How to Order Coffee in Italy Without Getting a Glass of Milk (and Why the Bill Never Comes)
Most Italian phrasebooks teach you to say "a coffee, please." Almost none of them tell you what you will actually get. The result is the same scene at bars from Milan to Palermo every morning: a tourist asks for "un latte", receives a glass of warm milk, and stares at it. Nobody is being difficult. The words simply mean different things in Italy than they do in the coffee chains back home.
This post covers the five café and restaurant habits that catch first-time visitors, with the exact phrase for each. They are all part of the free Italian Trip Kit, fifty phrases in five days with pronunciation.
"Un caffè" is an espresso
Say "Un caffè, per favore" (oon kahf-FEH, pehr fah-VOH-reh) and you get a single espresso in a small cup, usually drunk standing at the bar in about ninety seconds. It costs around a euro at the counter, a little more in big cities, and noticeably more if you sit at a table. That price difference is not a scam. The table price is printed on the menu, and the bar price is the local way to drink it.
If you want something bigger, ask for it by name. "Un cappuccino" gets you the familiar milky cup. "Un caffè latte" gets you coffee with milk. "Un latte" on its own gets you milk, because that is what the word means.
One more thing about the cappuccino: Italians drink it in the morning, and ordering one after lunch marks you as a visitor. Nobody will refuse to make it. It is only worth knowing so you are not surprised by the smile.
Pay first, then order
In many bars, especially busy ones in cities and stations, you pay at the till first, take the receipt, and hand it to the barista with your order. The receipt is called lo scontrino (loh skon-TREE-noh), and shops are legally required to give you one. If you walk up to the counter and nothing happens, look for the cassa, the till, and start there.
The bill will not come until you ask
This is the one that makes tourists think the service is slow. In Italy a table is yours for as long as you want it, and bringing the bill unasked would be rude, like asking you to leave. So it does not come.
When you are ready, catch the waiter's eye and say "Il conto, per favore" (eel KON-toh, pehr fah-VOH-reh). Miming a scribble in the air works too. You then pay at the table or at the till by the door, depending on the place.
The line on the bill called "coperto"
Your bill will often carry a per-person charge of a euro or two called coperto, cover charge. It pays for the bread and the table, it is printed on the menu, and it is legal everywhere except Rome and the Lazio region, where the word is banned and the same charge appears as "pane", bread. It is not a tip and it is not a trick.
Because of the coperto, tipping in Italy is optional. Rounding up or leaving a euro or two for good service is plenty. If the bill says servizio incluso, service is already added and nothing more is expected.
Getting attention without offending anyone
To call a waiter, ask a stranger something, or apologise for a small bump, the word is "Scusi" (SKOO-zee). It is the formal form, which is right for anyone you do not know. To squeeze past someone on a bus or through a crowded market, the word is "Permesso" (pehr-MES-soh). "Scusi" alone gets you a glance; "permesso" is what makes people move.
Learn the fifty, not the five
These five come from days one to three of the Italian Trip Kit: "scusi" and "permesso" are day one, the coffee, the bill and the coperto are day two, and the receipt is day three. Day one is the ten phrases that matter most (hello, please, thank you, sorry, I don't understand), and days three to five cover paying, getting around, the hotel and asking for help. Each phrase comes with a respelling you can read aloud, a tip like the ones above, and a play button, and the whole thing takes about ten minutes a day. You can try day one in the browser without an account, or print the sheet for the plane.