Coffee in Europe
 

Could someone tell me what the difference is in ordering a cafe Americano and a cafe creme? Thanks.

Sue

Cafe creme is espresso combined with heavy cream.
Cafe Americano is espresso that has been watered down with boiling water. (Still stronger than American coffee).

One hint, don't make the mistake of ordering "a latte" in Italy. You will get a glass of hot milk -- that's all. If you want an "American latte" you must say "cafe latte".

Here's a link of just about all coffee drinks.

http://www.coffeeforless.com/coffeeglossary.asp

cafe americano will either be a long black or filtered coffee. Cafe creme is a machiato (espresso with a dash of frothed milk).

Query - At home I prefer a Cafe Americano with a little cream in it - how would I ask for that in Italy?

Or would I even ask for that?

VS

the first is black coffee

the second has milk/creme

Cafe Americano with cream:

Cafe lungo con crema

or Cafe Americano with a little cream.

Cafe lungo con una poca crema

Excellent Londonlad, can't wait to try that!
=D>
Gratzie mille!

VS

What I meant was (if I'm in France), how is a cafe creme different from a cafe Americano with cream?

Sue

my pleasure viaggio_sempre. As a hopeless caffeine addict, whenever i head to italy for a city-break, i indulge my coffee addiction..... Nothing beats an italian coffee, especially as the coffee in London is decidedly dodgy - dirty brown liquid anyone? And having been brought up in Melbourne, Australia where there are essentially no chain coffee shops - the domination of chain coffee shops in London is really fairly dreary.

You may like to refer to Neopolitan's post Sue...

Cafe Creme = Espresso + dash of cream/milk. Served in espresso cup.

Cafe Americano with cream = espresso added to cup of boiling water + dash of cream/milk. Served in a coffee cup.

Thanks, londonlad. Now that we can post a link you merely click on to get concise answers, I'm surprised how many people refuse to do so and just keep asking for the same information which has been provided.

My favorite menu entry from a cafe in Venice:
"weak American coffee"

The word "crème" has nothing to do with cream in the world of French coffee. It is just boiled frothed milk. The French would never dream of putting cream in their coffee.

This is confusing because you just put Europe in your title and then used words they don't use in most countries, and then the responses seem to be mainly about Italy (I didn't think cafe creme was an Italian term, but what do I know, I thought cream was crema in Italian).

They don't use the term "cafe Americano" in France, that isn't French, but cafe creme is. In France, it isn't what Neopolitan said, and it does not have just a "dash" of milk in it.

I respectfully agree with you to an extent Christine, but one thing we have to realize -- country boundaries are not clear when it comes to coffee.
You can go to any cafe in Paris and order a coffee by its Italian name and they will know what it is.

Yes, Cafe Creme is more than a splash of milk. According to that website it is 1 oz. espresso and 1.5 oz cream. I can't imagine any normal cafe measuring it so closely however. As to whether it is cream or milk -- well that depends, but I have certainly been brought a little pitcher of "milk" or "creme" to add to coffe that was so thick I could have eaten it with a spoon. I'd call that cream -- unlike any milk I've ever known. As far as I'm concerned, in Paris milk is called creme.

So Christine if it is not espresso and creme (more creme than espresso) then please tell us what you think a Cafe Creme in Paris is? (other than insisting that milk isn't also called creme?) It's what I usually order and I always thought I knew what it was, espresso with more milk that espresso. No?

By the way, cappucino is certainly an Italian term, but you will not be laughed at if you order one at a Paris cafe!

You will not be laughed at in Paris if you order a capuccino, but in all cases you will received coffee with whipped cream and not an Italian capuccino (which is a café crème in France).
For those who just want a dash of milk in their expresso in France, they should ask for a "noisette".
And if you want American strength coffee, you ask for a "café américain" or a "café allongé" -- it is quite common even for the French to ask for this.

This thread should be subtitled, "Trolling for coffee snobs." By that I don't mean the poster is a troll, I mean that coffee snobs are more prone to brawl than a stadium full of drunk british soccer fans.

My own take on Italian coffee was that they didn't serve it hot enough for my tastes. I liked the coffee much better in Germany and Spain. Very hot, very strong, very delicious!

I suggest that you try the local coffee first before going for the Americano thing. It might delight you as it did me.

Here's how you make a cafe creme: http://unix.rulez.org/~calver/pictures/coffee_making/.

for some reason that link isn't clickable all the way - but cut and paste it into your address bar for some good looking coffee.