The World’s Most Beautiful Starbucks Opens at Y-Year-Old Post Office Building

By MOOK Travel News, compiled and reported

Italy’s first Starbucks opened on September 7 this year, located in a historic building that was once the 19th-century Milan General Post Office. According to official statements from Starbucks, the site in Milan was chosen as the birthplace of espresso, and is close to Milan Cathedral and Piazza Cordusio, aiming to pay tribute to the city’s passion, love, and craftsmanship for coffee found in every street and alley.

Italians consider espresso an integral part of their daily life and can enjoy a cup at any time. Coffee bars are found everywhere in Italy’s streets, fostering the unique habit of “standing while drinking.” As the American coffee giant Starbucks seeks to enter the Italian market, it is not only challenging the local standing-drink coffee culture but also confronting Italians’ deeply rooted perception of what constitutes authentic coffee.

Although Starbucks was founded in 1971 and has a nearly 50-year history, Italians—known for their long-standing coffee culture and strong dedication to espresso—still do not regard American-style coffee or popular drinks like Frappuccinos as true coffee. For these and other reasons, Italy’s first Starbucks only debuted in this century-old building in 2018.

The overall space features high ceilings, with the interior style defined by refined industrial design. The marble bar counter offers customers a clear view of the coffee-making process, and allows them to interact and engage with baristas just like in traditional neighborhood coffee bars, adding a human touch and hoping to help Italians more readily accept this foreign coffee brand.

The store houses large bean roasting equipment, allowing customers to witness the coffee roasting process. This Milan branch becomes Starbucks’ third global “Reserve Roastery” after Seattle in the U.S. and Shanghai in China, representing the highest-tier category of Starbucks retail stores.