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NEW TEAM CAFÉ, VIA GEROLAMO CARDANO 111, 00146 ROMA
Rating: Standard, mid to low end Illy coffee
As I approached the New Team Café a saw a large truck with a huge pile of kegs piled up on it. And a guy yelling at the top of his voice obscenities as he moved a thick red hose back on forth. I looked to where the hose ended at, which reminded me of a septic tank cleaning hose, or a sewer draining operation, but it lead into a wine store (an Enoteca). Funny enough, it was wine they were pumping in and the guy seemed drunk has hell with wine or jolliness… either way, the clean, tidy and white front of the New Team Café made an impact on me. It was dead empty inside. The Barista, a young tall blond kid of probably no more than 18 had a strong accent in his Italian that I couldn’t place, he simply didn’t say more than 2-3 words throughout the whole time I was there. He just kept looking attentively and listening to the yelling and hooing of the wine delivery guys as they paused and made bird sounds at the sight of any woman younger than 50 passing by.
This is what I got:
Presentation: Clean enough, crisp enough. Water came with it immediately. That was nice. Funny enough, no spoon accompanied it. And I realized this halfway through.
Temperature of Cup: It was hotter than necessary.
Quantity: It was a short shot. Good, on the mark.
Temperature: Hotter, way hotter than necessary.
Volume/Consistency: Powdery, grainy and sandy. Not very light, but not heavy, just a consistency of talcum powder, is what it reminded me of.
Crema: Thin, persistent, clingy. Marblelized and very fine microbubles as if it was a perfect cup of foamed milk.
Odor: No real smell, a faint trace of darkly roasted coffee.
Taste: Very acidic and bitter up front. It had a bit that almost cut into your tongue. It opened to another dose of bitterness and finished with an astringent aftertaste.
Overall: It was an OK Roman styled coffee, no notes of fruit, freshness, nor citrus or whatnot. It was mid to low end Roman coffee.
The setup: They had an older La Cimbali espresso machine along with a La Cimbali vintage grinder. The coffee was Lavazza Caffè, and it was very strong here, stronger than normal.
New Team Café
Madbar Mohammad Mostafa
Via Gerolamo Cardano 111
00146 Roma