On Being Known: Displays of Familiarity in Italian Café Encounters

Abstract

This article explores the embodied and linguistic practices by which visitors and staff members of cafés display recognition of and mutual familiarity with each other. Based on video data collected in two Italian cafés, we use conversation analysis to examine two sequential positions where displays of familiarity are salient, i.e., the initial moments of the encounter and the placement of the order. We demonstrate that individuals rely on reciprocal visual perception, embodied and vocal resources, in particular greetings, to display their service-related recognition and acquaintanceship. We identify three ways in which a café service between “frequently attending visitors” and “usual staff members” can be initiated: (a) the customer places an order (in a sequentially delayed position), (b) the barista articulates a “candidate order,” (c) no vocal order is articulated by either party. We show that these practices crucially rely on the knowledge the “recurrent parties” share of each other. Data are in Italian and Friulian.