helped make it taste more like a typical lemonade flavor (more on the tart side). I also got a chocolate chip cookie which was 10/10! There's light music that's plays in the background. It's a very laid-back and relaxing work environment. read more

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Coffee quality/taste is amazing! I've tried their Coffee, Chai, Matcha, and Cold Brew and they're pretty good! Customer service is great and the atmosphere is super chill. This coffee shop is very spacious too so it's suitable for group meetings as well. read more

Cartel Roasting - Hot Lattes:) - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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The Cartel has made its way to this side of the border and they are making their presence known here in Tucson with two locations. My companions went with the Pumpkin CCL , Cappuccino and of course I had to get my Matcha Latte fix. There is some serious coffee making here. It took awhile for our drinks to be ready but it was worth the wait. My dark green matcha latte with oat milk was straight up legit. Exactly how they would do it in Japan. I love the slight bitterness to it. Space is rustic with that Arizona feel with lots of natural design elements. Tons of seating in this loft like space. So come get your java hit, the Cartel gang will take good care of you. read more

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It's buzzing non stop! Free Wi-Fi offered lots of business going on. Excellent people! Your treated with love and kindness Second business attached making homemade bagels so you get full service in one place. I've encountered the most beautiful souls in this place from the working people to the customers. read more

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Disappointed. $7+ coffee for bad internet isn't an equal trade. Won't be going back anytime soon. read more

I'm an Americano girl and their espresso is fantastic! I was in town for work for two weeks and found this place because they were the only coffee shop around that opened before 7 - thank you for that! Once I tried their americano, I knew that even if another coffee shop was open early, I still would've picked cartel. I went at least 7 times while I was in town and would definitely go back if I am in town again. They also have lattes, mochas, drip coffee, etc, and a variety of baked goods. It looks like they also make pizzas later on in the day, but I never was there later than 645am. The customer service is great - I had two different baristas and both were super friendly! Really cool vibes with art on the walls and an area to buy coffee/goods/etc. lots of seating. Would be a great place to work Stop here ! read more

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My wife and I frequent here at least twice a month for our weekend morning treat. Service and staff have always been on par. We stopped by this Morning to order two different lattes to Go. When we got home we were unpleasantly surprised that both drinks had no espresso flavor (tasted like regular coffee) and the drinks were pretty much made up of 90% milk! It's not appreciated that we spent good money on something Starbucks or Quick Trip could have made stronger and better. If the staff is new, which they could have been today, we highly suggest making them aware of the quality that we've come to expect from Cartel Roasting. This experience has left us a little gun shy from choosing this location next time. Really hoping for improvement. read more

Cartel Roasting - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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Food was excellent and glad they have this bagel and pizza place . Service was awesome and the owner Leo and his dad were very friendly . Ambiance was so inviting and welcoming . read more

Cartel Roasting - Carnita bagel and honey and lavender matcha - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

The young lady upfront was friendly, and the blueberry muffin was good, the only thing unattractive about this place is that the windows and the floors are FILTHY. Also, there's a bunch of dust and cobwebs on these bicycle rims that they have hanging. Hopefully, the owner won't let the dust and cobwebs get bad enough to "fly" or "break" off and end up on someone's food or drink (if they have the lid off) Had I noticed this before I ordered my muffin, I probably would have just left because if they're not cleaning their windows and floors and mind you, windows and floors are not very hard to do, and dust and cobwebs take even less effort to clean. I'm now wondering about how clean the kitchen is. (Location on Broadway in downtown Tucson P.S. This was my first time at any Cartel Roasting Co. location and probably my last. I was not impressed at all. read more

What a concept coffee with pizzazz. If you're going to spend five dollars to six on a cup of coffee, my argument is:,can I at least have some flavor? Well, this place definitely delivers!. And guess what? Now they serve pizza. It looks good! Come and enjoy. read more

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Best iced latte I've ever had! The barista always remembers my name and the place is big enough that I could work from there and it not be too loud. Plus the art work in there is so much fun to walk around and look at! read more

Super cool vibes to relax and enjoy your latte. Friendly service. Parking can be a little bit of a challenge. read more

Cartel Roasting - Sweetened latte with agave with a fun space to enjoy it in! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

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I mainly stopped by Cartel to try the vegan pastries, but I showed up too late in the day and missed out. I ended up buying their coffee mug, dark roast and a cappuccino with oat milk. The dark roast is one of the best coffees I have had to date. When consumed hot, it's got a great chocolatey favor, and very smooth. When consumed cold, the coffee tastes like a high end toffee candy. So good. Although I shy away from spending too much money on coffee, this has been added to my list of guilty pleasures. I'm not sure what beans they use for the cappuccino, but mine tasted light, a little fruity and also smooth. The oat milk was very frothy. I don't usually like coffee with fruity notes, but this one wasn't too acidic. I would order this again. read more

Cartel Roasting - Cartel's 'shitty coffee mug' - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Houlden's pastries here! So happy that they support local businesses! I've had houlden's cookies before and this was my 2nd time trying one of her pastries. This time I bought a apple coffee cake to go with my vanilla latte. The staff is super friendly and kind. I love how spacious it is inside. Great place to read or get some computer work done. read more

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Great cappuccino. There was no line. Great service. The pumpkin muffin with cream cheese was moist and filling. Would go again.

I went early on a Saturday morning so it was easy to find parking on the street. I very much enjoyed the decor, the variety of seating options and the art. Both my latte and my pumpkin muffin were excellent. Service was quick and courteous. read more

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Unfortunately I cannot recommend this place. I stood in line for a long time in a near empty shop while the cashier/attendant carried on a conversation with someone who did not appear to be buying anything... I was invisible so I left. I did discover La Macaron on Congress! Go there! read more

Very pretty open atmosphere and good study space! Loved my visit here. It's on the pricier side as nice coffee shops go, but worth it! Also got a vegan raspberry pop tart which was delicious. read more

Cartel Roasting - Raspberry Pop tart - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Super cool coffee shop that opens early. Great coffee. Friendly staff. Loved the vibe.

I love going to Cartel for a good cup of coffee or tea. Everything I have ordered from here has been so delicious and keeps me coming back. My go to drink at any coffee shop is a dirty chai. I love the flavor of Cartel's chai and it was made perfectly with the right balance from the chai and espresso. Recently, I tried the honey lavender matcha. Now, usually I'm not the biggest fan of matcha but the barista recommended it and I had to try it. Oh my goodness, it was delicious! It swayed me to becoming a matcha fan. Such a unique drink. There are plenty of spaces to sit and relax. Also, there's space to work on a laptop while enjoying your coffee. Always a great experience. read more

Good nitro cold brew coffee but at over 6$ a cup it's a bit overpriced. Music is a bit odd and loud, employees were friendly and fast but but probably wouldn't be back too many other options. read more

Cartel Roasting - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Something to be said for consistency. Good coffee. Friendly staff. Convenient. Have had a variety of drinks here over the years. They're good. Todays oat milk cappuccino didn't disappoint. I missed out on last nights pizza but it worked out. Def recommend. read more

I really liked the vibe of this place! The hot lavender latte was SOOO good! There were people working on laptops and having meetings there, but luckily no one seemed to mind too much that my little guy was making noise. Only complaint is that parking can be difficult, as there's only side street parking. read more

Cartel Roasting - Lavender latte - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Hands down my favorite honey lavender matcha in town! You can honestly taste each flavor in every sip. Idk how they do it! This place is pretty easy to get to but parking can be tricky depending on the time of day. The inside gave me an open, rustic vibe with plenty of seating. I feel like this would be a great spot to study or when you change up the scenery while WFH. There's a solid food selection (for a coffee shop) with pastries, burritos, etc. I can't speak to their coffee because I'll never venture away from the honey lavender matcha butttttt it did smell good read more

Cartel Roasting - Honey lavender matcha - obsessed - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Cute spot for studying or just chatting with friends! Sweetened latte with oat milk was perfect! CCL Latte was also yummy! The cashier was very sweet and helpful! read more

Cartel Roasting - Sweetened latte with oat milk! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Tucson, Arizona