bake - September 2018 - 52

foodservice

STARBUCKS

Unveils Princi

In 1986, Rocco Princi opened his eponymous boutique bakery

Davies and the design team took inspiration from Princi's

and café in Milan at the historic Piazzale Istria. It was a feast

original Milan bakery and the nearby Starbucks Reserve

for the senses, with crispy round loaves of sourdough bread

Roastery, using natural materials and earth-colored stone. In

leaning in rows, baskets of ciabatta bread alongside jars of

every element of the space, the team tried to express Princi's

olive oil and bins of ﬂour. Princi uses the term "Spirito di

commitment to craftsmanship, from the hand-blown glass light

Milano," the essence and energy of Milan, to capture the feeling

ﬁxtures to the hand-rubbed plaster on the walls.

from that ﬁrst bakery, and infuses it into everything he creates.
"We kept the palate neutral. The food becomes a ribbon of
Over the next three decades Princi built a legacy, expanding to

color and light that ties the whole space together," Davies says.

ﬁve more locations across Milan and London. In 2016, Starbucks
became an investor and global licensee of the business and

The oven is the centerpiece of the space, with fresh baking

opened the ﬁrst Princi location in the US inside the Starbucks

onsite throughout the day. A brightly-lit food case stretches

Reserve Roastery in Seattle, where his artisanal baked goods

along the width of the space, enough for a visual landscape

are served alongside the freshly roasted small-lot Starbucks

of freshly baked cornetti, brioche and focaccia, pizzas and

Reserve coffees.

desserts. Commessas, Italian for "shop assistant," act as a guide
through the journey of food.

Starbucks made Princi the exclusive food purveyor in its
Roasteries and Starbucks Reserve store locations, and since

"We wanted to make sure every one of these elements is

then, new Princi bakeries have opened in the Shanghai

created with the same level of detail that Rocco puts into his

Roastery and Starbucks Reserve store at the company's SoDo

food," Davies says.

headquarters (and coming soon to future Roastery locations
in Milan and New York).

The new store features the full Princi menu of artisanal baked
goods, prepared with the highest quality ingredients sourced

Now, the ﬁrst Princi standalone store in the US is opening in

from Italy to Seattle, starting at breakfast with steel-cut oats

the north end of downtown Seattle on Westlake at 9th Avenue.

with Italian jam, baked eggs in a spicy tomato sauce and

Starbucks' store design team worked closely with Rocco Princi

cornetti sandwiches made with prosciutto cotto and fontina.
At lunchtime, the menu offers soups, salads, focaccia sandwiches,

"When you ﬁrst walk into a Princi bakery, you're suddenly hit

pizza, and hot entrees. Afternoons expand to a wider selection of

by the energy, the theater, the smell," says Christian Davies,

Italian cakes, tarts and other desserts. Starbucks Reserve Princi

Starbucks vice president, Creative Global Design & Innovation.

Blend is the signature coffee offering, along with handcrafted

"Your ﬁrst impression is the abundance and seduction of food.

espresso beverages made on a manual espresso machine. As the

That's what we're trying to create with a distinctly Italian look

day fades in the afternoon, Bar Mixato offers traditional Italian

and feel to bring that passion to life."

aperitivo, including cocktails, beer, wine and spirits accompanied

52 < SEP 2018 | bakemag.com

PHOTOS BY STARBUCKS

and his team to design the new location.
http://www.bakemag.com
bake - September 2018

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