Get to know four coffee shops with a history of more than 240 years !

Throughout history, coffee shops, apart from a place to enjoy coffee, were  also regarded  as meeting point, fully integrated into the cities’ everyday life. Luxurious, pioneering, gathering artists or politicians, or even humble meeting points for working class people, Europe's old cafes are elements of the continent’s culture and history.

Get to know four European cafes that have been operating for over 240 years - one of them has greek origins, while another one is located in central Greece !

Café Le Procope is undoubtedly Paris's oldest coffee shop, and many claim it to be the oldest café in Europe, since Procope has been operating since 1686. Few more coffee shops around the world can claim that they use to serve clients such as Moliere, Napoleon (who often left his hat here when he could not pay for his coffee) and Rousseau. Café Procope, after being connected with important events of the French history, such as the French Revolution, was recently renovated, while it still preserves the 19th century aesthetics and continues to serve Parisian and tourists until today.

Among the oldest cafes in Europe stands Caffè Florian of Venice, in Saint Mark's Square, since it has been operating since 1720. Its luxurious and "heavy" decoration dates back to the 19th century, and has been depicted through the pages of many literary works and paintings. Back in the old days, it was one of the few coffee places  that used to host women among its clients, since coffee houses were supposed to address strictly to men.

 Rome’s Caffe Greco serves its espresso in Piazza di Spagna since 1760, and, as his name suggests, his initiator was of Greek descent. It is impossible to list all the well-known clients of Caffee Greco, but one needs to mention the legendary lover Kazanova, but also Louis, father of Otto, the first king of Greece, who is said to have developed philhellenism the very environment of this coffee place. Recently, Caffe Greco was legally proclaimed a national monument.

From the luxurious chandeliers and the velvet sofas, me move  to  humble wicker chairs and the colors of the loulaki paint: the  cafe of Forlida family in Lafkos, Pelion, is worth a mention, since it first opened as a han in 1785. It still continues to this day, belonging even to the same family for seven generations.

 If you consider these four historic coffee shop to be far away, do not worry. Enjoy an espresso at home, open the maps and arrange your next trip. he quest for coffee can take you to the squares of Venice, to the streets of Paris or even to a picturesque village of Pelion