Why is Toledo metro station in Naples famous?

Toledo station on Line 1, opened in September 2012, was designed by Óscar Tusquets and decorated with mosaics by William Kentridge and a mosaic Sea Gallery by Robert Wilson. The Daily Telegraph called it the most beautiful metro station in Europe. A 170 m gallery links it to Piazza Montecalvario in the Quartieri Spagnoli.

What are the Quartieri Spagnoli in Naples?

The Spanish Quarters are a grid of around 18 streets by 12 on the hillside west of Via Toledo, built in the 16th century under Viceroy Pedro de Toledo to house Spanish garrisons. About 14,000 people live in the quarter, which covers some 80 hectares and has its own exit from Toledo metro station.

Cafés in Toledo & Quartieri Spagnoli, Naples: Hours and Map

Q: Who runs Gran Caffè Gambrinus in Naples?

The Sergio family. Michele Sergio took over Gambrinus in 1973 with his sons Arturo and Antonio and his son-in-law Giuseppe Rosati. In 2023 the family was expanding into numbers 3 and 4 of Via Chiaia, once part of the original café. Gambrinus is at Via Chiaia 1/2 and opens daily 08:00–23:00.

Via Toledo runs about 1.2 km from Piazza Dante to Piazza Trieste e Trento, beside Piazza del Plebiscito. The Spanish viceroy Pedro de Toledo commissioned it in 1536, and from 1870 to 1980 it was called Via Roma.¹ On its western side the Quartieri Spagnoli (Spanish Quarters) climb the hill in a grid of around 18 streets by 12, built in the 16th century to house Spanish garrisons; about 14,000 people live in its 80 hectares.²

The grand cafés are at the street's southern end. Gran Caffè Gambrinus is at Via Chiaia 1/2, and Il Vero Bar del Professore, Rosati and Caldarelli share Piazza Trieste e Trento. Farther up, Via Toledo has as many bars as any street in Naples, and the alleys of the Quartieri keep small counter bars such as Bar Gallo and Donato Bar on Via Montecalvario.

Local tip: Drink at the counter on Piazza Trieste e Trento rather than at a table, and order the caffè alla nocciola at Il Vero Bar del Professore, number 46.

At a glance

67Cafés listed

8With opening hours

05:00Earliest opening

03:00Latest closing

Opens earliest: Caffetteria Moka, from 05:00 (Mon–Fri 05:00–21:00 · Sat 05:00–17:00).

Closes latest: Monidee Cafè, until 03:00 (Mon–Fri 06:30–02:00 · Sat–Sun 06:30–03:00).

Most common features: outdoor seating (19%), open late (6%), wi-fi (4%).

Toledo station and the pedestrian street

Toledo station on Metro Line 1 opened in September 2012, designed by the Spanish architect Óscar Tusquets, with two large mosaics by William Kentridge and Robert Wilson's mosaic-covered Sea Gallery. The Daily Telegraph called it the most beautiful metro station in Europe.³ A 170 m gallery to Piazza Montecalvario, in the Quartieri, opened in September 2013.³ The same year the station opened, the street was closed to traffic from Via Diaz to Piazza Trieste e Trento.¹

Gambrinus and Piazza Trieste e Trento

In 1973 Michele Sergio took over Gambrinus with his sons Arturo and Antonio and his son-in-law Giuseppe Rosati. In 2023 the family was expanding into numbers 3 and 4 of Via Chiaia, once part of the original café.⁴ Gambrinus opens daily 08:00–23:00.

Raffaele Ferrieri chose the site of Il Vero Bar del Professore, at number 46, knowing he would face Gambrinus and had to stand out. When President Oscar Luigi Scalfaro stopped by, Ferrieri told him he had only come because Gambrinus was shut.⁵ Monidee Cafè, at number 6, opens at 06:30 and stays open until 02:00 on weekdays and 03:00 at weekends.

Galleria Umberto I and the museum on Via Toledo

Galleria Umberto I was built in 1887–1890 to Emanuele Rocco's design: four iron-and-glass wings in a cross under a dome 57 m high, with one wing opening toward the Teatro di San Carlo.⁶ Inside, Anna Bellavita at number 71 opens daily 06:30–22:00, and Caffè Brasiliano and Ke Kafè share the arcade.

Intesa Sanpaolo opened the Gallerie d'Italia in May 2022 in the former Banco di Napoli at Via Toledo 177, a building by Marcello Piacentini, with Caravaggio's Martyrdom of Saint Ursula as its centerpiece.⁷ Luminist Cafe Bistrot has the same address. Caffè Ceraldi, on Piazza Carità, brews with the Kimbo blend.⁸

Early coffee in the Quartieri and Montesanto

Caffetteria Moka, on Via Cervantes, opens at 05:00 on weekdays and closes at 21:00. Charlie's Bar on Via dei Greci starts at 06:30, Monday to Saturday, and Caffè dei Fiorentini on Via dei Fiorentini runs 07:00–19:30 on weekdays and 07:00–17:00 on Saturdays. At the northern end, Caffetteria Montesanto and Super Bar Caso face Piazza Montesanto.

Cafés in Toledo & Quartieri Spagnoli

At a glance

Anna Bellavita

Blanco

Caffetteria Moka

Gran Caffè Gambrinus

marSuì cafè

Monidee Cafè

Caffè dei Fiorentini

Charlie's Bar

Bar Daniele

Bar Derosa

Bar Mastracchio

Cafe Degli Artisti

Cafè Royal

Cafè Society

Caffè 2000

Caffè Bistrot Toledo

Caffé caldofreddo

Caffè Marino

Caffe Mazzini

Caffè Roma

Caffé Varriale

Caffeteria Umberto

Caffetteria Adelaide

Caffetteria Angelone

Caffetteria Matteotti

Caffetteria Sommella

Caffetteria Vesuvio

Casa Viscardi

Ceraldi Caffé

Don Café

Gran Caffè Ferrieri

it‘s

Ke Kafè

L.U.I.S.E.

Leopoldo Infante

Los Hermanos Coffee Food and Drink

Coffee chains in Toledo & Quartieri Spagnoli

Caffè del Professore

Starbucks

Toledo station and the pedestrian street

Gambrinus and Piazza Trieste e Trento

Galleria Umberto I and the museum on Via Toledo

Early coffee in the Quartieri and Montesanto

Sources

More of Naples

Municipio & Porto

Centro Storico

Piazza Garibaldi & Vasto

Sanità & Capodimonte

Vomero & Arenella

Chiaia & Lungomare

Mergellina & Posillipo

Toledo & Quartieri Spagnoli cafés: questions

Why is Toledo metro station in Naples famous?

Who runs Gran Caffè Gambrinus in Naples?

What are the Quartieri Spagnoli in Naples?

Own a café in Toledo & Quartieri Spagnoli?