ROME, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- For most Italians, a stop at their neighborhood coffee bar is part of an essential morning ritual.

Italians aren't the world's biggest consumers of coffee. But there's a strong argument to be made that coffee plays a more central role in the culture in Italy than in any other country.

Friday is the International Coffee Day, hailed by the International Coffee Organization as "a celebration of the coffee sector's diversity, quality, and passion." It would be hard to find a country where that passion is felt more than in Italy.

"If you examine the fabric of contemporary Italian culture, coffee is a major part of it along with school, work, art and food," Carlo Odello, general manager of the Italian Espresso Institute, told Xinhua. "In many parts of the world, coffee is an individual thing. But in Italy, it's almost communal. A cup of coffee at the bar is shared with others nearby."

That's a trend on exhibit across the country. Massimiliano Fabrizio, co-owner of Bar dei Cerchi in Rome, told Xinhua that the pandemic illustrated for him the importance of coffee in the culture.

"We had to close during the lockdown, and when we finally reopened our clients were overjoyed," Fabrizio recalled.

"The first few weeks, people kept coming up to me and telling me how happy they were to be able to come back and have their coffee. Things were still bad in the country but I think people saw it as a small return toward normal."

Lenin Mendoza, a barista at San Teo, another Rome bar, agreed with that sentiment.

"The morning coffee is a ritual for most people," Mendoza told Xinhua. "It's a normal part of the day. People like their coffee prepared in a specific way, at a place they like. They miss it when they can't have it."

Chiara Santini, an office worker having coffee with two colleagues at Fabrizio's Bar dei Cerchi, said the feeling Fabrizio and Mendoza described is typical in Italy.

"I always have my morning coffee the same as I always brush my teeth in the morning," Santini told Xinhua. "I think most people I know would say the same thing."

Sandro Alfieri, one of Santini's colleagues, added that "there might be one day that's considered International Coffee Day, but just about every day is National Coffee Day in Ital." Enditem

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