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Ordering coffee seems like it’d be a simple thing, right? “I’ll have a coffee, please.” The only place in Australia that order seems to work is at Starbucks. And with so many great little cafes in Sydney, why go to Starbucks? (Well, we did, but it was because of the WiFi – not for coffee.)
The first time I ordered coffee I asked for a latte and received a small glass tumbler with what seemed like a double shot of espresso and whole milk. All was well. But when I’d finished that, we were lingering and reading the paper and I thought, well, I’ll just have a coffee. But I don’t think there is just drip coffee. There’s a short and a long black (basically an Americano, but espresso and water go in a different order), a flat white and also lattes, cappuccinos, mochas, etc. Though there’s some debate online about whether a flat white is closer to a latte or a cappuccino (down to the how many mm of foam each has), all are made with espresso.
Once we were at Qualia, I bit the bullet and just asked our server how I should actually be ordering coffee and what the options are/were. It ends up that a flat white — which is essentially a latte, but made with one shot of espresso — became my coffee of choice. And when I was treating myself, I’d have whole milk, but otherwise skim.
The good news about the lack of drip coffee is that it’s virtually impossible to get a bad cup anywhere…even McDonalds has a McCafe concept with a full coffee menu.
