DEL PINO BAR CAFFÈ, CIRC. GIANICOLENSE 155, 00151 ROMA

Rating: Standard, decent traditional Roman coffee

The names of bars, like that of ‘Snack Bar’ make me wonder about the locale. This one, Bar del Pino Cafe, in Spanish slang means a bar that’s in the middle of nowhere. But this one is straight in the middle of Rome’s Monteverde neighborhood, right in front of the San Giovanni di Dio market. The coffee area is small, and yet has a side room with tables for eating full meals. ​

Asking for a coffee gets you the following:​

​Presentation: Nice round, clean cup, sporting a logo of a roaster. There was no water offered, but a couple next to me asked for a glass of sparkling water and it was given to them without a flinch.

Temperature of Cup: The cup was a bit too hot, but after a few seconds, not even half a minute it was at the right temp.

Quantity: This was great. The cup was quite large, the espresso very short, almost ristretto but not quite.

Temperature: Perfect temperature.

Volume/Consistency: Because it was short, it was right on. It wasn’t chalky, nor watery, neither sirupy, but thick enough.

Crema: The crema was dark, rather on the thin side, and not persisting throughout the duration of the drink. The darkness was good as it shows the shot was cut short, before blonding.​

Odor: Not much oder, other than a faint dark roast scent. We know this is the norm now here in Rome.

Taste: It was a good espresso. It was very bitter, but not rancid, nor extremely pungent. It was strong and not very complex, but not a bad drink in any way.​

​Overall: This is what I would expect from a normal, decent traditional cafe, and fortunately I got it. Much better than the EUR locales, this was coffee that you can return to, and learn to love.

The setup: They were squirting these out of a three-group Royal espresso machine, the grinder looked like a like-brand, it reminded me of 80s Faema grinders but it wasn’t labeled. The coffee they were brewing was the traditional Roman roaster Caffè Fantini. While I was having my coffee, the barista opened a brand new bag of Fantini beans and dumped it into the hopper. So it was indeed this coffee they were serving.​

Not a bad place at all, on the contrary, especially for sporting a facade that isn’t the most inviting or alluring, and a name that makes you think that it’ll be yet another generic run-of-the-mill bar… fortunately it wasn’t!​

Bar Del Pino, V.P.V. S.R.L

Circ. Gianicolense, 155

00151 Roma