Caffè

What it is

In an espresso bar, the word caffè means a straight espresso, nothing added. It arrives on a saucer with a small demitasse spoon, and sometimes with a wrapped chocolate and a glass of water. People often drink it standing at the bar rather than sitting down. Espresso takes its name from the Italian verb esprimere, meaning to express, and refers to hot water pushed under pressure through ground coffee. Caffè can also mean the Italian way of making coffee, or a coffee bar of the kind found across Europe. The range of drinks ordered under this name is large, and about twenty are common throughout the country.

Origins and history

The word caffè probably comes from Kaffa, a region of Ethiopia where coffee is thought to have originated. Muslims first used and spread coffee worldwide from the port of Mocha in Yemen, and Europeans later took the name mokka from that port. In Italy, coffee houses became common in the 19th century as places to drink caffè. Drinking coffee at home began in the early 20th century, once moka pots were available to ordinary households. Coffee houses also grew into meeting places for artists, writers and politicians.

Coffee houses

A caffetteria is a coffee house or café, a place where caffè was traditionally made in a moka pot. Older caffetterie drew the upper classes and hosted art and culture events, which gave several of them lasting fame. Caffè Greco on Via Condotti in Rome and Caffè Florian in Venice both opened after the middle of the 18th century, and both became known as meeting points for artists, intellectuals and politicians. This caffetterie culture was mostly enjoyed by men, while women held tea meetings of their own. Coffee houses still work much the same way, though laptops and blogs have replaced ink, paper and newspapers.

The moka pot at home

The caffettiera, the pot used to make coffee at home, is a small steam machine in three parts: a bottom boiler, a central filter for the grounds, and an upper cup. Italian engineer Luigi Di Ponti invented one in 1933 and sold the patent to Alfonso Bialetti, who dealt in aluminium. It soon became a common object in Italian homes, and Bialetti Industries still makes the original model as the Moka Express. The Neapolitan version works differently and is turned upside down when the drink is ready, so its boiler and cup can be swapped.

Types and places

Italian coffee comes in many forms. Beyond plain espresso there are the ristretto, a shorter pour, the macchiato, espresso marked with a little milk, the marocchino, the cappuccino made with whipped milk foam, and caffellatte, coffee and milk in similar amounts. Some are sweetened, some are served over ice cream as an affogato, and caffè d'orzo is made from barley rather than coffee. Consumption is highest in Naples, which also keeps the strongest coffee tradition. Trieste is the main coffee port and a centre of coffee processing, with 1,500 cups drunk per person each year, about twice the national average. In 2021 Naples and Trieste both said they hoped to have their coffee culture recognised by UNESCO.

How Caffè is kept

A customer orders un caffè at the bar and drinks it there, usually standing. The espresso comes on a saucer with a demitasse spoon, and sometimes a small glass of water and a wrapped chocolate. Coffee houses serve the same drink in a setting made for sitting and talking; people meet there to chat, work, read and write. At home, the caffettiera goes on the stove and the coffee is shared among the household. Coffee drinking is a daily habit rather than an occasion, and it is strongest in Naples.

When and where

There is no fixed date. Caffè belongs to every day of the year and is tied to no festival or season. Bars and coffee houses set their own hours, and the drink is taken at any time of day. In 2021 Naples and Trieste said they hoped to have their coffee culture recognised by UNESCO, but the habit is kept daily rather than on one day.

Coffee is drunk all over Italy, and the sources name Naples as the city where consumption is highest and the tradition strongest. Trieste is the country's main coffee port and has a large coffee processing industry. Rome and Venice hold two of the oldest and best known coffee houses, Caffè Greco and Caffè Florian.

What Caffè means

Coffee houses are places where people mix easily, both within their own circles and with strangers, and saying you will meet for coffee usually means meeting to talk. Crowded rooms encourage this: strangers share a table, and the cosy layout invites conversation. In the past, people gathered in such places to chat, write for local newspapers, read those same papers and pass the time. For Italians, attention to the blend and to preparation is part of how the drink is valued, and the bar or caffetteria is an everyday social setting.

Questions people ask about Caffè

See also

Caffè sospesoAn anonymous gift of a paid cup of coffee for a stranger in needName dayA calendar tradition where people celebrate the feast day of the saint after whom they are named.Christmas marketA seasonal street market held during Advent in German-speaking regions and beyond, featuring stalls, food, and crafts.CicchettiA Venetian custom of small counter snacks enjoyed with a glass of local white wine

Good reading and sources

• Coffee in Italy on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.