For the past 14 years my first stop in Florence has been Caffe Giacosa. I couldn’t believe my eyes yesterday as I turned the corner to find it gone.
The original Caffe Giacosa opened on the corner of Via Tornabuoni and Via della Spada in 1815. It was here in the 1920s that the Negroni was invented. Roberto Cavalli bought the site in 2001 and turned it into his boutique, but retained a section for the cafe and decorated it in his own style.
It was the very best place for people watching. The beautifully dressed staff from nearby boutiques, Gucci, Pucci, Fendi, Prada etc, would rush in for an espresso on their way to work. Elegant Florentines decorated the tables. The coffee was great and reasonably priced as long as you didn’t get table service at the outdoor area. I loved it!
Here I got to know 2 sisters who had been going to the cafe every day of their long lives. I will miss them too. They were always there when I visited, usually surrounded by chatty friends and there was a wave and a smile for me. I felt like a local.
And there was the beautiful boy sighting.
One day a well dressed chap came in with his bulldog who was dressed in a clear plastic raincoat with a diamonte collar. I wish I had a photo of that.
Roberto Cavalli’s business has not been doing well lately and the shop and cafe closed at the end of July this year. It will be missed.
There is a possibility that Caffe Giacosa will reappear in the future. I hope so.