Cova used to be a Milanese classic, now under LVMH. Very much in line with the standards of Via Montenapoleone, it looks and feels classy, it costs accordingly but the coffee is quite good. They have a fancy coffee machine and the baristas are professional, but your experience is not complete unless you pair with a brioche(croissant), or some of their pastries. The establishment is famous for the patisserie, and during the Christmas season they also sell some yummy panettone. It’s a pleasant stop during your high-end shopping, although I would personally walk a bit further and visit Bastianello, 5 minutes away.
Xiaolu L.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
great place and great dolci
Mark R.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Beverly Hills, CA
Cova was one of Milan’s heritage coffee houses established in 1817 for high society. I work in the area and I have been going to Cova for over 20 years and even though it is very elegant and refined; it still always maintained a welcoming atmosphere. I don’t know if it’s because the family owned business sold to LVMH but something has changed in the management style that lost its touch. I saw the new manager speak to an elderly lady customer as if he worked as a truck driver, not an elegant representation of the former Cova. Oh what a shame. When Cova sold its name the new management could not keep up the graceful tradition.
Marc W.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Beverly Hills, CA
Café Cova is an incredible establishment. It’s extremely expensive. It’s crowded. You often have to wait in line to get a seat. The tables are small. The portions are small. But on most days it’s full of people. Why? The old rule of real estate: location, location, location. Caffe Cova sits on the corner of the Via Monte Napoleone and the Via Sant Andrea. It’s surrounded by boutiques with names such as Versace, Gucci, Armani, Etro and so on. Need I say more? If you sit there for a while you’ll see Milanese money coming by for a coffee, some pastry or a typical Italian bitter cocktail. Sitting between the real Milanese are people from all over the world. Russians, Chinese, Japanese, South Americans, French, Arabs, Israëli… I don’t think there’s any coffee bar in the world where I’ve heard more languages being spoken than at Caffe Cova.
Retired B.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Los Angeles, CA
Meh. Over-rated coffee and pastry restaurant. You basically are just paying for people in suits and white gloves to serve you.
Steven H.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Maplewood, NJ
Beautiful, traditional café and pastry shop in the center of what I believe to be Milan’s best shopping area. Service is polite and efficient, the people-watching is great at the counter or the tables(but stand at the counter) and the coffee is excellent. Milanese breakfasts are on the skimpy side — coffee and a croissant, basically, but this is the place to have it. We went here three times during our week in Milan.
Aro
Rating des Ortes: 5 Frankfurt am Main, Hessen
Hier gibt’s viele kuchenfressende Pelztiere zu beobachten — natürlich nur während der Pelzsaison :-) Ansonsten planen Sie Ihren Café-Stopp auf jeden Fall um die Mittagszeit unter der Woche, dann können Sie sich entspannt an die Bar lehnen und die schönsten Foto-Models beobachten, wenn die gerade Pause beim Shooting um die Ecke bei Armani und Co. machen. Übrigens eines der wenigen Cafés, die neben den üblichen Süssstoffen(weisser, brauner Zucker, Süssstoff) auch Honig am Tresen anbieten. Vor Jahren habe ich den Barista mal gefragt, wofür denn der Honig sei, worauf der mir sagte: Das stammt noch aus der Zeit, in der Zucker Luxusgut war und die Leute eher mit Honig den Café versüsst haben. Sehr traditionell. Ein Muss. Mindestens für einen Café an der Bar mit dem obligatorischen Glas Wasser. Für mich klar die #1 der Mailänder Cafés.