Arnold Coffee

The place I'm going to write about is one of my all time favourite places on earth. It's called Arnold Coffee. I fell in love with it while I was in Florence, I used to go there a lot. So I was really happy to find out that they were going to open one in Rome too - that's because I've been living in Rome for the past few years. 

After a quick glance it could seem nothing special, especially for someone who has not been raised it Italy. Keep in mind that while in many countries there are plenty of coffee places like Starbucks, Costa coffee, Backwerk and many more, in Rome there has never been such a place. So yes, it was a big deal to me when I discovered there was going to be one! 

I have to say Arnold Coffee it's the perfect compromise between the most famous coffee places. When it comes to beverages there's a vast selection you can choose from. The same goes for food and sweets. At the same time, everything has a fair price. The place - both in Florence and in Rome - is cosy and welcoming, perfect if you're looking for a tranquil place where to study or relax on your own, but also very nice if you're looking for a place to hang out with your friends and talk. 

(This picture is taken from  http://www.augustocontract.com/en/arnold-coffee-apre-a-roma-pantheon-by-augusto-contract/ )

To be honest I go there quite a lot, considering that it's not exactly next to my house. Two weeks ago I went there with my boyfriend, and we ordered two espresso milkshakes with whip cream on top. Here they are - the picture belongs to him.

They were incredibly good. The bottom layer tasted exactly like espresso - I guess that's the point - but it wasn't some kind of imitation or some other coffee flavour, it had exactly the taste of an espresso. That's not an easy thing to achieve! 

As I was saying I go there very often, mostly on my own but also with others. In fact, I find it is the perfect place for me to concentrate on what I'm studying. There's always music - perfect for me, I cannot study if there's absolute silence - and it's never the same kind of music. Sometimes they put CDs on, otherwise they use Spotify or something similar - I think.

One other thing I appreciate a lot is their "fidelity card". Everybody can have it. It is a card on which they put a stamp for every beverage you order. When you reach fifteen stamps, you get to order something for free! It is an additional incentive to make people come more often and that's a brilliant marketing strategy. Plus their products are really good, so it's a perfect match.

I went there this afternoon with my boyfriend and we were in the mood for hot chocolate, so that's what we ordered.

Here they are. I ordered dark chocolate with whip cream on top while he took milk chocolate, with whip cream on top of course. They were really unbelievably good. The chocolate was dense enough, not too liquid, not even too sweet. A dream, really. I think I'm not going too far if I say that was the best hot chocolate I've ever had the pleasure to taste.

Later on a couple of friends joined us - they ordered a giant cappuccino and a caramel chocolate. I have to say, what they took was really good too but the hot dark chocolate was the absolute best.

Next time I go there, I'll try something to eat and then I'll let you know what I think about it.