Genoa Coffee For Beginners: The Essential Guide

ByBeppe Castro

While the style of Genoa coffee is deliciously northern, the breakfast pairings are where this city differentiates itself and we’ll explain how.

Genoa Coffee - Skyline

Exploring the coffee culture of Genoa, Italy will bring you face-to-face with its history, unique flavors, and iconic bars. This is important for first time visitors to the city because your time there is probably limited (given the smaller size) and you don’t want to waste any opportunities to enjoy delicious coffee.

I mention wasting opportunities because that is exactly what we did on our first trip to Genoa. We poorly planned the visit, which typically includes reviewing guides like this, and watching travel videos. Without this prep work, we entered Genoa blindly.

Our big mistake was with the coffee. We assumed we could have what the hotel offered and get more when we were out. What turned out to be the worst cup of coffee I had drank in quite a while greeted us every morning for breakfast. Once we made the adjustment and skipped the hotel breakfast, we were much happier and I recommend you do the same.

Genoa Coffee At Home In A Moka

The History Of Coffee In Genoa, Italy

Genoa (genova) is a major port city in northern Italy and the tradition of coffee roasting in Genoa owes its history to the port, which being the largest and most important in Italy has favored impressive trade exchanges throughout the world.

While the coffee culture of the city is aligned with other northern Italian cities, being such a major port city has given it an oversized influence on the spread of coffee around Italy and beyond.

Beauty around every corner of Genoa

Coffee Culture In Genoa

The coffee culture in Genoa can easily be defined as typical to northern Italy. The flavors are balanced, not too bitter, and commonly served as cappuccino to be paired with a bread for breakfast. Roaster have a lot of cultural influence and here are a couple of examples:

  • Torrefazione Caffè l’Andrea – In 1924 Andrea Testa, owner of a grocery store in the Rivarolo district of Genoa, decides to embark on a journey into the world of coffee that continues to this day. He began to roast and experiment with coffee blends for the residents of the neighborhood, with a small wood-fired roaster that contained about 3 kg of green coffee.
  • Chicco Caffè – At Chicco Caffè you will find a vast selection of coffees from all over the world, in beans and powder. The Chicco Caffè assortment also reaches green coffee with its countless beneficial properties, American coffee and coffee in capsules, in every form and aroma, Chicco Caffè will be able to satisfy every request and every need, even that of true gourmets of the black drink.
regional espresso coffee

Signature Coffee Styles And Flavors Of Genoa

Beyond making sure you enjoy your breakfast in a coffee bar, and not your hotel, the signature style of coffee in Genoa has more to do with what you are pairing it with for your breakfast. While the Italian tradition of combining it with a Corneto, or some other pastry, here in Genoa focaccia is king!

In Genoa, the focaccia is symbolic of the Genoese people. Genoese have a special relationship with this food. They start eating focaccia as soon as they get up in the morning, i.e.; for breakfast by dunking their piece of focaccia in their cup of cappuccino. The resulting taste from the mixing of Cappuccino and Focaccia is something special.

If you go around Genoa’s bars to have breakfast, you will notice that nearby the classic pastries there is also the focaccia. There are many varieties of it, such as savory focaccia with rosemary, olives, sage, onion and more. These are all for a truly unique breakfast experience.

Genoa Harbor

Famous Coffee Bars And Cafés In Genoa, Italy

Some of these coffee bars listed below are classics that you need to check out. Others are just quality bars that can make your trip to Genoa just a bit better. Check these out:

  • Caffè degli Specchi – It has over a century of history. Located in the historic center of Genoa a few steps from the Palazzo Ducale and the Cathedral, it was opened on June 11, 1908 by Remo Caprioglio. In the 1920s it became a meeting point for artists, intellectuals and men of letters. The furnishings, mirrors and shiny cream-coloured majolica tiles still bear witness to the taste of that era.
  • Il Moretto Caffè – With over 70 years of experience, the value of their coffee is easily recognizable in the cup, managing to bring together all of their dedication.
  • Caffè Pasticceria Mangini – While the focus is certainly on their pastries, do not skip Mangini’s when you are looking for a delicious cup of coffee. The interior is elegantly designed with the rococo influence of the wall mirrors, chandeliers and fine gilded stuccowork.
Genoa coffee is good to the last drop

Finishing Up My Cup

There is so much more to coffee culture in Genoa, Italy than simply their style of coffee. The combination of coffee and focaccia makes for a sweet and savory start to the day that can’t be beat. If you are interested in more coffee cities, check out these other articles:

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