The art of the latte // Coffee meets craft at The Service Savile Row

You’ve got the coffee part down. You’ve ground your beans to the optimum level. Your state-of-the-art kitchen scales help you weigh out the perfect amount and you’ve even mastered the deceptively complex art of tampering.

Your double espresso sits like half an inch of dark, liquid caramel in the bottom of your cup under a pleasingly rich crema. But you know this expert aesthetic is about to be undone by your comparatively unrefined capabilities with the milk jug. Whether it’s under-frothed, over-heated or simply the wrong volume, getting the milk ‘wrong’ does more than ruin the look of your cup of joe; it can ruin the taste too.

Someone who could never be accused of getting the milk wrong is Claudiu Consferenti, barista and latte artist extraordinaire at The Service’s Savile Row coffee spot.

After starting his career bartending in his home country of Romania, in 2015 Claudiu moved to the UK to pursue opportunities in London’s vibrant restaurant world. While he loved the work and the people, he always felt like there was something missing from his day-job. From a young age, Caludiu had enjoyed drawing and painting but his busy work life left little time for his artistic hobbies. That was until he discovered his current passion: latte art.

As a latte artist, Claudiu loves making great tasting - and looking - coffee that brings joy to people’s day. Even in the midst of the Covid 19 pandemic, he continued to practice and share his talent via his Instagram and Youtube channel, bringing that same joy to his online audience. And with the opening of Savile Row’s first coffee shop by The Service and The Fresh Coffee Co., Claudiu is now delighting the residents and patrons of this historic street everyday with his creations.

For me, latte art means flair inside the coffee world, just like how bartenders do tricks with bottles and shakers. Latte art is something I can play with to bring smiles to people’s faces.

Claudiu’s top tip for creating latte art is to use full fat milk which is high in protein and UHT treated, ‘which allows for better froth consistency and good foam’. Good tools and equipment also help, he says, but practice and patience are undoubtedly the most important things when it comes to making coffee that is as good on the eye as it is the tastebuds.

Better get practicing, then!

To sample Claudiu’s work, drop by The Service at No. 32 Savile Row, 8am-4pm Monday - Friday and 9:30am-4pm on Saturdays.