A 150-year-old Italian coffee brand has chosen Nairobi’s Upper Hill as the launchpad for its entry into the Kenyan market, opening its first local café at the Altura Building as it expands its global footprint.
Café Barbera, founded in Southern Italy in 1870, is now operating in 23 countries following the opening of the new outlet on the first floor of the Upper Hill building on October 1, 2026.
The company is targeting Nairobi’s busy professional population with a café designed to serve more than coffee, offering customers a place to meet, work, eat and spend time during the day.
The opening comes as Nairobi develops a growing café culture, with Café Barbera seeking to combine its Italian coffee tradition with the changing preferences of urban consumers and the city's growing interest in speciality coffee.
Upper Hill was selected for the first Kenyan outlet because of its concentration of businesses and institutions. The area is home to multinational corporations, embassies and professional service firms, which attract thousands of professionals each day.
The location at Altura Building gives the café access to this business community while also providing a convenient option for people working in the building, visitors to the area and customers looking for a place to meet.
Café Barbera's roots go back to Domenico Barbera, who established the coffee house in Southern Italy in 1870. Over the past more than 150 years, the business has grown from a single coffee house into an international franchise while remaining family-owned through five generations.
Its coffee is prepared using beans from seven varieties grown in some of the world's finest coffee-producing regions. The beans are slow roasted separately by master roasters before being blended to create the coffee house's original recipe.
"The opening of Café Barbera at Altura marks an exciting moment not only for the brand, but also for Nairobi's evolving lifestyle and hospitality landscape," said Elio Barbera, Managing Director, Café Barbera.
"We are bringing a piece of Italian coffee culture to Nairobi while creating a space where people can meet, work, dine and enjoy quality moments throughout their day."
The Nairobi outlet's offering goes beyond its coffee selection, with customers able to choose from freshly made pastries, pizzas and pastas, as well as other Italian-inspired dishes.
About a quarter of the menu consists of local comfort food favourites, giving customers an option to combine the Italian offering with familiar local dishes.
The café is intended to serve customers at different times and for different needs, including those seeking a quick espresso before a morning meeting, colleagues having lunch, professionals holding informal business meetings and friends catching up in the afternoon.
Café Barbera is open every day from 7am to 11pm at the first-floor outlet in Altura Building, Upper Hill, Nairobi.