Coffee in downtown San Luis Obispo: Scout Garden Street

Scout Coffee opened at 1130 Garden Street in January 2014, in a brick building in the heart of downtown San Luis Obispo. It is still the original Scout, open 6:30am to 6:30pm every day, and the easiest place in town to try the coffee and the pastries voted Best Coffee Shop in SLO County 11 years in a row, most recently in 2026.

The basics

• Address: 1130 Garden Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
• Hours: 6:30am to 6:30pm, every day
• Parking:
• Seating: inside the cafe, with the big windows on Garden Street

What to order

• Espresso drinks. Classic Espresso is the coffee in every espresso drink at Scout.
• Drip coffee. Scout House Blend is on drip at every Scout location.
• A croissant. Every pastry in the case is made from scratch at the Scout bakery in Morro Bay and delivered every day. The croissants run on a 3 day lamination.
• A sandwich on house made bread.

The syrups and the almond milk are made in house too. On the menu lists what is being served right now.

The coffee is ours, start to finish

Every coffee at Scout is roasted by HoneyCo Coffee Roasters, Scout's own roastery, in Morro Bay. HoneyCo buys from the top 1 percent of fresh crop, pays well above Fair Trade prices, and roasts every batch against a record of tens of thousands of earlier batches so the coffee tastes the same from one season to the next. The retail shelf at Garden Street carries the same coffee served at the bar, whole bean or ground. Shop the coffee.

The shop

Garden Street carries the Scout goods too: mugs, tumblers and hats printed with Scout designs, along with the coffee.. Most of it is also online at scoutcoffeeco.com, with pickup at any Scout shop.

A morning downtown

Scout opens at 6:30am, well ahead of most of downtown. Start with a coffee and a croissant on Garden Street, then walk.

Local videographer Matt Yoon included Scout in his 24 Hours in SLO video, which is a good 1 day plan for the town.

What others have written

The New York Times named Scout the coffee and pastry stop in its 36 Hours on the Central Coast. The Guardian, Sunset, Eater LA, The Infatuation, AAA Westways, Barista Magazine and Daily Coffee News have written about Scout too. Scout has been voted Best Coffee Shop in SLO County 11 years in a row, most recently in 2026, and was named Small Business of the Year for California's 35th Assembly District.

The other Scout cafes

Scout Foothill is at 880 Foothill Blvd in University Square next to Cal Poly, with a lot and a patio. Scout Morro Bay at 390 Morro Bay Blvd holds the bakery and the roastery, with the roaster behind glass. Both are open 6:30am to 6:30pm every day. There is also a Scout on the Cal Poly campus at yak'ityutyu, run by Campus Dining. All locations.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Scout Coffee in downtown San Luis Obispo?

Scout Coffee Garden Street is at 1130 Garden Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401, in downtown San Luis Obispo. It is open 6:30am to 6:30pm every day.

What time does Scout Coffee open?

All 3 Scout Coffee cafes open at 6:30am and close at 6:30pm, every day: Garden Street in downtown San Luis Obispo, Foothill next to Cal Poly, and Morro Bay.

When did Scout Coffee open?

Scout Coffee opened in January 2014 at 1130 Garden Street in downtown San Luis Obispo. It has since grown to 3 cafes, a licensed location on the Cal Poly campus, a scratch bakery and its own roastery, HoneyCo Coffee Roasters, in Morro Bay.

Has Scout Coffee won best coffee shop in San Luis Obispo?

Yes. Scout Coffee has been voted Best Coffee Shop in SLO County 11 years in a row, most recently in 2026. It was named Small Business of the Year for California's 35th Assembly District.

Does Scout Coffee serve food?

Scout serves pastries made from scratch at its own bakery in Morro Bay, delivered to every cafe daily, and sandwiches on house made bread. The current menu is at scoutcoffeeco.com/pages/on-the-menu.