As cafes around the Olympic host city try to lure Aussie tourists with fake whites, Parisians are proving they're all foam and no substance.
The iconic Aussie drink has found its way onto menus in the French capital for around $4, alongside cappuccinos and other more traditional caffeinated drinks in the country, such as a noizet (a shot of espresso with a splash of frothed milk).
The only problem? They are fake beds. Big fat fake foamies.
“A flat white is now becoming a universal drink and more casual coffee shops or delis are choosing to put it on the menu because they see it as a valuable commodity, but not many know how to make it,” says Fox. » McInerney, a Melburnian who moved to Paris 14 years ago and opened a cafe that offers a coffee to the public for five euros.
His reasons for moving to the city were simple: “I like cheese, wine and bread.”
But there was a problem. The coffee was the worst so I had to fix it.
His single mission is honorable. However, fake beds are popping up all over town like caffeinated moles.
The problems with French beds are many: too hot, too foamy. And they often come out of the machine with a one-touch button, like 7-11.
In a chic deli near the Arc de Triomphe, behind a beautiful red canopy and elegant wicker chairs, a dark secret is hidden in the menu.
“Cappuccino/Latte/Flat White”
The three drinks are listed as if they were all interchangeable—different names for the exact same thing.
Ordered: a cappuccino and a flat white.
When the drinks arrive, they look the same. Lower selections don't stand out with their regular chocolate brown sprinkles.
How could a city so stylish get this trés wrong?
“Paris is known for its cafe culture — but their coffee is bad,” says Jay Swanson, a YouTuber who publishes Paris-centric city guide videos.
“There's a culture around here that coffee is a drug — you buy your space at the table. Buying your own space in a cafe and having that quiet moment alone is more important to the French. What is in the cup is not important to them.
“If you go to America and they're happy with their boxed wine, they don't know the difference between their Malbec and their Merlot. To them, coffee is just a commodity.”
When Australian book editor Richard Bilkey first moved to the French capital a decade ago, he found that the city did indeed have a café culture, but “the coffee was crap”.
“The French didn't want to spend more than a euro for an espresso,” he says.
“A coffee was just a cheap brown liquid that you bought and sipped at the bar.”
But, over the years, he's also noticed the appearance of flat whites on the menu.
There are a lot of places that say they do flat white, but don't know what it is or how it's made. “Now, they know they should say (offer) flat whites, but they don't know how to make it.”
“You take and drink and…”
It does not finish the sentence. Instead he creates a noise that can only be described in two words: trés disgust.
Facebook: @hellojamesweir
