Buena Sera
Welcome back to the blog with the sweet tooth, il Tour de Gelato!
Coffee or Caffe
In the US, the joke is that there is a Starbucks on every corner. No matter where I am on the U of M campus, I can get overpriced coffee made to my exact specifications, with reasonable wait times. I can even get a pastry that was made in a package in a factory somewhere heated up for another slightly above reasonable fee. Obtaining said food and drink is typical of the American fast food-style: you stand in line, place your order, it is prepared, and get your food from a designated pick-up point. You do not even have to pay extra to have your name misspelled and mispronounced--that service is offered free of charge.
I usually get a skim sugar-free vanilla latte, medium, and they call me Megan.
According to a sign in the local study abroad office, the founder of Starbucks, whose name may or may not be Venti McStarbucks, started the chain after returning from a trip to Italy, where he fell in love with the culture of coffee bars. There are a couple things that were lost in translation when he brought this concept to America, however.
Ways in which a coffee bar in Italy is more like a bar than a Starbucks
1. Standing room only (unless you plan on paying extra for table service) and you drink right at the bar
2. Small quantities of the good stuff
3. Said small quanitites are served in actual shot glasses
4. The guy behind the bar engages with you like it's his job
5. There's usually several on a single block
6. They serve alcohol if you want it
Today was the first time that I went to a coffee bar. I got an espresso. It tasted like an espresso, and I downed it like it was a shot. This turned out to be a bad idea, since the shots I am used to are usually not incredibly hot. You live and you learn, and you scald yourself with espresso while the guy behind the counter watches you and smirks.
That is the face of someone who forgot that coffee was hot
Gelato
Ice cream with nuts? You're raising the bar constantly, Italy
Today's gelato was a nice group outing. I got caramel with little pieces of meringe in it, and today I got a bit of a chocolate shell with nuts on it as well. Heather and Alexis both got two different flavors. I suspect that I will start doing that once I run out of single flavors to try.
Tune in next time for a more serious blog entry... just kidding.
Ciao!
Good post Morgan! That is very interesting on the coffee shop experience, and yeah I did that too drink the entire shot of espresso or maybe it was cappuccino? Anyways it hit me later like whoa that was strong and the stomach was queasy too. But a doughnut fixed that later on. Do you like the espresso's here or are they too strong for your taste? You should try the cappuccino too!
ReplyDeleteThe espresso here is amazing! I love your post and captions, super fun to read. Your evaluation of Starbucks in America seems pretty on the nose to me- I love the pastries here, so wonderfully fresh and delicious. And cheap! I was shocked at how relatively inexpensive they are, plus the sweet of the pastry is great with the strong coffee they're serving. It's a great combination to start the day!
ReplyDeleteDo you have any particular flavors of gelato that are your favorites so far? Or any recommendations on them? Are you looking forward to starting to getting the combinations of flavors for something a little different?
Get the strawberry! Hannah swears by it! It is so refreshing
Delete