The other day I went around the corner to get some pizza and there were two American girls who spoke no Italian there and the owner doesn’t speak English.  So I helped the girls order pizza and answered some questions for them about Florence/Tuscany/Italy and food/weather/men.

I realized after they left and I was still wolfing down an entire prosciutto and mushroom pizza that I had forgotten to explain the coffee differences.  The expression on many faces when ordering coffee here are kind of comical for the uninitiated.  Despite the fact that the Starbucks CEO got the inspiration for the idea from a trip to Italy and Italian coffee, the similarities pretty much end there.

First thing, you don’t go to a cafè or coffee shop, you go to a bar.  Yes at 8am you head to a bar.  The concept is different than in the US, yes they sell alcohol.  But they sell waaaaay more coffee, maybe with a little alcohol in it as a corretto after a rough night.  And, unless you are in a strictly neighborhood place there are two prices for your coffee.  The first price is if you drink it standing at the bar and is roughly 0.80 euro for a caffè and up to perhaps 1.30 euro for a cappuccino. The second price is for using a table, and is usually about 3 euro.  Don’t question this, “this is the Italian way.”

Second thing, 90% of what you get at Starbucks doesn’t exist here.  The chances of finding anything resembling a frappuccino are about as high as finding ugly Italian shoes.  Don’t be shocked.  If you try to order a half caf half decaf nonfat anything you will receive a look generally reserved for people who have a penchant for jumping out of planes and off buildings.

What they do have.  The coffee here is amazing.  In four vacations and more than a year of living here I have had two bad cups of coffee.  One in a “tourist only” place and the other on an incredibly busy Saturday night in a restaurant that normally has great coffee.

What you will find:

• espresso           caffè-espresso here is a newspaper
• cappuccino       cappuccino-and only before lunch
• caffè latte         caffè latte-don’t make the following mistake
• latte                  milk-if you order a latte, you will get latte, milk, leche
• macchiato         macchiato-the same, caffè with a touch of milk

What you won’t find:

• nonfat              what? yes, the milk exists in the supermarket, but that’s about it
• decaf                same concept
• huge servings   there is one size, that is the size… the concept of a 20 oz coffee (venti=20) boggles
• lots of ice         for iced coffees, cokes, anything

Helpful words:

• con ghiaccio    with ice, they will do it, but it will only be two cubes
• in vetro            in the small glass cups
• corretto            for when you drank too much Chianti the night before
• senza schiuma no foam

Lastly, it is possible to get coffee to go, “porta via” but it is unusual.  Coffee is served at ideal drinking temperature and you will not see people walking around with cups of coffee.  “Taking” a coffee is a chance to slow down for a moment and relax.