Coffee is really good her, Italy is the home of espresso and cappucino, but the prices are a mere fraction of what you see at e.g. Starbuck’s. You can get your coffe exactly as you like it, baristas here are used to special requests.
We have lots of suggestions for where to drink your coffee in the different areas in Milan here.
Different prices
Most other places a cup of coffee costs the same whether you enjoy it standing up at the bar, sitting down inside or taking it outside at the tables in front of the café. It doesn’t work that way in the south of Europe.
The cheapest version of coffee is enjoyed at the bar standing up, but it can become quite costly if you would like to sit down and want it served at a table.
What to order
There are countless variations of coffee; an espresso can be lungo (long), ristretto (concentrated), macchiato (stained- with a drop of milk) macchiato caldo o freddo (with warm or cold milk), cappuccino with eiter cow milk, soy milk , oat milk, almond milk or rice milk. or would you like a cortado? Just ask for a marrocchino. Furhtermore there is the caffè corretto which is an espresso with a shot of grappa or liqueur in it.
You can also get a Latte macchiato, which is the closest you can get to a latte
During summer it is nice and refreshing to get an ice coffee or “caffè shakerato” (shaked coffee) instead of the traditional espresso. Prices depend on where you drink it and whether you stand or sit outdoors .
There is also Affogato (drowned) coffee, a coffe based dessert with a scoop of vanilla or tartufo ice cream “drowned” by a shot of espresso coffee.
Hot chocolate like you’ve never seen it before
Then there is Cioccolata calda con panna – hot chocolate with whipped cream, which is a very different drink from the one you are used to, in Italy it is a very dense drink, more like a hot chocolate mousse, it’s delicious but be prepared for the difference.
Oh, and by the way Barista is just Italian for bartender 🙂