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32 Ascott LIVING
Cat-uccino
Cat cafes are the latest addition
to café culture, with the first
opening in Taiwan in the nineties.
For busy people who don’t have
time to look after a feline, they
can pay to play — gaining all the
benefits of cat companionship
without the responsibility. They
can now be found around the
world from Bangkok to Japan.
Bean me up
A warm welcome
As far as Europe is concerned, France is
at the epicentre of the café culture. Chic
pavement cafés abound, whether you
find yourself in the heart of the busy
capital of Paris or are enjoying a more
rustic existence out in the country.
From the first coffee of the day to a
digestif before bed, the French café is
where the world watches the rest of
humanity go by. You can stay as long
as your appetite lasts, stoked by an
array of dishes from flaky croissants
to a lunchtime snack of caramelised
onion soup and perhaps something
more substantial for dinner. Traditional
and family run, these are places that
retain their character and clientele,
year on year, topped up by the tourists
who can’t resist a slice of real French
gastronomy. With their gleaming brass,
rattan chairs and checked tablecloths
they might seem a touch clichéd —
but that is all part of their charm.
Clockwise from above:
Waffles and ice-cream make
any day better — which is why
they are a firm favourite at the
Symmetry café, Singapore;
any time is coffee time at the
Addison and Steele café in
Perth; you’ll need two hands
for this poached egg, bacon
and spinach ciabatta; a Sunday
brunch favourite: poached egg
with salmon on rosti at Annie’s
Provedore and Produce Store
in Barwon Heads, Melbourne
In Italy, however, it’s a whole different culture. For the Italians a cappuccino
is a breakfast in itself and you’re likely to be frowned upon if you order it after
10am. But there is more scientific sense to this than mere fashion fad. With a high
milk content, it’s thought that it hampers digestion. After a hefty, rich pasta lunch,
your poor body will not thank you for more fatty liquid. Tourists are often shocked
on ordering a mid afternoon cappuccino that the waiter refuses to serve them –
for the good of their health.
While most of the world adopts the Italian terminology for coffee, France sticks
resolutely to its own. If you want a milky coffee that’s a café au lait – don’t expect
any foamy addition akin to its fancy Italian cappuccino counterpart. Bag one
for breakfast in its enormous shallow cup and you can dip in a flaky croissant or
two, like the locals. The closest you’re likely to get to a dairy laden cup is a café
Viennoise, a black coffee topped with a cloud of whipped cream. And if you’re an
espresso fan make sure you ask for a noisette. While most cafes today are chicly
modern affairs, there’s still room for the British ‘caff’. With none of the style of its
French cousin, or demand for coffee, the British caff is a solid institution built on
heart-warming food, steaming mugs of tea and good, honest cooking. The Bridge
Cafe in the London suburb of Acton has been a local fixture for 52 years. Run by
the Marcangelo family, it’s a favourite with lorry drivers and cabbies alike and is
now internationally known thanks to its part in the BBC’s The Apprentice, as the
place that the losing team goes to lick their wounds – over a mug of tea.
It’s at places like this that the all-day breakfast comes into its own. A slick fried
egg, baked beans, some fat, hand cut chips and a couple of rashes of back bacon
plus a stout sausage or two vie for attention on the plate.
Here coffee may be seen as a modern frippery. It’s tea that you want. Plain and
simple, English breakfast, as terracotta in colour as Victorian brick. Fondly known
as builder’s brew for its strength and the fact it’s served in a mug, it’s what gets
Britain to work in the mornings.
Photos: Courtesy of Symmetry (Waffles and Ice-Cream); Courtesy of Addison and Steele (Barista); Courtesy of Kaffeine (Sandwiches); Visions of Victoria (Poached egg with salmon); www.rockabitebaby.com (Symmetry)
There is something sweetly addictive
about Vietnamese coffee. Even
without its condensed milk addition,
the local beans have a smooth taste
with almost a hint of chocolate.
If you want the real local café
experience, walk past the international
café brands and head for somewhere
like Ca Phe Pho Co on Hang Gai in
Hanoi. The family run café gives you
a glimpse into local life, and you
can enjoy a coffee looking out onto
the vehicular craziness below.
Over in Australia, the café scene in
Melbourne is one of the key reasons
most people visit the city. Most of the
laneway cafés proudly keep the hungry
assuaged, from morning until night.
At the beginning of the day head to
Operator 25 on Wills Street for one
of their legendary breakfast tortillas.
Savoury souls should try a wrap enclosing
eggs, bacon, cheddar and salsa, or for
the sweet-toothed there’s the vanilla
sago tortilla with rhubarb compote,
raspberry foam and rose meringue.
Navigating your way through the
labyrinth of laneways could prove
daunting, so a walking tour with an
insider (booked through viator) is a
great way to see why there’s more
to coffee than 43 different types of
bean. Discover how Melbourne has
evolved from the home of grand
coffee palaces in the 1950s, to the
haven of boutique cafés it is today.
And it’s not just tourist hype. The
coffee here is outstanding, as celebrity
Australian chef Curtis Stone can attest,
“I love coming home to Melbourne.
The first thing I do is have a coffee.
It’s just so much better here than
anywhere else. It’s better than in
Italy and I travel a lot. I crave it.”
While Melburnians would agree
they are choosy about their coffee,
you won’t get sneered at if you drink
the wrong type of coffee at the wrong
time of day. If you’ve the stamina for
a surge of caffeine, feel free to knock
back a small, dense espresso at any
time of the day. Likewise, don’t confine
yourself to the long foa