OTTAVIANI CAFFÈ, VIA PAOLO EMILIO 9-11, 00192 ROMA

Rating: Standard, very good Roman coffee

I was expecting nothing but a bland coffee. That’s the real bottom line here. But I walked into the Ottaviani Caffè in the Prati area, and things changed. The locale looks like any regular bar in Rome. Instead of dark wood paneling and mirrors, here we have light wood and mirrors. It also offers as you go in a type of bistro kitchen, but as you loop onto the right, you get a seating area for a normal ‘café’. I paid as I walked in, because the cashier is there to control the flow of paying folk, naturally. I could have done as I went out.

This is what I got from the blu-eyed middle-aged barista who was busy cleaning his setup:

Presentation: Yup, a nice fluted short cup. I liked it. The spoon was a bit different than the rest, and yet still flimsy. The head of the spoon a bit too big for the cup, but since I don’t use it, can’t confirm. No water was offered, but I saw the barista offering it to regulars. So I’m sure he would have obliged. Furthermore, I decided to take a seat, and wasn’t charged for it. A plus for those tourists in the Prati area.

Temperature of Cup: It was very hot. Unfortunately. I had to wait about more than a minute.

Quantity: Yup, very short! Great.

Temperature: Nice, or perplexing surprise, it was almost cold! Yup, the cup was too darn hot, and the brew temperature a lot lower than I expected. So I got a semi-cold espresso. I won’t complain as I love this, but it was surprising.

Volume/Consistency: It was smooth, light, not heavy- lacking oil content. Maybe the brewing temperature didn’t help with this. But it was still not runny nor watery. I wouldn’t say really silky either, as it just didn’t have a thicker consistency.

Crema: It wasn't so dark, thin, and started to dissipate almost immediately after I photographed the espresso.

Odor: No real odor. No surprise.

Taste: Now here’s the real kicker. Was this espresso smooth! It was very mild, very delicate, very smooth. No rancidness, no bitterness, nothing of the decrepit old beans. There was a touch of astringentness, but it was smooth. Neither was it acidic as you get with light roasts. It wasn’t flat either, but turned buttery towards the finish.

Overall: Had this espresso contained a bit more oils in it, it would have been stellar. As it was it was definitely a very good espresso, mid to upper range. Not the best in Rome, but definitely in the 90 percentile range.

The setup: They had, of course, a very nice setup. An Astoria machine and grinder. This kicks out really creamy brews, and the coffee, well I had to ask. It was what the cup said: Antico Caffè Roma. A new one for me. The guy even showed me the bag where the beans came from. Well as luck would have it, I haven’t been able to find their website online. So if you find it, please let me know! They were really good!