Meet the Chinese baristas keeping Italian cafe culture alive

South China Morning Post

5 days ago

At around 9:30 nearly every morning, 81-year-old Claudio Gatta passes the famous Accademia Bridge on the Grand Canal in
Venice and steps into Bar Foscarini, ordering an espresso and a tuna sandwich for breakfast. He will have two more espressos there in the afternoon. True to his Italian roots, he has stuck to this coffee routine for as long as he can remember.
Equally unmoving, Bar Foscarini has been around for more than 70 years, a quintessential Italian coffee bar, with a long, dark marble counter upon which sits an espresso machine polished to a mirror shine. The menu features what you would expect: coffee and sandwiches for the morning, aperitivo, pasta and pizza for later.
Gatta takes a sip of the espresso and teases Sophia, the young barista. 'Hey, you went back to China last month to visit your family. How come you didn't bring back a husband?'
Barista Sophia serves coffee on the terrace of Bar Foscarini, which sits beside the Grand Canal in Venice. Photo: Federico Sutera
Sophia flushes and continues the banter like old friends, part of the well-worn rapport between local regulars and counter staff. 'Come on! I'm only 20 years old!' she replies in Italian.
Born Li Jiayi, Sophia migrated to Italy from Putian, in Fujian province, when she was 11. The other counter staff and the owner of this Venetian establishment are all Chinese, too.
Next to Sophia stands Zia, née Weng Qinglan, also from Fujian, prepping ingredients for the day's food service. The 47-year-old chef has worked in the food and beverage industry since she arrived 17 years ago.
'When I first came to Italy, there were hardly any Chinese people running cafes,' says Zia. 'Now there are more and more. Around
St Mark's Square , most of the cafes are run by Chinese.'