Historical cafes at Trieste

Trieste is a well know city in Italy to discover many cafes, in this post I will give you some examples of places that you can visit in Trieste

1.       Caffè degli Specchi

7 Unità d’Italia Square

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 The café is located in the main town square on the ground floor of Stratti building, above the vestiges of the fourteenth-century Amarina castle. It was established in 1839 thanks to the presence of the Greek colony in Trieste, which was very active in the nineteenth century. In 1846 the whole building became property of the Insurance Company Generali.

 Always considered to be the exclusive venue of Trieste it became popular due  to the concerts that were held there, directed by newcomer Franz Lehar.

 During the Anglo-American occupation the palace and the café were seized and access forbidden to “unaccompanied” Trieste citizens.

2.       Caffè Urbanis

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15 Borsa Square

 This café was established in 1832 as a pastry shop. The date, as well as mythological symbols, marine and Bora, is impressed upon the mosaic on the floor.

3.       Caffè Torinese

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2 Italia Avenue

 This café was established in 1915 with the intervention of the interior designer Debelli, famed for having fitted out passenger ships like Vulcania and Saturnia. The café is appreciated for the characteristic furnishings in wood and brass.

4.       Caffè San Marco

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18 Battisti Street

 Although reborn several times, the café is almost the same as the founder, Mark Lovrinovich, designed in 1914, with a refined furniture, marble and stucco. Napoleon Cozzi, a famous artist (as well as mountain climber and writer), directed the work of art. Always attended by artists and intellectuals (Timmel, Flumiani, Voghera, Tomizza, Mattioni, Magris) this café was often a film set.

 Curious and ironic caricatures hang on the walls representing decorative masks and comic book characters.

5.       Caffè Stella Polare

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14 Dante Street

 It was originally situated in the old Contrada della Caserma (now XXX Ottobre Street) and in the bustling 1848 changed its name in Caffè Gioberti. In a cosmopolitan city like Trieste it was particularly appreciated by the German community and then later among its patrons you would find Umberto Saba, his daughter Linuccia, Guido Voghera, Virgilio Giotti and James Joyce teacher at the nearby Berlitz School.

6.       Caffè Tommaseo

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4/C Tommaseo Square

 Established in 1825, it was named after its proprietor Tommaso Marcato from Padua, and was later renamed Tommaseo in honour of the Dalmatian linguist, writer and patriot. Marcato brought from Belgium valuable mirrors, introduced the ice cream in Trieste and from 1845 created the Trieste gas lighting system. Among the frequenters it is worthwhile mentioning Pasquale Besenghi degli Ughi, Domenico Rossetti, Peter Kandler and probably Henri Beyle (Stendhal); later Virgilio Giotti, Giani Stuparich Pierantonio Quarantotti Gambini, Umberto Saba.

I hope that this post can help you to every of you visiting this classic caffes in Trieste a city where the taste of caffe is marvellous and unique. Thank you so much for reading this article, wish you an amazing day! 

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