Breakfast and coffee in Knoxville: Market Square to North Broadway

Last checked Oct. 18, 2026. Refreshed every three months.

Knoxville’s breakfast and coffee cluster downtown, on Market Square, Union Avenue and Clinch Avenue, and along North Broadway, where a coffee and bagel shop and a cafe sit a few blocks apart. West Knoxville has early openers on Kingston Pike and Cedar Bluff Road, and South Knoxville has coffee at Kern’s Food Hall and on Chapman Highway.

How we made this list. The places come from OpenStreetMap records with a Knoxville address, the same data behind our local directory, checked against each place’s own website or chain location page on Oct. 18, 2026. We added Ruby Sunshine and Pete’s from their own sites, Awaken Coffee from the Kern’s Food Hall vendor page, and Potchke’s Gay Street deli from Potchke’s site. We left out places whose sites no longer belong to them or show no Knoxville address, and chain pages that would not load. The list is alphabetical. It is not a ranking or a recommendation, and nobody paid to be on it. Run one of these places? Write to us to correct your entry.

The list

The places

Awaken Coffee roasts its own coffee and runs a counter inside Kern’s Food Hall, the former Kern’s Bakery in South Knoxville, with seasonal drink menus.

Cafe 4 on Market Square serves brunch on weekend mornings, then lunch and dinner. It has a private mezzanine for events.

Camp Honey Coffee is a coffee shop on Lyons View Pike. Its site gives the address and phone but no hours.

Commonplace Coffee + Community on Chapman Highway in South Knoxville is a coffee shop with rentable spaces and a coffee cart for catering.

Dutch Bros Coffee on Kingston Pike is a drive-thru coffee stand with ordering ahead in its app.

The French Market Crêperie downtown serves French crêpes, opening at 8 a.m. most days and staying open into the evening Thursday to Saturday.

K Brew North Knox on North Broadway, one of several K Brew shops founded in 2013, serves coffee and bagels and has a hammock-chair seating area.

Mia Piccola North Knoxville on North Broadway serves espresso drinks, lunch and pastries.

Pete’s Restaurant & Coffee Shop on Union Avenue is a downtown diner that serves breakfast until 11 a.m. and lunch until 2 p.m., for dine-in, takeout or delivery.

Potchke runs a bagel shop on Cedar Bluff Road and a deli on North Gay Street, with schmear and bagel sandwiches.

Ruby Sunshine on Market Square is a New Orleans-style breakfast, brunch and lunch restaurant.

Scrambled Jake’s Breakfast Co. on South Northshore Drive serves breakfast and lunch daily, takes phone orders for takeout and has an online waitlist.

Tropical Smoothie Cafe on Cumberland Avenue lists a breakfast menu alongside smoothies.

Tupelo Honey on Market Square is a Southern restaurant open from 8 a.m. daily, with a pet-friendly patio.

Waffle House on North Cedar Bluff Road, at I-40 Exit 378B, is open 24 hours.

More places to eat in Knoxville

All the where-to-eat lists, brunch, bakeries, ice cream and desserts, the local directory and restaurant inspection scores.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I get breakfast in downtown Knoxville?

Ruby Sunshine (37 Market Square) opens at 7 a.m. daily, Tupelo Honey (1 Market Square) at 8 a.m. daily, Pete’s Restaurant & Coffee Shop (540 Union Ave.) at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays, and The French Market Crêperie (412 Clinch Ave.) at 8 a.m. Monday to Saturday.

What is open for breakfast early in Knoxville?

Dutch Bros on Kingston Pike opens at 5 a.m. every day, Pete’s opens at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays, and the Waffle House at 411 N. Cedar Bluff Road lists itself as open 24 hours.

Where can I get bagels in Knoxville?

Potchke Bagel, 432 N. Cedar Bluff Road, is open 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, and Potchke Deli, 318 N. Gay St., is open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily. K Brew on North Broadway sells coffee and bagels from 7 a.m. Monday to Saturday.

Where can I get coffee at Kern’s in Knoxville?

Awaken Coffee has a counter inside Kern’s Food Hall, 2201 Kern’s Rising Way, open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays, 8 a.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. on Sunday.