One of Barcelona’s top bartenders is from Florence: the story of Davide Norcini
You come to Barcelona to work, then you end up staying
Some cities you land in by chance; in others you realize almost right away that you could stay for a long time. That’s more or less how it went for Davide Norcini. A Florentine with ten years in international hospitality, he started out in London, passed through Ibiza and then landed in Barcelona, where in recent years he has built his career behind the bar and a whole new día a día, a new day-to-day life. His path took him first to Dry Martini, where he learned technique, the classic cocktails and above all the art of hospitality, and then to Dr. Stravinsky, the cocktail bar in El Born that had fascinated him from the start and that he joined in 2022. Today he works as Assistant Manager at the brand-new Stravinsky’s Parfumerie, the sister project right next door that brings cocktails and perfumery together, where the guest’s experience becomes something much bigger than simply having a drink.
To understand what more the Florentine, born in 1994, found in Barcelona, though, you have to start with Zafón’s city itself and its relationship with the cocktail world. “The first thing that comes to mind is the density of cocktail bars in the center of the two cities. I don’t have the figures at hand, but I believe Barcelona has a much higher concentration of cocktail bars than Florence, meaning specialized venues, not counting traditional bars and cafés.” It’s a scene that, in recent years, has taken on an increasingly international dimension. “Both cities host major events for our industry, though I think Barcelona is more active on that front. Just think of the World’s 50 Best Bars in 2022, the Barcelona Cocktail Fest every year, the recent Barcelona Hotel Bar Week and all the bars that host international guests, like Paradiso, Dr. Stravinsky, Boadas and many others.” Florence, though, has built an identity of its own, according to Davide: “But Florence has its joys too: the Top 500 Bars ceremony in 2025, Paola Mencarelli’s Florence Cocktail Week and the many international guests who visit the city, especially thanks to places like Locale.”
The two cities also share a sense of bar community that goes beyond simple competition between venues. “As for the community, both cities have a really great environment, built partly on mutual support between bars, which aren’t necessarily seen as enemies but often as allies. Of course there are small rivalries, but overall I think the atmosphere is positive in both cities.”
The day starts at noon
Life in the nightlife business runs on a different clock, that much is clear. Still, the young Florentine bartender tries to strike a balance between bar hours and everything that happens outside of work. “My routine in Barcelona tries to find a balance between the madness of our hours and a healthy lifestyle. I fall asleep very late, so it’s hard for me to wake up before noon.” The day starts with breakfast, then sports: calisthenics or soccer. “After that, a shower, lunch and, why not, a little siesta before heading to work. It’s a very Spanish habit, and I’m happy to have picked it up.”
When the shift is over, the goal is to leave work at the door. “After work I like to sprawl out on the couch and try to switch off before going to sleep.” Soccer has stayed a constant after the move too, if in a different form. “In Barcelona I play with friends, so I haven’t given it up entirely, heaven forbid, but what I miss most are proper league matches, 11-a-side.”
The hard part of leaving is the people
The price of the new life, though, is above all the many people he left behind in Florence. “Without a shadow of a doubt, what I miss most about Florence is my people: family and friends. The biggest downside of changing your life and moving abroad is definitely leaving your people behind. I won’t hide that I miss the days when I saw my loved ones every day.” It’s a distance that inevitably makes him reckon with his own priorities. “Unfortunately, life is made of sacrifices, and everyone makes their own choices based on their priorities.”
What he misses is also a particular way of living Florence. “If we think about the city itself, I really miss wandering around the center with no destination, just to explore and feel lost like a tourist in the open-air museum that is Florence.” At the same time, living abroad has let him see his city with different eyes. “Living abroad, I also get to appreciate the virtues of my city even more, because when you live there you end up getting used to it and not enjoying it the way you do when you only go back every now and then.”
Barcelona, in any case, has won over an important part of his life. “By now, I could never give up the Barcelona lifestyle. It’s a dynamic, lively, complete city. In short, I think the lifestyle here is among the best in the world, at least for my taste, because it offers everything I need to be happy and live a peaceful life.”
Why Barcelona is still a magnet for Italians
According to Davide, lifestyle is also what leads so many Italians to choose the Catalan city. “Barcelona is a true haven for Italians. We’re one of the largest foreign communities in the city, and I think the reason is more or less what I was saying before: el estilo de vida.”
Its appeal lies, first and foremost, in its uniqueness. “Barcelona is one of a kind, there’s no city like it in Italy, and that makes it very attractive. We can find plenty of similarities between Madrid and Rome, for example, or between southern Spain and our own south. But we don’t have a city like Barcelona in Italy, and in my opinion that’s what makes the difference.” With its Mediterranean and international mix, Barcelona has a mindset that Norcini sees as especially open. “Barcelona is multicultural, and Spain in general is a country we Italians really love. On top of that, in this city you almost never feel judged. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same about Italy.”
You can change cities, sure, but Florence comes with you
Distance hasn’t erased his roots, quite the opposite. Florence keeps showing up in his work, even when it isn’t explicitly the theme of a cocktail. “Paradoxically, in all of them! As a proud Florentine, I’ve brought my ‘Florentine art’ into every one of my creations over the years.”
One clear example came in 2024, when Davide entered the Italicus Art of Aperitivo Competition with a cocktail inspired by Florentine Renaissance art, served in a ceramic vessel shaped like Brunelleschi’s Dome. In other words: a declaration of love for his city, turned into a piece of cocktail-bar gear. The story, however, had a decidedly less celebratory ending: “Ironically, it was the only mixology competition I’ve entered where I didn’t qualify for the final rounds,” he jokes.
Today his work keeps moving toward something ever more experiential and tailor-made. Stravinsky’s Parfumerie was born precisely from the meeting of cocktails and perfumery, with an idea of hospitality that engages several senses and takes the drink beyond the simple act of drinking. The cocktail becomes part of a broader experience, just like the city where Davide chose to build his new life. Florence, meanwhile, lives on in the people he misses, in the aimless walks, in soccer and in the cocktails. Barcelona is where he found his place, but leaving didn’t mean erasing what came before. It means looking at it from a different distance. Davide, after all, has brought home with him. Not in a suitcase, but right inside his cocktails.
