Caffè Pedrocchi
Opened in 1831 and nicknamed 'the café without doors' because it never closed, Caffè Pedrocchi is the grand neoclassical heart of Paduan intellectual life. Come for the legendary caffè Pedrocchi — a short espresso topped with cold whipped cream and a dusting of green peppermint powder — a combination that sounds wrong and tastes exactly right.
History in every marble slab
The café was the meeting point of the Risorgimento conspirators who launched the 1848 student uprising against Austrian rule; a musket ball hole in one of the upstairs rooms is still proudly preserved.
Stendhal, Byron and Napoleon's viceroy Eugène de Beauharnais all passed through these white-marble rooms, and the café has been a symbol of Paduan civic identity ever since.
What to order and when to come
Beyond the signature mint espresso, the aperitivo hour (18:00–20:00) is when locals pack the ground-floor bar for Aperol Spritz — invented in the Veneto — with small cicchetti bites included in the price.
The upstairs Sala Verde, Sala Rossa and Sala Bianca are open for visits and occasional events; the Museo del Risorgimento inside is worth a quick look for the bullet hole alone.
Breakfast here — a cornetto and cappuccino at the marble bar — costs around €3 and is one of the most civilised ways to start a morning in northern Italy.
More of Padua
Discover where to stay, what to do and the best deals for your trip.
Explore Padua →
