The Coffee An Expert Says Never To Order In Italy

It’ll come as no surprise that Denyse Pantaleo, Rome’s general operations manager at Walks of Italy, said Italians take coffee extremely seriously. 

Take espresso, for instance. This isn’t meant to be a takeaway affair, the food tour expert explained: “The bar is where you drink coffee, and when you take it away, you lose the whole point: the pause, the barista, the five minutes of connection with your neighbour.”

Traditions like these mean there’s lots of room for error, though – especially among the uninitiated. 

She shared the rules we should follow when visiting an Italian cafe (as well as the order we should avoid):

1) Don’t ask for a latte if you’re craving coffee

In English, a latte refers to a drink made with espresso shots, steamed milk, and milk foam. The beverage is believed to have Italian origins – but Pantaleo revealed that the word means something different in Italy. 

If you ask for a latte, “you could end up with a glass of warm milk,” she explained. “Instead, order a caffè latte if you want coffee with milk.”

That’s because latte means (you guessed it) milk in Italian. 

2) Don’t order a cappuccino after 11am 

Cappuccinos, which first appeared in Viennese cafes in the 1700s, originally went by Kapuziner, because its brown colour was similar to the robes of nearby Capuchin monks. 

But the drink was always Italian, The Spruce Eats reports. Which may give them license to make rules like not drinking them after 11am.

“Italians generally avoid milk-heavy coffee after meals, when an espresso is the more traditional choice,” Pantaleo stated. 

3) Always say “buongiorno” when you walk into a coffee bar

To be honest, this stands no matter where you are in the world. Greeting the people who’ll be serving your coffee “might seem like a small gesture, but Italians notice and appreciate it,” the food etiquette expert told us.

And as we mentioned above, you shouldn’t take your espresso out of an Italian coffee bar, either. “Sitting down or taking it away can miss the point of the Italian coffee ritual, which is centred around taking a moment to pause and connect,” Pantaleo ended.