Cafe Don Ruiz

Kleines Café im Innenhof mit einigen Stühlen im Aussenbereich.
Der Kaffee kommt aus dem Land und wird dort auch geröstet.
Toll.

Great Coffee and great spot. A nice place to sit and relax with friends and family. Its located in Cuartel Ballajá right across of fort El Morro. As a Coffee Shop owner I recommend it!

Great spot for a coffee break after eating and walking around Old San Juan. They have all kinds of different methods to make coffee (drip, french press, chemex, etc.) if you’re into that. There is air conditioning if you need a break from the heat with seating inside and outside as well. If your Spanish isn’t good, don’t worry they speak English! Its a well designed space with a friendly staff. I grabbed a quick espresso to go and was on my merry way. Will definitely come back if I’m ever in San Juan again.

The best coffee and especially coconut rummed up coffee ever! The Mallorca sandwich was great. Great prices and friendly staff.

After a few hours of walking, Don Ruiz was a nice gem. Turkey sandwich and chocolate muffin were fresh and delicious. Service was friendly and we got our food in 5 minutes.

Great little spot located inside a plaza just across the San Juan del Morro fort. Los of options for enjoying your coffee whether you choose espresso or pour over/​drip coffee. They also offer smoothies and teas. My friends had a mango smoothie and a strawberry/​banana smoothie and they were quite sweet!
I had a 4 oz café con leche which was just the right amount. We didn’t try any of the pastries but they looked good. The inside is very visually appealing and there’s a small cluster of tables outside if you want to bask in the sunlight with your coffee.
The coffee is local Puerto Rican coffee roasted on site. Nice spot to unwind after a walk through the fort.

Super cool place, people were very nice and the food was excellent. Try the smoothies, they’re stupid good.

Perfect place for a quick break after hiking through El Morro. Completely charming little spot with indoor and outdoor seating. Great coffee, delicious smoothies, and surprisingly excellent sandwiches, all served by exceedingly friendly staff.
Tip: Get your sandwich on Mallorca bread (a sweet Puerto Rican roll) if they have it!

Very, very good coffee in a nice setting. I love the outdoor seating in the courtyard. The baristas are very nice, their lattes are artistic and the coffee is, well… fabulous! There are a number of good coffee spots in Viejo San Juan but this has become my favorite.

Excellent local coffee. Staff is great. This is the type of place where they make you feel like a local even if you only come once a year. The fresh squeezed orange juice from local oranges has a tangy and refreshing taste that sets it apart from other OJ’s.

This is my favorite coffee house in San Juan (next to The Poet’s Passage). The coffee is delicious, and their story behind the coffee is incredible. I really love the Irish Latte (hot 8 oz or iced 12 oz)! I wish I lived closer so I could go here all the time. Great atmosphere, super friendly staff, and amazing service.
If you are going to San Juan, you need to go here! (It’s conveniently located near El Morro too!)

After a hot morning of walking from Castillo de San Cristobal to Castillo San Felipe del Morro, we needed a place to eat and cool down. They had great Banana Smoothie and Iced Latte! We liked their mallorca bread as well. It is situated inside a museum so look out for it. Our barista was great and helpful!
Whenever we visit San Juan, we might go back here!

Truth: I hated coffee before I tried the coffee at Café Don Ruiz. The fact that you can drink coffee in a place where the coffee is grown no more than 35 miles away makes this coffee extraordinary and such a cool experience. The baristas know what they’re doing. They are awesome. That alone made me want to try it. Not bitter and excruciatingly strong like we’re used to in the states… Very VERY smooth and their lattes are ridiculous. I dream about that milk crema on top.
They also have smoothies and juices for the non-​café connoisseurs (try the coffee, it might change your mind!) and sandwiches and pastries to fill you up before walking around Old San Juan. Also, not to mention, the building that it’s in is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. So many people miss it without even knowing it’s there. FIND IT. Guaranteed Deliciousness.

Great location to have a good puertorrican coffee! Located in the Cuartel de Ballaja at the Old San Juan, DonRuiz offers a great local (100% PRican) coffee. Choose or try their different systems, like a pour over, chemex, espresso and even a syphon! Pastries are good as well.

After a morning of playing tourist and walking around old San Juan my friend and I needed a place to grab a snack and soak up some A/​C. As usual Unilocal came through with a winning recommendation.
Even though we were a ways away this spot came up as the number 1 spot. After walking about a bit we found the café. It is perfect for an afternoon snack and a respite from the heat of the day.
The food is average but the customer service and ambience are terrific. We each had a sandwich with chips and a bottle of water. Again nothing to rave about but the food was nice. Perhaps it was getting out of the heat but the interior was comfy and welcoming.
I’m just here on vacation so I probably won’t be back but if I’m in San Juan again, I know where I’d come for a snack.

This place is such a gem!
A two minute walk from el Morro, it’s a must if you’re in the neighborhood.
Don Ruiz is a cute, quaint, hipster-​ish coffee shop that serves delicious sandwiches, desserts, and coffee.
The pesto turkey sandwich was delicious, as was the guava macaroon.

/TL;DR
Super-​hyped up coffee shop. I’m thinking maybe people were talking about the food.
/​ATMOSPHERE
I am pretty sure it’s inside of a square, inside of a museum. I wasn’t quite sure what I was standing inside of though.
It’s pretty small so it can get crowded in a hurry. Puerto Rico isn’t exactly where you sit *outside* to enjoy a *hot* cup of coffee.
/​FOOD
I ordered hot coffee and iced coffee. My coffee was stout and powerful. YUM! When I asked about the iced coffee, it was described as tasting «like ass.»
As it turns out, this was no exaggeration (maybe slightly) as it tasted exactly as I imagined the bitter sweat of a donkey to taste like. If you go with iced coffee, make sure you get it flavored or sweetened or something.
Had a muffin. It’s warmed up a la microwave. Still good though.
/​SERVICE
Service was friendly but all behind the counter.
HOW TO READ MY REVIEWS:
1 Star — Does not approach edible. Enter at your own risk.
2 Stars — If I’m in the area, I’d pick something else.
3 Stars — I would stop by if I happen to be in the area.
4 Stars — I would pick this place out of other places nearby.
5 Stars — I would go out of my way to dine here.

Great Coffee with designs created on top, delicious Majjorca’s with Butter, relaxed atmosphere and outdoor seating in the huge Courtyard of the building known as The Ballaja (that’s «bye-​yah-​hah» for the Spanish-​impaired).
Feels like a European café, indoor seating with free WIFI. Hipster Art Students from the famous Art School nearby. A real plus in Old San Juan, glad to see they’re doing well!

I’m writing this review while sitting in Don Ruiz. 20 minutes ago I ordered two Chemex coffees and still haven’t received them. If you know anything about fresh coffee (I roast my own and regularly brew Chemex) you know that the beans should be ground less than a minute before brewing, but my ground beans have been sitting in the filter for that 20 minutes. I just went to check what is taking so long and they said they are waiting for the machine to charge up and heat the water. I’m sure that the other reviews are sound in their praise, but my experience is not going so well. I gave them an extra star for the benefit of doubt.
The coffee, however, was still quite good. A ⁴⁄₅ for the coffee and atmosphere, a ²⁄₅ for this particular experience and the fact that they let the grinds sit so long, but otherwise it’s worth checking out.
The location is quite nice.

This coffee shop is a must visit place. Situated near the fort, it’s a perfect stop by place when one is done with the fort.
The coffees are really good. I had the spiced Irish latte and the cinnamon flavor just blew me away! The toffee bananas were mildly flavoured but great nevertheless. mocha praline was great as well.
For the snacks we had the carrot cake which was so good that I had to reorder it! The sandwiches are good. The ham sandwich is to die for! The banana chocolate crêpe was made to perfection.
The service was great! Amazing people. Very accommodating. Small and quaint place! I loved it. I recommend it highly! Great job guys!

Hidden gem!
If you’re at El Morro, cross the steer and you’ll see the signs for the coffee shop! It’s so cozy and the baristas are great!
They use 100% Puerto Rican coffee that is sooo delicious! Great morning, afternoon or evening treat. They also have fresh fruit smoothies which are so refreshing!