Cypriot Coffee: How to Order It and Where to Drink

Cypriot coffee is the same small-cup, fine-grounds Ottoman brew you may know as Turkish coffee — thick foam on top, sediment at the bottom, served with a glass of water — under a local name. The island’s coffee tradition descends directly from the Ottoman one, as the Cyprus Mail notes, and the way to drink it well is to order it right and sit a while in a kahvehane, as of 2026. This is a spoke of the North Cyprus food guide; below is how it is made, how to order, and Famagusta’s actual good cups.

Is Cypriot coffee the same as Turkish coffee?

It is the same brewing method, named locally — and the naming is the only real distinction. As the Cyprus Mail puts it, the Bosnian, Greek, Egyptian and Cypriot “coffees” are regional names for one Ottoman technique: very finely ground coffee simmered in a small pot, poured unfiltered into a small cup so the grounds settle, and served with water. The wider tradition carries international recognition — Turkish coffee culture was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2013 — which is the heritage the island’s cups belong to.

How do I order Cypriot coffee?

Order by sweetness, because the sugar is brewed in, not added after. The three you need:

Order	Means	For
Sade	No sugar	Tasting the coffee straight
Orta	Medium sugar	The common default
Şekerli	Sweet	A dessert-side cup

Drink slowly, let the grounds settle, and do not drain the cup — the sediment stays at the bottom. Reading the upturned cup’s grounds is a familiar custom done informally between friends, not a paid service, so take it lightly.

What is the kahvehane?

The kahvehane is the neighbourhood coffee house — the social institution where men have traditionally gathered to play backgammon and talk, found in every quarter. The local press writes about it as a fading institution, and the island has a saying that “a single cup of coffee is remembered for forty years,” which captures how much the ritual carries beyond the drink. For a visitor it is the unhurried end of the spectrum: sit, order an orta, and stay.

How is it brewed, and how should I drink it?

It is brewed unfiltered in a small long-handled pot and served grounds and all, which is why how you drink it matters as much as how you order it. The very finely ground coffee, water and any sugar go into the pot together and are brought just to the foaming point — never boiled hard — then poured into a small cup so the thick foam stays on top and the grounds sink. Let it rest a moment before the first sip so the sediment settles, drink slowly in small mouthfuls, and stop before the muddy last centimetre. The glass of water alongside is for cleansing the palate before the coffee, not for diluting it. None of this is fussy ritual for a visitor — it is just how the cup is built, and getting it right is the difference between a smooth coffee and a mouthful of grit.

Where are Famagusta’s good cups?

Famagusta’s best coffee runs from an island-famous pastry house to specialty roasters near the university, as of 2026:

• Petek Pastanesi — Walled City, by the harbour. The island-famous pastry house with a terrace; a Turkish coffee here pairs with baklava and Maraş ice cream.
• One Shot Coffee — opposite the Land Gate (Kara Kapı). Fresh roasting, with live music on Fridays.
• Buğday Cafe — Walled City, Venetian Palace view. Specialty coffee, sourdough and daily cakes, with a secondhand-book shelf; closed Mondays.
• Coffeemania — the university strip. On-site roasting, a student favourite.

What does a coffee cost?

A Turkish coffee is capped at 40 TL on Eastern Mediterranean University’s official 2025/26 maximum price list — the cleanest price floor in Famagusta — while cafés charge upward; a 2024 press survey already put the café average at 75 TL (band 50–100 TL). The full drinks bands, including where espresso-based coffee jumps to Western European pricing, are in the restaurant price guide. North Cyprus recorded 2,589,729 visitors in 2025, up 17.2% year on year according to the TRNC Tourism Planning Department, and the good cafés around the Walled City and the harbour cluster within easy reach. Kipra Rent A Car is a Famagusta-based local rental company with VAT and insurance included in every displayed price, so hopping between the roasters and the kahvehanes — and on to the Famagusta eating list — is a short drive, not a logistics problem.

---

A coffee is best when you do not have to rush for the bus — sit as long as you like and drive when you are ready: book a car · WhatsApp +90 546 996 1004 — English spoken.