IDEAS
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BUCHAREST
WIZZ MAGAZINE
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69
Bucharest. “It’s likeanexplosion,” says
Cosma. “80percentofmycustomers
returndayafterday.”
Cosmabuyshis freshly roastedcoffee
beans solely fromMihai Panfil,whoowns
hisown roastery in thecity. It’saname
I’veheard several times sincemyarrival
inBucharest–en route from theairport,
when I spoke tomy taxi driverabout spe-
cialist coffee, hisadvicewassimple: “Go
and seeMihai.He is themaster.”
When I eventually trackdown ‘the
master’ athismodernOrigoCoffeeShop
atLipscani Street9, just aminute’swalk
from theOldCity, Panfil isworking
on reamsofwhat look likeaccounting
spreadsheets.But they’renot– they’re
tasting sheets. Everymorning, before
Origoopens, hisbaristas takeat least an
hour tomakeand taste thecoffee recipe
thatwill be served thatday. Each tasting
note iscarefully recorded, including the
acidity, balanceof flavours, sweetness
versusbitternessandaftertaste.The
grinding, coffeequantities,water tem-
peratureand theday’shumidityareall
taken intoaccountwith theaimof adjust-
ingmachinesand recipesaccordingly.
“Nothingcanbe left tochance,” says
Panfil,whoadmitsheknewnothing
about coffeeuntil a fewyearsago.
Workingasayoungbarman in thecity
afterhe left school, he soon realisedmost
barmendidnotknowanythingabout ser-
viceandpresentation.At 23he setup
Cool beans
Mihai Panfil
(left) enjoys
abrew at his
modernOrigo
CoffeeShopon
Lipscani Street
9. Espresso
cups dangle
from the ceiling
andbaristas
spend time
tasting the cof-
fee recipe that
will be served
that day
“Allbaristasarecolleagues.
Nomatterwherewework,
weshareone love: coffee”
Oftendescribed as thebest coffee
house inBudapest, savouring a
roast here is an experience
Origo
