Coffee Bar Ideas For Small Spaces

Coffee bar ideas for small spaces will give you lots of inspiration and examples of how to turn a small space into a lovely beverage station. 

If you have a small countertop or flat surface in your kitchen you can style a pretty coffee bar. You don’t need a lot of space or a lot of extra home decor! You can use what you have to create a very happy and pretty spot in your kitchen to get your favorite beverage! Let’s chat about coffee bar ideas for small spaces in your kitchen.

I use this pop-up coffee station when we have company or overnight guests. It only takes a few minutes to set up and makes getting coffee a fun self-serve experience.

Since we don’t have a built-in space for coffee essentials I carved out a small spot on my kitchen counter!

Here are some coffee bar ideas for small spaces and for setting up the perfect coffee bar in your kitchen.

OUR COFFEE BAR STORY

We have always had a coffee station in our home! Bobby and I love a great cup of coffee! We look forward to having a cup of our favorite coffee and a little jolt of caffeine every morning!

Even though we have a large counter where we house our coffee maker, I like to designate only a small portion of the counter space for our coffee bar.

If the bar gets too complicated or too spread out I think it loses its charm and welcoming vibe.

When we have company or overnight guests we like to have a coffee bar set up with some sort of a pre-breakfast treat. It becomes a self-serve morning nosh area and a great gathering place in our kitchen.

The platter that contains a breakfast treat is the only thing I have from my father’s family. It belonged to my gradmother. I cherish it and use it!

Because I set up an easy coffee bar with a little something to eat we can make a more leisurely breakfast knowing that family and friends have something yummy to start their day!

MAKE SURE TO SET OUT THE ESSENTIALS

Our small-space coffee bar sits on the kitchen counter next to the coffee maker. All the essentials for making a great cup of joe are gathered in one place. Because I don’t have a bar cart or a piece of furniture to house my DIY coffee station I streamline my essentials!

Here are the essentials on my coffee bar…

• a coffee maker
• assorted coffee pod flavors
• sugar
• sweetener
• creamer
• coffee mugs or coffee cups
• spoons
• napkins
• a treat

I keep the coffee, sweetener, and sugar in pretty decorative jars on a white platter that works as a tray. You can see them HERE.

There is plenty of storage for extra coffee bar items organized in the kitchen drawer below.

I like to call my coffee bar a pop-up bar because it can transform from just the basics to a pre-breakfast bar for overnight guests and it’s so easy.

OTHER THINGS ON A COFFEE BAR

If you have a little more space you might like to create a more permanent coffee bar by adding…

• a mug rack
• floating shelves above your coffee station
• hooks with coffee cups
• an espresso machine
• storage for coffee essentials and more

EMBRACE THE SEASON

Decor should be simple on a cute coffee bar! Just the essentials and maybe some goodies. You can also add a nod to the season to make your small bar festive and inviting!

Our early fall coffee bar is ready for weekend guests. Adding a hint of the season makes our coffee bar pretty and welcoming!

I picked a couple drying hydrangeas and a few other flowers and added them to a white pitcher.

It’s apple time in Lancaster County so I added a bowl of apples to the coffee bar that can pick up and eaten with coffee and the coffee cake.

I didn’t have any apples in our refrigerator so I used some faux ones on the coffee bar as an example!

KEEP A TIGHT COLOR PALETTE

Pay attention to your coffee bar color palette. Because there are lots of little things on a coffee bar we want to visually corral them by using a tight color palette.

This will make our coffee nook look pulled together and attractive.

I talk about color palette a lot because it is the number one thing for making different items look like they belong together. This will create an attractive, not- so-busy look.

Our coffee corner is dressed up in hues of green! Because our coffee essentials are basically neutrals I can add any pop of color and other accents to celebrate any time of year!

White mugs are a must! These mugs are large and work with any color I want to add to our bar!

My favorite cloth napkins are tucked inside the coffee cups. This is one of my signature coffee bar looks! When something works I use it over and over again in fresh ways!

These green/brown/and white napkins are my favorite! I’ve had them for decades. I store them in the kitchen drawer under the coffee bar counter.

OTHER COFFEE BAR IDEAS FOR SMALL SPACES

If you don’t want to give up counter space in your kitchen why not set up a pop-up coffee bar in another room like your dining room or breakfast nook?

A bar cart can easily be transformed into the most charming coffee bar cart!

Or think about using an end table or other small table to make a cozy coffee cart. A sideboard or hutch or buffet is just begging for an attractive coffee station when you entertain. It’s really the perfect spot!

Get creative! A coffee bar should be part of your home!

COFFEE BAR IDEAS FOR NON-COFFEE DRINKERS

If java is not your drink of choice create a drink bar that is! If you drink tea then make a tea bar. Fill it with your favorite teas and an electric tea kettle and teapot. Show off your favorite tea cups and add a tiered tray of goodies when company comes.

A cider bar, hot or cold, is perfect for the fall! Drink cold cider from pretty copper mugs and serve apples and caramel sauce! RAW APPLE CAKE or PUMPKIN SPICE CAKE WITH MAPLE SYRUP GLAZE are the perfect accompaniment for a cider bar!

Here is another fall coffee bar featuring pumpkins and saturated fall colors!

If you compare this EASY AND PRETT FALL COFFE BAR to the Early Fall Coffee Bar in this post you will see they are very similar. I used almost the same blueprint or formula for creating a coffee bar. It makes setting up a quick coffee station so so easy!

When something works keep repeating it in different ways!

Hot chocolate is the perfect drink to serve when the weather gets cold! Create a hot chocolate bar along with marshmallows and candy canes! Add greenery and Christmas balls for a very festive look!

Get donut holes from your grocer or bake AMAZING SOUR CREAM SCONES to eat with your cocoa!

We served hot chocolate in the foyer for a neighborhood Christmas get-together. We put our bar cart in the foyer so our friends could get a warm cup of hot chocolate right away.

Although this was not the simplest idea for a bar, it was so much fun! And our neighbors loved it! See our HOT CHOCOLATE BAR HERE.

Creating a coffee bar on a kitchen counter is easy!

I hope you are taking away lots of coffee bar ideas for your small spaces!

THINGS FOR YOUR COFFEE BAR…