Opened in 1956 by Italian immigrant Giovanni ‘Papa Gianni’ Giotta, Caffe Trieste is often called the West Coast’s first true espresso house and remains the beating heart of North Beach’s Italian coffee culture. Beat writers like Ferlinghetti and Kerouac lingered here, and Francis Ford Coppola reportedly worked on ‘The Godfather’ script in a corner. Grab an espresso, settle in, and if you visit on a Saturday you may catch the long-running live opera.
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601 Vallejo St · Italian espresso cafe · coffee, pastries; Saturday opera performances