Starbucks Reserve Roastery
Coffee shop · Quarto Oggiaro
P.za Cordusio, 3, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
Highlights
Roasts single-origin beans, offers 115+ drinks, bakery, bar
Roasts single-origin beans, offers 115+ drinks, bakery, bar
"Introduced in February in Italy, the Oleato line infuses a spoonful of Partanna extra-virgin olive oil into espresso drinks—steamed, shaken, or blended—to create a glossy sheen and what the company billed as a “revolutionary new coffee ritual.” After the Italian launch, the line rolled out to U.S. stores on March 23, with Japan and the U.K. slated next. The offering leans into broader trends of adding fats to coffee (à la Bulletproof) and the recent elevation of olive oil from pantry staple to featured flavor, but it has provoked mixed reactions: some praise the unexpected alchemy of oil and coffee, while others question the tradition and compatibility of olive oil—particularly with plant-based milks—and view the move as olive oil being stretched into novelty territory." - Jaya Saxena
"A neighborhood coffee bar owned by Carlo Russo where the emphasis is on serving a straightforward, well-made espresso that isn’t bitter or burnt rather than on single-origin flavor profiling; the owner believes a major foreign entrant could actually help raise awareness of high-quality coffee in the city." - Angelica Frey
"Housed in the historic Palazzo Delle Poste on Piazza Cordusio, this 25,000-square-foot roastery opened to the public on September 7 and has been billed by the company as "the most beautiful in the world." The interior emphasizes locally sourced craftsmanship and materials—Tuscan marble bar tops (a first for the brand), a bright green Scolari roaster made by a family firm near Milan, and a hand-laid mosaic floor using marble from the same quarry as the Duomo. The menu focuses on Italian classics rather than typical U.S. items: a full espresso offering, an affogato station with made-to-order ice cream, and an afternoon cocktail bar on the mezzanine, with frappuccinos and muffins notably absent. Local reaction has been mixed, from curiosity to outrage, and an earlier poll showed strong opposition; prices are substantially higher than typical Milan coffee bars (for example, espresso listed at about €1.80 vs. a local average of €1, and cappuccinos around €4.50 vs. €1.34). The company says it will open a small number of additional carefully curated cafés with its Italian licensee Percassi, creating hundreds of jobs while attempting to respect Milanese context." - Lyndsey Matthews
"The Milan Starbucks Reserve Roastery is the first-ever branch of the coffee chain in Italy. The 25,000 square-foot store features a mosaic floor in Palladiana style, marble countertops from Tuscany, a wood-oven bakery called The Princi Bakery, a 22-foot bronze cask, an affogato station, and an open-air terrace. It aims to provide a premium experience with different brewing techniques and a space to relax and enjoy. The store also includes the Arriviamo Bar with 100 different cocktails."
"Marketed with operatic, theatrical language and press releases framed as “acts,” the new Milan roastery is presented as a dramatic celebration of the company’s coffee heritage, with breathless, hyperbolic claims likening the opening to a masterpiece. The interior centers on a vibrant green Scolari coffee roaster and a floor-to-ceiling engraved brass wall—burnished to an ombre finish and backlit—paired with an interactive augmented reality (AR) experience that visually traces green coffee poured from burlap sacks through the roaster and cooling trays to a dramatic 6.5‑meter bronze cask that unfolds like a blooming flower to reveal the de‑gassing chamber; roasted beans then travel overhead through copper pipes to silos at the coffee bars. Promotional copy and staff anecdotes emphasize lore and emotion—training stories of trembling hands brewing a first coffee in a press, a general manager moved by a conversation with Howard Schultz, and even a moment underscored by Pavarotti on a recording—framing the venue as both a theatrical spectacle and a showcase of coffee craft, transparency, and artisanal production." - Tim Forster
