Take A Look At The Most Beautiful Starbucks In The World
Starbucks opens the opulently designed Roastery of Milan
Starbucks fans are in for a treat, as the brand has just opened its very first store in Italy, the Starbucks Reserve Roastery of Milan.
Located in the former post office in Palazzo delle Poste, the Milan Roastery is more than just a coffee shop—it is an homage to the country and the culture that inspired Howard Schultz, chariman emeritus of Starbucks, to create the brand more than thirty years ago.
The Roastery showcases and celebrates the art of roasting, brewing, and mixing coffee, offering exotic Arabica coffee sourced from thirty countries around the globe, as well as cocktails at its very own bar and delectable food from the bakery Rocco Princi.
Moment of inspiration
Howard Schultz reveals how he was inspired by the city of Milan to create the Starbucks brand. “During my first trip to Milan in 1983, I was captivated by the sense of community I found it the city’s espresso bars—the moments of human connection that passed so freely and genuinely between baristas and their customers,” he shares. “The opening of the Milan Roastery is the story of Starbucks coming full circle. Everything we have experienced… we bring with great respect to Italy. I am so proud and humbled to bring our Italian customers an experience that is the very best of Starbucks.”
This inspiration is clearly translated in the design of the Milan Roastery, created by Liz Muller and her team, who also designed the Roasteries in Seattle and Shanghai. It was last year when she started to make sketches of the design of the Milan Roastery, right at her dinner table. “I remember it was very late, three or four in the morning, and I had sketched all night, and I got so excited we finally had the right plan for Milan that I immediately wanted to walk Howard through it,” she shares. After showing Howard her sketches, he said, “You’re crazy. I love it. Let’s go.” This signalled the beginning of the project.
Creating the Milan Roastery involved a lot of planning, not just with how the Roastery would look but even with adopting the unique feel of the city of Milan into the design. Muller and her team learned everything they could about the city—the locals’ everyday lives, the architecture, the history—then tried to understand what makes Milan unique.
“I am so inspired by Milan—I mean, the colors, the incredible artists, the marble, glass, stone, mosaics, brass, [and] sculpture,” Muller exclaims. “And the team did such a great job of translating all of that into the colors, textures and materials in the Roastery.”
Opulent interiors, artwork inside the Roastery of Milan
Upon entering the building, customers are met with a stunning view that reflects the vibrancy of Milan, a well-known fashion and design capital. Right at the heart of the Roastery is a fully-functional Scolari roaster, manufactured just outside Milan.
The wood-fronted, Tuscany marble-topped main bar is located on the right side, where guests can buy classic espresso beverage. The bar features fluting, an architectural element found in Italian architecture throughout history.
In the upstairs mezzanine is the Arriviamo Bar, which offers a variety of specialty cocktails. The impressive bar is 10 meters long, and carved from a single block of Calacatta Macchia Vecchia marble.
On the left side is located the Princi Bakery, which serves delectable baked pastries freshly cooked in a wood-fired oven. Meanwhile, on the terrace of Palazzo delle Poste, guests can enjoy the beverages and cuisine offered by the Roastery in a street-side café setting. The terrace also features a statue of a siren—the symbol of Starbucks—which was carved by Tuscan sculptor Giovanni Balderi out of Carrara marble.
Another remarkable feature of the Milan Roastery is that its physical environment is complemented by an interactive augmented reality (AR) experience. The Roastery features a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall visual representation of the history of Starbucks—carved in brass by local craftsmen—and customers can use their phones to learn about the Reserve.
The majestic beauty and opulence of the Roastery truly echoes that of the city of Milan itself, and is sure to give its guests—may they be coffee lovers or not—a truly pleasurable time. As Muller says, “I hope people will be inspired by the attention to detail and not want to leave and when they do leave, say, ‘I just love this place, and it’s a happy place, and I had a good time.’”
The Milano Roastery is located at Piazalle Medaglie d'Oro, 3, 20135, Milano, Italy
