Burundi Star Coffee

What a great little coffee spot. The owners source coffee direct from farmers in Africa. Delicious sambusas, cool t shirts, and a chill vibe. The perfect antidote to the generic chain! Try it out if you love quality coffee!

The stellar reviews are no mistake: this place is a gem among coffee shops. The coffee is absolutely excellent, but the costumer service was even better. A few days ago, I ordered online at the exact moment that their order printer was down or being refilled so the online order didn't print up. It was absolutely not a problem. I showed the receipt and they made my drinks. A few days later they called me because on their end it looked like I never picked up my order, and they wanted to check if there was some mistake or if a refund is needed. That is above and beyond in my book. For me, stepping into this coffee shop was like stepping into a cafe in Burundi from the coffee (which was smooth and delicious) to the hospitality. This is a coffee shop with so much heart. Please support it! I know I will be making a stop back the next time I'm in Portland. Burundi Star Team, you are wonderful! Thank you for taking care of me!

Decent cappuccino but barista significantly overheated the milk. It should be 50-60C.

The reviews didn’t lie, this place was VERY good. Excellent coffee. Breakfast sandwich was pretty standard but delicious. I talked to the owners, super sweet couple, and they said they were adding gluten free bread soon for their breakfast sandwiches and avocado toast. Location is a little subpar, and could improve the decor/vibe, but worth the visit!

Super friendly coffee shop with delicious hand pies! Coffee/cold brew was tasty and loved the pain viande as well as the veg sambusa. Owner (my best guess), was nice enough to ask what we thought of everything as well. Would definitely go back and recommend (easy walk from downtown Portland over by the hospital with a smaller business feel).

Very delicious latte. The egg and avocado toast was amazing. Just a hint of spice made it perfect. Service was very friendly. Plenty of casual space and background music to enjoy the experience. Love supporting small businesses.

my favorite coffee shop in the area! the people here are so lovely and have great customer service. every time I come in, it feels like family. it’s so wonderful to have a culturally rich, black owned coffee shop in the Portland area. their espresso roast is delicious and is one of the only places I get my espresso beans from. the flavor notes in the espresso are so unique, I can’t find it anywhere else! it doesn’t matter if I get a latte or cold brew, they never miss. don’t sleep on the sambousas, they’re super yummy! definitely come by and try this cafe, you won’t regret it.

So unassuming, but so good. Small menu, but the coffee is excellent and the sandwiches are incredible. The avocado toast was better then ive had at fancy brunch spots with fresh, warm bread. Perfectly ripe avocado (with a little lime), and an egg made on the spot. Great stop.

Great coffee - looking forward to going back and trying their food menu soon! Wide variety of food on the small menu!

If you're looking for the best avocado toast in town, look no further! Burundi is serving up substantial wedges for (as of writing this) $6.50 for one piece/half serving and $10 for two pieces/full serving. They use butter for toasting, but if you're vegan you can specifically request to have olive oil used instead. Toppings include red pepper flakes and cilantro; egg, too, if you want (for an additional charge). The layer of mashed avocado is plentiful, and the bread - while thick - is just soft enough that biting into it is a pleasant sensation. Like others have said, a little more salt would be nice, but overall for the price, portion, and quality... it doesn't get better than this in Portland. The space is bright, there's plenty of tables, ordering online is easy, and on street parking is abundant. For me, though, the coffee is too acidic. I've tried drip, iced, cold brew, I've even bought a bag of beans to make at home, but it's just way too sour (which I know isn't necessarily related to the acidity of a coffee bean) for my personal liking.

Had such a great experience here! The owner, Jocelyne, is very sweet! Her story is amazing as well. The sambousa, is crisp on the outside and the beef filling is perfectly spiced! The avocado toast is superb! The bread is crunchy and soft... so good! The avocado has a little kick, but not too much. Generous amount too! I ordered the iced chai latte and my sister got the hot. I know it's not coffee, but I am going to bring a bag home! All of the beans are sourced by the owners family in Burundi! I am excited to try! It's the perfect environment to sit and work on a laptop with good light and low relaxing music playing. I will definitely be back!

This small coffee shop was packed with a lot of flavor, it was really cute inside, the employees were extremely friendly and knowledgeable. The panini I got was ham & turkey with spinach and pesto !! I ordered the cappuccino, it was freshly made with the perfect foam ratio. I'm telling you it was delicious So if you're visiting Maine and looking for a little cultural experience definitely recommend !! -Black Owned.

I rolled in at 7:10 in the morning on a Tuesday and was impressed with the clean, artsy atmosphere of this shop. They had only opened 10 minutes before, which may be why the barista didn't seem too pleased to see me. She didn't greet me or ask for my order, so I just had to offer it up, but I will chalk that up to her being tired and busy, which is so relatable. My coffee was an iced vanilla latte with almond milk. It was refreshing, delicious, and the perfect level of strength. Again, the coffee in Portland continues to surprise me with how pricey it is, but this was definitely my favorite caffeinated beverage I have tried while here. Definitely stop by this place for a delicious drink. I am rounding up from 4.5 stars because I came in so early.

I'm from Los Angeles and absolutely love finding hidden gems when I travel and supporting local mom n pops. This Burundi cafe is one of them. Upon entering, you can't help but notice the beautiful mural. It makes the space feel bright and welcoming. There are a few tables and high top bar seating. Both food & drink menus are simple, but I often find less is more. Offer a few things and do them well vs. offering everything under the sun and end up being just mediocre. What's special about this shop is the coffee beans come directly from Burundi and it's delicious! I ordered a medium drip (generous!), a beef sambousa (think samosa aka fried pastry with savory filling), and a full avocado toast. The beef sambousa served with chili lime sauce is SO GOOD! It was so tasty in fact, I ordered four more to go! As for the avocado toast, contrary to what others have said on here, I thought it was just OK. I got the full size and added an egg on it, but should have gotten the half size as the bread the avocado sits on is fairly thick and large. Half of the plate would have been sufficient for me unless I was sharing with someone. I also thought the crust was a tad too toasty/crunchy for my taste -- I could hardly cut with a knife or bite into it. The avocado itself also needed a pinch of salt. Overall, the toast was good, but not a wow factor. And once again, I live in LA where avocado toast is on all coffee shop menus. Just FYI: the avocado toast comes with diced red onions in it. If you don't like onions, definitely let them know. Staff is kind. Service is efficient. Prices are very reasonable. If I'm back in Portland, I'd order the beef sambousas again and try the savory banana stew, which is something you don't see on menus! Go support local biz!

Woo! I have been wanting to try Burundi Star for a while but hadn't gotten a chance to. I see it every time I head to the St. John area and finally made my way over. What a cute little cafe! I didn't get to learn much about them but we ordered the latte, cappuccino, avo toast, and sambousa. I knew I wanted to try to sambousa and wasn't disappointed. I'm not normally an avocado toast person but people raves about the taste so I figured why not. Wonderfully spiced and really nice thick toast that it was served on -- just excellent. The coffee was great and the barista was perfectly friendly. They sell a few craft items that I can only assume are Burundian in origin but did not spend enough time deciding if I wanted anything yet but I sure as heck am going back!

The atmosphere and service here are amazing, I honestly wish I could give more than 5 stars. The chai lattes here are just fantastic! If you're looking for good quality food, service, drinks, and a superbly clean and bright place to sit down, this is it!

Just ordered a 12oz hot latte extra hot, barista was friendly, well groomed and the latte was best I've had anywhere, including all of Western Europe. It was delish! And the shop is very cool!

So, I travel a good amount for work and when I get the chance I love to "hunt" out local offee shops. Birundi had great food (breakfast sandwich) and coffee. I enjoyed the "local" vibe there. If you find yourself in Portland Maine and are looking for a cool and local place check out Birubdi.

Delicious coffee and a superb avocado toast. The cinnamon rolls and croissants are delicious. I haven't tried the banana stew, which I heard is a Burundi classic. Nice vibes, and exceptionally clean. I recommend highly.

Stopped in for the first time this morning and ordered an Americano and a full order of avocado toast with egg. Both were really good. Americano had nice citrus and Cocoa notes. The avocado toast was excellent. Nice thick, hearty bread and, good avocado mash flavors. Staff was attentive, quick and very pleasant. Will definitely be back.

The BEST avocado toast I ever had. Forget every place that claims they know how to make an avocado toast and go here. Burundi Star's avocado toast is divine. You'll want to have it every morning, every day, with a delicious iced latte. Plus, you're supporting a Black owned business with a great mission to help sustainable coffee growers in Africa. The millennial in you (or the wanna-be millennial in you) will be very happy you read my review.

A hidden gem of Portland that you must visit. The staff are friendly, the food and drinks are delicious (highly recommend the avocado toast), and you are supporting a phenomenal small business. Get a little slice of Burundi in Maine.

We stumbled across Burundi after looking for breakfast near our hotel. They had the best avocado toast I've ever had. Friendly service and great coffee as well, highly recommend!

Hands down the best avocodo toast I've ever had. The bread was thick but light and perfectly toasted. We watched the owner hull the avocado and add fresh chipped onion, lemon, and salt--then sprinkled with hot pepper flakes. While we waited we enjoyed amazing coffee and a delicious chai latte. After trying to get in to all the other local favorites with an hour wait, we ended up here and we didn't regret it! We will be back and you should make it a regular stop as well. So good!

The toast, the flavorful avocado spread. Perfection! Stopped based on a review of the avocado toast and it did not disappoint! Worth a stop in!

This place is fantastic! They're super friendly and the avocado toast is delicious! Looking forward to working our way through the menu.

I grew up in Maine and always wished that it would have greater diversity to match its incredible natural beauty. Portland now has a sizable African (mostly Eastern and Central) community and I was excited to make Burundi Star Coffee our first stop after arriving in Portland. I had a terrific iced coffee - made from the sustainably sourced coffee the café serves from the owners' home nation of Burundi. It was excellent, strong and smooth, and kept me buzzing through a visit to see my very busy little nephews! I also ordered a berry smoothie, which was tasty and, thankfully, natural tasting and not oversweetened as so many other smoothies can be. The wait for freshly made meat sambousas was a bit longer than the time we had, so we tried a spicy potato sambousa instead and it was excellent, very good tasting with a kick of spice (but not too much), a good little snack to sustain us after a few hours of driving. The pain viande meat pastry was also tasty. Social distancing in a time of COVID-19 is well handled here, we felt safe and all staff and customers wore masks. There was even hand sanitizer on every table. Also, we picked up an affordable souvenir from Maine while here: a Burundi Star Coffee face mask! This is a great entry to the local community and I would much rather spend my coffee budget here - supporting a local business owned by people who came a long way to make Maine their home - than at Starbucks or Dunkin'.

I love this place. Everything is perfect. There's really not much else to be said. The coffee is fantastic and the food is delicious. They're so friendly and patient. I was so glad to see a long line in there this morning, they deserve the business so much more than all of the hipster coffee places in town.

Everything I've tried from Burundi Star has been fantastic - the cold brew is strong and tasty, the pastries have all been delicious, and see the pic for what the avocado toast looks like! Jocelyne and Andrea are the most welcoming and hospitable people, too. High recommend checking this place out. Absolute perfect addition to the neighborhood!

Great place to get unique coffee and the owner is very nice! Happy to support local businesses!

We stopped in for a quick iced coffee thanks to its proximity to our hotel and were happy we did. Atmosphere leaves something to be desired, but the flavorful (hints of cinnamon maybe?) Iced coffee more than made up for that. A worthy stop if you're in the area!

The latte and avocado toast are both fantastic. For 12 bucks this is 5 star food with out a doubt. The baristas (and avocado toast makers) are really great, super nice and considerate. The latte sat for a few minutes before the avocado toast was done and they offered to remake it. We declined and the latte was still perfect. The atmosphere could use a little warning up. It's not really the most inviting place to hang out in but it's COVID o'clock anyway so I guess that's a nonissue for now.

The coffee is fantastic and so is their food! They have great grab-and-go stuff. The vegetable and meat sambusas are my favorite. Smoothies in the morning. I'm also a big fan of the matooke (green banana soup.) The green bananas have a similar taste & texture to potatoes -- it's like a very nourishing stew. They rotate the protein in it, sometimes fish, sometimes beef, sometimes goat, so ask before ordering if you have a preference-- I've tried them all and they're all delicious. Today I ordered off the special menu & got a plate of beef stew, beans & rice and greens. It's all so good!

This place just won Best Iced Coffee in town, and I can confirm this. The first time I went here, I went back the same day for more. Love it!

A great find and wonderful people, it is so nice to get great food and have a good interaction with the people taking your order. The burrito was the best I have had in Southern Maine. In self isolation now but looking forward to going back to Burundi for food, I hope they make it through this difficult time.

Really good coffee and samosas. We all agreed they were perfectly spiced. Hope to come back for the banana soup soon

Delicious coffee. Very friendly people! And excellent selection of pastries. Their iced latte saved me on this hot day. I'll be back often! :)

Delicious, incredibly smooth, flavorful coffee. Life-changing avocado toast. (It's fresh baked bread, and not really toasted, but holy cow is it good.) What a gem! I hope this place is successful for many years to come.

We have repeatedly had their coffee since moving here and it is fabulous. The pastries were excellent! Andres the owner could NOT be nicer. They import the beans from Burundi. I am biased in my support of small business. Burundi - because of their product and being a small business - is one our family will continue to support. Great place.

Amazing coffee and food. I had the avocado toast. That was the best avocado toast I ever had. Definitely a great find in the Portland area!

Burundi Star Cafe is a gem that you must find in your travels around Portland. It isn't in the tourist areas but just Google and find this amazing spot, in the West End. Coffee beans fresh from Burundi served any way you like them-the owners and baristas make delicious hot or cold coffees, tea, chais, lattes. They also chef up some delicious stews and avocado toast, among other treats. And did I mention how friendly and welcoming the atmosphere is? I go every chance I get!

Great and fairly priced coffee. Portland has a lot of great coffee spots but this is the one that seems African country specific. Friendly service, the latte espresso was strong, and even the drip was tasty.

Love supporting small businesses when I travel. Got 2 iced chai tea with almond milk. Very good flavor. Owner was super friendly and nice!

Five star latte and spicy potato pastry made this a delightful destination for a West End Portland walk. The owners welcomed us with warmth and home hospitality. Do Drop In!

Stopped in for what we thought would be a quick coffee grab and go, but decided to stay a while. Everyone loved what they got: chai latte, mocha, and a cappuccino. Great, friendly and attentive service. Nice vibes with the music they played and the decor in the cafe.

I drove by and saw this restaurant and knew I wanted to go. I wish I hadn't already eaten as I really wanted to try a Sambousa. So glad to support this small business! I ordered a Spicy Masala Chai Latte. So so good. Perfect flavor.

Do you know about the beautiful country of Burundi? Did you know there is a large community of people from Burundi that now live in this community? This place offers great coffee and service with a smile! The owner was very kind and has a lot of wisdom if you get a chance to talk to him, do!

If you have a taste for incredible coffee, look no further than Burundi Star. They are quite new, but the quality of their coffee will be a contender among the large Portland coffee scene. The genuinely friendly customer service I received went above and beyond. They also serve delicious pastries that cannot be missed, either made in house or provided by other local Portland businesses. Please try it for yourself and welcome this new Black owned & Immigrant owned coffee shop to our Community!

I moved in right up the street from Burundi Star and it's my new favorite spot. Love their coffee and just tried a smoothie this morning and it blew me away! Real fruit, no ice chunks, and so smooth. Best I've had in way too long. The folks that run the shop are so friendly and recognize me whenever I come by. Love this place!

Strong coffee, absolutely perfectly brewed. Yummy savory pastries. And good music. I can't wait to come back.

Love this place! We go here every morning when we are in Portland. Definitely have the avocado toast. My husband and I agree it's the best we've ever tasted. We get lattes every morning and they are the best we've ever had. Wish we lived closer. The staff is super friendly. Definitely give this place a try!

Great avocado toast. Owner is very kind and helpful. You can get a flavored latte. Don't let the location or surroundings change your mind. Go here for breakfast!!!

highly recommend the cappuccinos and sambusas. wish I was in Portland longer to try more menu items! love this spot!

Great latte and great service! Stopped in yesterday for the first time. It looked like they also have some pastry type items but late in the day pickings were a bit slim. Will be back when I'm in the neighborhood!

Absolutely amazing establishment! Top notch drinks, and even better people. Take the time to check out this dynamite little coffee shop. Burundi Star fits in with the best of what Portland has to offer!

Excellent coffee and friendly service. One of these days I'll try some of the reasonably priced food. Sure smells good!

Such delicious coffee and treats! The owners were so friendly and ground my beans for me too!