Baobá Café Bica

Filter coffee and a pão de queijo is the order that sums up Baobá Café Bica. The beans come from the company's own farm in Brazil and are roasted in Lisbon, which is the whole idea compressed into a line the café uses itself: Raízes Brasileiras, Torra Portuguesa.

Brazilian farm, Portuguese roast

This is the Bica and Cais do Sodré branch of Baobá's Lisbon coffee project, a small, bright room where coffee is the reason to come. The brand takes its name and its posture from the baobab tree, with sustainability and care from plantation to cup running through everything from the sourcing to the shelf.

The Brazilian thread shows in the food as much as the beans. Pão de queijo and açaí are the signature orders, while cakes, brunch plates, vegan options and plant-based milk broaden the list without moving the café off its coffee-first purpose.

A small room built around the counter

Baobá Café Bica works best as a focused stop. Retail bags sit close to the order, so choosing beans becomes part of the visit rather than a separate errand, and the shelf has carried coffees such as Saudade, Região Vulcânica, Conexão and Caldo de Cana with their lots, varieties and roast details on show.

It is warmer than many technical specialty bars. Regulars and easy service soften the focus, and the pace suits a coffee and a snack: order at the counter, look over what is roasted, add pão de queijo or açaí, and sit briefly inside or out. The rhythm is short-stay rather than all-day.

Order the filter with pão de queijo

Start with filter if you want the clearest view of the beans, or espresso for the shortest order. The flat white is the milk-coffee choice, and cold brew and nitro cover the colder end. Baristas know the single origins well, so this is a good counter at which to ask what is brewing from the current Brazilian lots.

The retail line gives away the rest of the programme: Microlote 114h Anaerobic Fermentation, Microlote Altitude Brasileira, Microlote Obatã Amarelo, Microlote Café das Mulheres, the Baobá Blend and the Roaster Blend. With the drink, pão de queijo is the obvious partner, while açaí is the other signature, better when you want something colder or more substantial.