Don't Make This Latte Mistake In Italy
There's nothing quite like waking up to a fresh pot of coffee brewing in the morning. The bold smell can instantly perk up even the most sleep deprived. However, if the taste of regular java is a little too strong for your tastebuds, you've probably already switched over to a latte. The drink is made with espresso and mixed with frothy steamed milk, for a delicious and robust flavor. This hot beverage has seemingly been around forever, but have you ever wondered how this decadent drink came to be?
Though the first coffee was sipped hundreds of years ago, the latte is a newer phenomenon. Oddly enough, even though the beverage has an Italian name, it was actually created in America. According to Daily Coffee News, the espresso and milk concoction is believed to have been invented by Lino Meiorin, who lived in Berkeley, California, during the 1950s. Meiorin was one of the first Italian trained baristas in the region, and would often get asked by customers to add more milk to their cappuccinos because they weren't used to the bold flavor. This inspired him to create the latte, which was soon a hit and spread throughout the U.S. and the world.
However, you need to be careful about how you order this drink if you're abroad
Just because Americans call this classic espresso drink a latte, doesn't mean other parts of the world do. An abroad traveller recounted a story to HuffPost about when they witnessed a girl trying to order a latte in English at an Italian cafe. "The barista was confused and tried to understand better what she meant by speaking the only language he knew, Italian," they wrote. "The girl raised her voice and in English said, 'Just give me a latte.'"
The bewildered employee then came back and gave the American a glass of milk, which is precisely what she had ordered. The girl was so angry about not getting her espresso drink, she stormed out of the establishment. This is a reminder that it's important to know that when you're traveling to other countries, words and phrases can have different meanings. Latte in Italian means just "milk," while ordering a cafe latte will get you your desired "coffee with milk" order.