TESTACCIO CAFFÈ, VIA GIOVANNI BRANCA 68, 00153 ROMA
Rating: Standard, decent traditional Roman coffee
The Testaccio Bar Caffè is situated in the heart of Testaccio. It is on a corner overlooking the Piazza Santa Maria Liberatrice park that has plenty of old and young chilling alike under the shade. Its near a busy set of shops, and there are a few other cafes here, so it’s got competition to deal with. Walking inside I was met with a light, airy and welcoming space. It felt like it wasn’t thought out very well, it had a large wrap around bar, and some tables here and there. It’s thought out as an ‘inside’ bar experience, especially since there are no shades outside and only a meager tree providing shad to two small tables on the street.

Asking for a cup of coffee got me this:

Presentation: Water was not offered automatically, but kindly given when asked. The cup was clean, crisp and cared for.
Temperature of Cup: Man, what a terrible start, it was boiling hot. I could barely grasp it before being burnt!
Quantity: Given that the cup itself was rather large, I was glad that the shot was concise, short, and the barista finished it just in time to keep it good.
Temperature: After waiting for two minutes, the espresso was at a good temperature.
Volume/Consistency: I’m not going to say it was silky, it wasn’t. But it wasn’t runny nor watery, it was good. A peculiarly nice density, had body body that I felt I could clearly make out.
Crema: Complex, marbled, persistent, and frankly one of the nicest I’ve seen in a long while. It wasn’t puffy nor fake as in Sant’Eustachio, it was good.

Odor: What’s that damned Italian shnazola good for if not for smelling the flowers and the damned coffee!! No smell here, no real coffee smell. This is normal for 99% of coffees I’m having here.
Taste: Overall it was a decently good coffee. The presence of a nutty, bitter but in now way rancid flavor was very pleasant.

Overall: Very decent cup of coffee. Not much to add that it added up to a pleasant experience.
The setup: A three-group La Cimbali espresso machine and an Astoria grinder which was very nice.

The coffee being brewed was special, it was Caffè Camilloni.

This is the historic cafe that used to be in Piazza Sant’Eustachio, and which was recently refurbished-redone. It’s all but gone from there now… But apparently the company is still spitting out roasted coffee somewhere in Rome. I haven’t been able to locate their webpage, but there are still place that are serving this. Hopefully in the near future I’ll get a hold of where this is operating from!


Testaccio Bar Caffè
F.L.F. S.R.L.
Via Giovanni Branca, 68
00153 Roma