Drinkable Art

You've probably heard of edible art. You may even be familiar with edible, wearable art. But have you seen the drinkable art of master barista Sammy Lin? At Bottega Del Vino (and Via Quadronno on Sundays), he delights customers with imaginative coffee-and-foam paintings of monkeys, snowmen and women's faces. (He uses a coffee stirrer.)

A native of tea-drinking Fuzhou, China, the 33-year-old Lin had his first cup of coffee at the age of 25. He thought it tasted like bitter water. But he was soon to move to New York, where he would develop a keen appreciation of the beverage. At Via Quadronno, he perfected his basic technique, but soon decided that it wasn't enough to make a great-tasting cappuccino. It had to be great-looking too!

One day, Lin tried his hand at painting a snowman on top of the cappuccino foam. And then he made a mistake, and the snowman ended up looking like a monkey. The monkey is now his signature painting - Ivanka Trump requested it one morning, and children regularly demand it on their hot chocolates. That's not to say that Lin can't be convinced to paint another animal. One customer, on being told that she was not allowed to bring her dog inside the cafe, pleaded with Lin to look out the window at her forlorn little pet and paint it. He obliged.

Customers from as far away as Japan, Germany and France visit Bottega Del Vino just to see what Lin will paint next. Some people even bring in photos from newspapers or magazines. On my recent visit, the visage of an elegant lady appeared atop my cappuccino. It was almost too pretty to drink.

When I asked Lin if he saw himself expanding into other artistic mediums, he shook his head. "I love my job! I have created my own style."