In a café, what is a barista?
AnswerA person who makes and serves coffee drinks
'Barista' is Italian for bartender, and in English it came to mean someone skilled at making coffee drinks.
Drinks · Facts & stats
Cafe facts & stats
7 fact-checked facts about cafés and coffee, each with the reason behind it. 5 more are in today's round and join this page after it closes.
The basics
Which natural stimulant in coffee helps people feel alert?
AnswerCaffeine
Caffeine blocks the brain's receptors for adenosine, a chemical that builds up during the day and makes us feel sleepy.
Going deeper
What is espresso?
AnswerCoffee made by forcing hot water through fine grounds under pressure
Espresso machines push near-boiling water through a compact puck of finely ground coffee at around 9 bar of pressure.
Why were 17th-century London coffeehouses nicknamed 'penny universities'?
AnswerFor a penny's coffee you could join learned conversation
For the price of a cup, anyone could listen to and join debates on news, science and trade.
What is the golden-brown foam on top of a fresh espresso called?
AnswerCrema
Crema forms when pressure emulsifies coffee oils with carbon dioxide released from freshly ground coffee.
Expert level
In the 1500s, before coffeehouses reached Europe, where did they first spread?
AnswerThe Middle East and Ottoman Empire
Coffeehouses flourished in Mecca, Cairo and Constantinople in the 1500s, about a century before reaching Europe.
A 'caffè macchiato' is espresso 'marked' with a small amount of what?
AnswerMilk or milk foam
'Macchiato' means 'stained' or 'marked' in Italian, referring to the dash of milk on top of the espresso.
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