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Country Awards
1999
Italy Café of the
year 1999
Via Isola delle Stinche 11-13/r
Tel: 055/289368
Open: 12.00 - 01.00 Closed: Mon
This
is a gem of a hostelry; food is available and at meal times
it's more like a restaurant, with some 90 covers - but you can
always sit at an uncovered rough-hewn oak table and drink a
glass of wine or two, pheraphs with a plate of meat and
cheeses.
This is a new place for Umberto Montano (who also owns Alle
Murate, a restaurant, and Caffé Italiano qv), right behind
the Verdi theatre.It has very high vaulted ceilings, and
enormous French windows open to the streets on summer nights to keep the place
cool. The
bar, along with half the room, has tall oak cupboards, glass-fronted, with back-lit
shelves filled with wine bottles. the bar counter is a thick marble preparation area on an
antique wooden base housing the refrigerated bottles of white wine, and
there's a big
brass cauldron filled with iced water and the white wines for sale by the
glass. Large
wrought bronze chandelier hang from the ceiling, and the floor is a herringbone pattern of
terracotta tiles. Umberto's dream is to open a large restaurant in Draycott Avenue in
London - "around the corner from Bibendum", he said !
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| Country Awards |
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Café of
the Year
Hotel Sacher, Vienna
One of Vienna's, if not Europe's, most fashionable spots for a coffee
stop.
Steeped in history and tradition.
Special Award
Valena, Vienna
Family owners are a major asset at this friendly little place, and the
armchairs make it even harder to resist pausing to sample the cakes
and pastries.
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Cafè of
the year
De groote Witte Arend, Antwerp
The Great White Eagle is a great place to land for teas, coffees, the
special
house cocktail and an amazing variety of french cheeses for snacks.
Special Award
Die Ultieme Allucinatie, Brussels
Marvellous art noveau decor in a cafè of great appeal to young and
old
alike.
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Cafè of
the year
La Cigale, Nantes
The most famous meeting place in Nantes, a glorious fin-de siècle
treasure
restored to its pristine splendour.
Special award
Pause Cafè, Paris
Hip hip hoorah for one of the hippest place to pause around
Bastille.
Twice as big as last year - and still always crowded.
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Cafè of
the year
Wintergarten im Literaturhaus, Berlin
Good snacking and culture go hand in hand at one of Berlin's favourite
rendezvous.
Special
Award
Cafè Reitschule, Munich
The unusual setting is a great attraction, with views of the indoor
riding
school and the outside activity.
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Cafè of
the Year
Bodega, Cork
Once a market, then a warehouse, now a big, open cafè-bar with
space
and a welcome for everyone.
Special Award
Bridge Cafè-Bar (Bewley), Dublin
The Bewley chain has been famous in Dublin for generations,
and the
Bridge Cafè-Bar keeps it firmly in the forefront of Irish
hospitality.
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Café of the Year
Osteria Caffé Italiano, Florence
A gem of a hostelry offering anything from a quick drink to a
full-scale
meal.
Special
Award
La Tega, Verona
Gentlemen of Verona have been coming here since 1890 - snipping,
snacking and sorting out the world's problems while their
wives are shopping.
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Café of
the Year
Martinho de Arcada, Lisbon
200 years of history in a favorite haunt of intellectuals, busy from
breakfast right through to dinnertime.
Special Award
Majestic Café, Oporto
A remarkable art noveau café made safe for generations to come by
being
declared a national monument.
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Café of
the Year
El Pabellon del Espejo, Madrid
Winter or summer El Pabellon del Espejo always delights - sparkling
with
its mirrors and twinkling lights, with service and food to match.
Special Award
Pilar del Toro, Granada
A 17th-century café-bar-restaurant of great appeal for all seasons,
with grand rooms, a cool courtyard and a
sheltered terrace.
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Café of
the Year
The Troubadour, London
A splendid little flagship of bohemian society, more charming than
ever
under its new owners. There's live entertainment nearly every night.
Special Award
Madisons, Belfast
Two faces here: roomy café-bar by day, hot party spot in the
evening.
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Italy café of the year 1999
Via Isola delle Stinche 11-13/r
Tel: 055/289368
Open: 12.00 - 01.00 Closed: Mon
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