Buunni Coffee

Yirgacheffe, Harrar, Sidama natural and a house blend: the board at Buunni Coffee reads like an Ethiopian coffee list because that is exactly what it is. The company buys direct from small farms and roasts weekly in New York, and the Broadway room in Inwood is its largest cafe, big enough to hold art and culture events alongside the espresso bar.

An Ethiopian list, not a generic espresso menu

The coffees are named by origin rather than by roast level. Yirgacheffe, Harrar and Sidama natural sit beside a house blend, and Harrar carries the longest history of the three, named for the province where it grows and among the oldest coffee still in production anywhere. Weekly roasting in New York is what keeps that list moving through the year.

Beyond the coffee, the counter runs tea, hot chocolate and a matcha latte for anyone not drinking espresso. Food is light cafe fare: pastries, croissants, sweet and savoury snacks, and injera wraps that pull the menu back toward the Ethiopian side of the brand.

The Inwood room

Buunni calls its cafes neighbourhood hubs in Northern Manhattan, and this is the biggest of them. It hosts art and culture events, which gives the room a purpose beyond the morning rush and explains why the space is scaled the way it is.

The wider network runs to three cafes in Washington Heights alongside this one, with the original on Pinehurst Avenue remembered for a long wooden table that has held a great many neighbourhood conversations. The company grew steadily across Upper Manhattan through 2024. Wi-Fi and step-free access make the Inwood branch the easiest of the group to settle into for a while.

Order espresso, then add an injera wrap

Start with espresso for the shortest route into what Buunni actually does, since the clearest signal here is Ethiopian sourcing paired with roasting that happens weekly a short distance away. A latte or a cappuccino gives you the same coffee in a milk drink, and the matcha latte is the non-coffee order worth remembering.

If you are eating, a croissant keeps things in classic cafe territory, but the injera wrap is the more distinctive choice and the one that connects to the rest of the brand. Buy a bag on the way out if one of the origins lands: Yirgacheffe, Harrar, Sidama natural or the house blend.