Coffee Shops Port Elizabeth
When you are travelling around whilst working full time as well aka a digital nomad, one thing you have to make provision for is a space for working. In some areas, you do find co-working spaces but in other areas, not so much. There are a few things to consider and these mainly include free WIFI and plug points for charging devices, mainly your laptop. So while we were in Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) for a few days, we visited different establishments, and below are the Coffee Shops to work from in Port Elizabeth.
Mugg & Bean
First up on the list is Mugg & Bean, and that’s because it is a tried and tested option. If all else fails, you know there is one place you can rely on to meet all the requirements.
Location:
The Mugg & Bean in Port Elizabeth can be found at the Baywest Mall. It’s easily accessible from the parking lot and there is an entrance across from the restaurant itself. In addition, the parking rates at the Baywest Mall are very reasonable, for a few hours. And the area itself is in a good suburb and has on and off-ramps to the national highway.
Facilities:
These facilities for us are the most important in order for us to be able to complete our daily work and therefore were necessary and are categorised as such.
WIFI
Having a connection to the internet is one of the most vital parts of being able to work remotely and from what we have seen, it’s sometimes different to find good WIFI, for a multitude of reasons.
The WIFI was of good strength, and signal and there was no limit in terms of usability. You simply connect to the WIFI through their official website and you are connected. During the hours that we were there, we didn’t experience any drops and it was functional throughout.
Plug Points
If you have been to any one of these restaurants before, you would know that they have been evolving and have made provisions for power plug points at certain of their tables. When we arrived, we requested a table that had a power outlet and the waitress obliged. The power outlet is just below the seating area and has a three-pin connection as well as a USB port.
Food & Drink
Despite being a relatively older chain restaurant, Mugg & Bean have always been innovative and are constantly changing their menu, shaking things up, which is lovely. Who wants the same old menu items for years? So we tend to try different menu items at the various spots we visit. On this occasion, we tried the chicken strips and the falafel burger with chips. All scrumptious. In addition, we lean towards ordering the bottomless drinks so that we are able to get refills. My go-to is definitely the bottomless hot chocolate whilst my husband does the bottomless blood orange fizz.
Service
We received very good service from our waitress, she was attentive and helpful. And this in turn made the experience productive.
Mugg and Bean Contact Details:
Address: Baywest Mall, Shop No LG 99, 100 Baywest Blvd, Hunters Retreat, Gqeberha, 6000
Telephone number: 041 492 0361
Opening Hours: Mon – Sat : 08:15 am – 20:00 pm
Sun – 8:15 am – 17:00 pm
Website: www.muggandbean.co.za
Recommendation / Value for money:
It is one of the more reasonable places to work from and if you order one of their bottomless options, and are staying for a few hours then it’s definitely value for money.
Jack’s Bagels
Location:
Jack’s Bagels can be found in the Walker Drive shopping centre and it is a quaint coffee shop and place to work from. When visiting it was the first time I had heard of them or visited their shop. After visiting though, I did see them at a few more locations. They have around nine shops in the Eastern Cape, six in the Western Cape, and two in Gauteng.
The one we visited can be found at the shopping centre and there is ample parking. In addition, parking is free so you don’t have to factor in that extra cost. It is located near one of the entrances.
Facilities:
Jack’s Bagels has many seating areas, so you can either choose to sit inside or closer to the entrance.
WIFI
You can request the WIFI password from the waiter and it’s easy to log on to their WIFI. They had very good and fast WIFI so definitely something to consider. There was also no limitation in terms of your usage and we didn’t experience any drops in signal during the time we were there.
Plug Points
There are plug points available should you wish to use them. Maybe before being seated and if you need a plug point, request to be seated near the plug point, which is what we did.
Food & Drink
Well, from the name itself, you can guess what they are famous for. They have a range of savoury bagels to choose from. I had a peppermint crisp milkshake and it was absolutely divine, definitely recommend it. My husband had the pear and ginger juice which was lovely. And to eat, I had the avocado and mushroom bagel whilst my husband had the eggs on ciabatta, both were lovely and we requested if they could cut them up so we could share and taste both, which they obliged. Our total bill for the drinks and meals was R130.00 which was inclusive of the tip, and very reasonable.
Services
The service was great and our waitress was lovely and very helpful. This added to the overall good experience we had.
Jack’s Bagels Contact Details:
Address: Walker Drive Shopping Centre, Shop 7B, Corner of Walker Drive and, Kabega Rd, Kamma Ridge, Gqeberha, 6025
Telephone number: 041 023 0749
Opening Hours: Mon – Fri – 07:30 am – 16:30 pm
Sat – 07:30 am – 14:30 pm
Sun – 08:00 am – 13:00 pm
Website: https://www.jacksbagels.co.za/
Recommendation / Value for money:
If you are looking for a good WIFI signal, great food, and value for money then check them out. And since they have so many locations across the country, I am excited to try out more of their venues.
Urban Express
Location:
Urban Express can be found in Walmer in a shopping complex. It’s a very unassuming coffee shop. And it has seating both inside and outside.
Facilities:
There is ample seating inside but if you like the outdoor, they have a few tables on their balcony area.
WIFI
They have really good WIFI and it has good signal strength. It didn’t drop during the time we were there which was about three hours or so. You request the password from the waiter.
Plug Points
We requested a table near a plug point and our waitress obliged. And they do have a few plug points around the interior of the shop so there are options available.
Food & Drink
We ordered a butterscotch latte, a juice, eggs on toast, and banana bread with yoghurt and berry jam. This is by far one of the cheapest places we have had a meal. The eggs on toast was R15.00, yes you read that correctly. And it was one slice of toast with two eggs on top. Now if that isn’t worth it then I don’t know what is. The banana bread was toasted and topped with yoghurt and berry jam and was R25.00, which was also very cheap.
And both these meals were yummy especially considering the price. They do have other items on their menu which include other breakfasts (which are served all day), sandwiches, wraps, and burgers. So there are a variety of options available.
Services
We had a lovely waitress who was very attentive and on the ball with her service. She kept on coming by to check if we were okay. In general, there appeared to be great service from all the staff we saw.
Urban Express Contact Details:
Address: 25 6th Avenue, Walmer 6065, Port Elizabeth
Telephone number: 060 605 2956
Opening hours: Mon – Fri – 07:00 am – 15:30 pm
Sat – 07:00 am – 14:00 pm
Sun – 08:00 am – 13:00 pm
Website: https://www.facebook.com/UrbanEspressCoffeeCo/
Recommendation / Value for money:
Honestly, this is by far the most value for money we experienced in the area. It has great service, good WIFI and lots of delicious food.
Did you enjoy this list of coffee shops to work from in Port Elizabeth? Do you have any more to add? Let me know in the comments below. I am always looking for recommendations.
If you enjoyed this post, check out the Things to do in Port Elizabeth with some activities to try in the area.
* Please note that all prices and contact information are correct at time of publication. Please check the venues websites as prices may change without notice. *