TIDONA BAR CAFFÈ, VIA ANTONIO LO SURDO 29, 00146 ROMA

Rating: Standard, low-end Roman coffee

This review is, well, going to be special. And unfortunately not because of how great its coffee was, but, as you’ll see if you slide below, its cups. Yup, hundreds of them, actually a couple of thousand cups! I passed by the scraggly looking exterior of the Tidona Snack Bar Caffè a few times before deciding to go in this time. Boy, what a treat. I walked in and didn’t really notice. As I sat there waiting for my coffee to be served, I started to notice these cups, cups here, there damned everywhere! When I started to talk to the old guy about them (the owner) he said it took him over 30 years to collect them. And that he’s also traded with people. But now, as he’s older and busier, he’s let go of his passion. And this to the delight of his wife, who was working the cash register. She complained about how terrible it was to have to dust every single one!... Mamma! Either way the older couple were very nice, talkative, and something that the barista wasn’t’. I’m not sure if it was their kid or not, but either way, the charisma of his parent’s didn’t transfer over, and either he woke up on the wrong side of the bed, or wasn’t happy to have to take over the family business….

Let’s see why:

Presentation: Nice clean cup, I like the shape, and the brand is usually a hit or miss. Here it was a miss I believe. But whatever, all was in order. No water was offered. A military guy heading off for his shift came in with his pregnant wife and they asked for water, and it was given without a flinch. So sometimes if you want something, you just have to ask for it.

Temperature of Cup: Yup, very hot cup, ultra hot!

Quantity: Nice, short, to the point. Positive, very positive.

Temperature: Damn, still piping hot. Had to wait even longer and it was good that it was so hot, I could start enjoying the hundreds of cups surrounding me everywhere!

Volume/Consistency: Boy, cutting, thin, runny watery, and well, sharp.

Crema: Light brown, with obvious signs of being over extracted for the amount of coffee in the portafilter.

Odor: Daaaaaark roooooasted coffee- cutting right to the bone!

Taste: Well, it was bitter sharp, thin, and like a knife slicing through your tongue. Then I tried another sip and wasn’t very happy, and I just let the darn espresso sit there and go to waste.

Overall: It wasn’t the worst nor necessarily rancid, it was just so thin and runny and not good that I felt like abandoning ship immediately without causing esophagus damage. But yeah, sad to have such a coffee in a place with so many cool cups! I’m sure that if the old timer would have done the espresso, it ‘might’ have been better. But is this just a reflection of having had so many damned astringent rancid cafes that one burns through one’s taste buds and sense of decent coffee?

The setup: The espresso machine looked like a Wega, the grinder I didn’t see, and the coffee was Camerino Cafffè (yes, with 3 f’s)…. I’ve had worse from this roaster, but I’ve also had a lot better.

Enjoy the photos!