Specialty coffee in Italy

Specialty coffee in Italy works against the espresso bar: in 2018 the country had about 150,000 traditional bars and only around 100 specialty shops. The specialty generation is small but deliberate. Ditta Artigianale in Florence, founded in 2013, serves both espresso and filter; in Milan, Orsonero and Cafezal pour light roasts; Faro in Rome opened in 2017; and in Bologna, Forno Brisa pairs specialty coffee with its bakery. Starbucks' arrival in Milan in 2018 is often cited as a moment that pushed Italians to think about coffee beyond the bar-counter espresso.

Milan and Rome hold the largest clusters, with Florence, Turin and Bologna forming a second group; Milan and Florence also have local roasters. Elsewhere the scene is thin, a few specialty bars each in Naples, Brescia, Cagliari, Palermo, Imola, Treviso and Trieste.

Roasters that shape Italian specialty coffee include Gardelli Specialty Coffees, Ditta Artigianale, Cafezal, D612 Coffee Roasters and Gearbox Coffee Roasters. Expect espresso to remain the centre of most menus, often made with lighter roasts than a traditional bar would use, and filter coffee at the more committed shops. In Bologna, BURO pairs its coffee with all-day brunch.