![]() ![]() “From what I’ve been told over the years, they kind of just put to the side and never came back to it. “The wholesale business was doing really well, and equipment as well, and they were growing,” Luigi Di Ruocco said. That shop closed in 1990 as Carlo focused more on wholesale operations. The company operated a public showroom in Alameda in the 1980s for displaying espresso machines while selling bags of roasted coffee. Originally from Salerno, Italy, Carlo Di Ruocco founded Mr. The shop also offers fresh pastries from The French Spot in San Francisco.Īll of this has been a remarkably long time coming from the proudly Italian-rooted brand. We’re also a coffee place, operating in a contemporary coffee environment.”Ĭhef Jon Smulewitz of Berkeley’s Pollara Pizzeria consulted on the food program, which includes Italian-style sandwiches, salads and bowls. “Some people are coming in with that idea, that they want to have that experience at this place, but we’re also not just an Italian coffee bar. ![]() You’re not compelled to order only an espresso,” Luigi Di Ruocco said. “There’s a variety of options when it comes to the coffee menu. The shop offers classic espresso drinks, filter coffees and cold brews alongside more decorative offerings such as a butterscotch latte, horchata cold brew and a Nocciola-tte made with hazelnut praline paste. Seating is available at counters along the back of the bar, the shop’s walls and the front window. “We just make eye contact with that person, wave and bring them in. Espresso Vice President Luigi Di Ruocco recently told Daily Coffee News. “Occasionally there’s a person standing back as if they’re not sure what to do,” Mr. Guests are free to order from any point along the bar, where they are also free to stand and sip their drinks of choice. Taking an approach more common to the bustling bars of Italy than to the Bay Area, The Caffè offers no table seating and no single point of service for ordering. Thin slats of wood forming an art installation suspended over the bar are echoed by the wood portafilter handles on two Faema E71e espresso machines.ĭrinks from the Faemas and a pair of Ground Control brewers come to guests in custom earthenware cups that were handmade for the shop by ceramicist Nadia Elgan of Habibi Ceramics in Campbell, California. Espresso’s Oakland production facility just a half-mile away.Ĭentral to the 1,200-square-foot coffee shop is a coffee bar built from a 17-foot wood slab that was salvaged from an ancient Valley Oak tree that fell in 2009. Its elegant, wood-filled interior also nods to the wood-burning roasters in Mr. Offering European-style bar service, the new shop celebrates the brand’s Italian family heritage. The Bay Area coffee roasting institution just opened its first ever retail cafe last week, The Caffè by Mr. Espresso is experiencing a complete rebirth in Oakland. While some 45-year-olds may experience the phenomenon known as midlife crisis, 45-year-old Mr.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |