Check back soon
Once posts are published, you’ll see them here.
Rating: Standard, good Illy coffee
I was incorrectly skeptical of the Bar della Paglia Caffè. I was skeptical because it was in Trastevere, a hyper tourist area that gives me the impression of being like the ‘Venice’ of Rome. That is, no actual Romans live there, and all it is, is restaurants or trinket shops. A shell of its former self (whatever that might have been). So I was expecting poor coffee, poor service, and well, a stomach ache. But I was very happily surprised. This was nice. The locale is small, and I always see it full of people (more like 4-5 people at a time), and unlike my stereotypical opinion of Trastevere, it’s been locals. I was alone when I walked in. The cashier/owner of the place was transferring coffee into bottles to make cold coffee. A good thing.
This is what I got on the counter:
Presentation: Illy coffee. OK, I can live with it. And it’s like Lavazza, lots of people think they are the two ‘top coffee brands’. Well, can’t blame them, with all the ads pouring out everywhere, and then, all the naked girls on Lavazza ads help to catch attention. Go figure. The cup was clean, spoon was this flat stylish spoon from Illy, and get this: I got a cup of water automatically without asking. Nice.
Temperature of Cup: Yup, extra boiling hot cup. Damn again! Its been a couple of days in a row where I’ve been getting these super piping hot cups!
Quantity: It was a full one ounce (30ml), no ristretto here. It was either going to be a long painful drink, or a sweet leisurely thing.
Temperature: After waiting, decades it felt, and seeing young Roman teenagers with their girlfriends walk in and listening to them talk, I was finally able to drink the coffee.
Volume/Consistency: Nice, nice surprise. It was very delicate. It was silky, not heavy, and yet commanded a strong presence in my mouth. Letting it cool down, had the effect of opening it up and allowing it to ‘coagulate’ some how! It was decent.
Crema: It was thin and non persistent. I don’t feel it added to the drinking experience in any significant way.
Odor: Dark roasted coffee smell. Happy to have this!
Taste: It was very good. It was nutty, buttery, and while bitter on the outside, it wasn’t in any way rancid.
Overall: Although the barista was charring the drink as it came out the espresso machine, this old timer was doing something right- the result was a very balanced, pleasant (after letting it cool down), and totally repeatable. Definitely solid to upper range coffee.
The setup: The setup was standard for Illy Caffè- a La Cimbali Espresso machine with a La Cimbali grinder. No complaints, only that people don’t tend to take advantage of the potential of La Cimbali … it’s a great brand that can kick out the best espressi if somebody tries!
Bar della Paglia Caffè
Via della Paglia 6A
00153 Roma