italian-coffee-cappuccino

I’ve had better coffee in Australia (Still think they have the best coffee in the world), USA, Germany, France, Croatia, even in Dubai. The Italian coffee experience is not about the coffee itself, it’s about the overall experience. Especially the auditory one.

After our Croatian visit, the first Italian coffee experience was disorienting: People lining up for sandwiches, standing at a huge bar, waiting for their caffeine fix. It’s like a meeting for addicts: people standing in line to get their quick fix, chat for a minute or so and then move on. When you wait for your own fix, you start to hear the auditory signals: The small plate on the bar “Clink”, the spoon on the top of the plate “Clank”, the “Whoosh” of the espresso machine and the “Pssshhh” of the milk. Here’s comes the little cup of cappuccino “Clink” and off you go.

Even in a small, slow-paced town, the bar (not what you think, it’s a bar for everything: coffee, drinks, soda, small pastries) is fast-paced: People come in, put in their order, say a few sentences, down their drink and off they go. People can sit outside sucking on a glass of water for hours while the coffee experience is quick. In and out.

My assumption is, the average Italian goes to the bar 3-4 times a day: In the morning for the quick shot plus a pastry, after lunch, in the afternoon and maybe after dinner. There are no grandes, ventis or any nonsense. There’s a cafe (espresso) and cappuccino. Done. Little doses of of our favorite drug. I love it. And, the average coffee is better than any other average coffee. You can have a great cappuccino in a bar next to a gas station. There’s no below average Italian coffee. It just doesn’t qualify for the best ever. I can live with that.

But, what I really love is the little “clink” and “clank”. Add to that the melodic sounds of Italian and I might just stay here forever. “Clink” me now.