Could you imagine a place where you can spend time with your friends? They exist still
today.
When we talk about coffee shops today, we think of the chains of cafes run by companies
such as Costa Coffee, Starbucks and Caffè Nero, which serve a wide range of teas,
coffees, smoothies and snacks. But this is not a modern phenomenon.
Have you ever heard about coffee houses?
The 18th century was a time of great development in social life, in particular coffee shops
were founded and in London they became the centre of social life. Coffee shops were
popular places where people from all social classes met while enjoying the latest fashion,
a drink that had just arrived in Europe from Turkey: coffee.
The first coffee shop in England opened in Oxford in 1652. In London, the first was opened
later that year in St Michael Alley, Cornhill, by an eccentric Greek called Pasqua Roseé.
They soon became common.
In this place people met to talk about major topics, such as: politics, scandals, gossip,
literature, philosophy, science, business, the news of the day. The coffee houses in
London became known as “penny universities”, since that was the price of a cup of coffee.
Different people in different coffee houses
People from different parts of the world could meet and exchange information.
Unfortunately only men could attend the coffee houses, women were not allowed to enter
except prostitutes. Unlike pubs, alcohol was not served. Each coffee house had a specific
clientele, usually defined by occupation, interests or attitudes, such as Tories and Whigs,
traders and merchants, poets and authors, and men of fashion and leisure. Among the
influential customers were Samuel Pepys, John Dryden, Alexander Pope and Isaac
Newton. However, not all coffee houses hosted such an intellectual clientele: some were
hangouts for criminals, scoundrels and pimps.
Modern coffee houses
In 1739, there were over 550 coffee shops in London. However, the coffee shop fell out of
favor in the late 18th century when the new trend of tea replaced coffee.
However, it wasn’t until the late 20th century that coffee shops were “reinvented” by
companies like Starbucks, Coffee Republic, and Costa Coffee
Coffee shops could be considered similar to modern day coffee shops, but nowadays if
you go into a Starbucks you’ll probably just sit there scrolling through your social media.
Starbucks: the coffee that changed the world
Starbucks is an American multinational chain of coffee shops founded in Seattle in 1971
and offers its customers coffee, desserts and pastries. It was founded by 3 partners Jerry
Baldwin, Gordon Bowker and Zev Siegel. Initially Starbucks was a real roasting and then
later became a coffee shop thanks to Howard Schulz.
Curiosities
Starbucks has 36,171 stores worldwide, distributed in 83 countries, where 61% of these
are located in the USA or China. Although Italy is the home of espresso, many are
attracted by the influence of American culture. In fact, there are 17 Starbucks in Italy,
including 8 in Milan. It was during a trip to Milan that Howard experienced Italian coffee
shops for the first time, and retuming to Seattle, inspired by the art of coffee culture, he
decided to bring this concept back to Starbucks.
The logo
The woman in the starbucks logo is Melusine who in Greek mythology was a mermaid who
lured sailors to the coast of an island called Starbuck. So the image of the mermaid was
used to lure coffee lovers to come and drink the one offered by them. According to others,
the name was inspired by the first official starbuck sailor in the book Moby Dick.
by Giulia Turco
IV E scientifico sportivo