Cate Dowman explores the café culture in New Zealand.
Written by: Cate Dowman
Yes there’s a lot more to this country! As much as I love NZ, I have begun to tire of telling people there is more to New Zealand than pristine landscapes, mountains and Lord of the Rings. Oh and sheep.
When you visit NZ you will be pleasantly surprised at its cafe culture, which may only be less than 20 years old, but has become very much a part of the NZ lifestyle. And I mean cafes that make really good coffee, homestyle cooking and atmosphere. For a good number of New Zealanders (kiwis), life revolves around cafes be it work meetings, networking, weekend brunches, family outings, the list goes on.
It doesn’t matter where you go in the cities or towns, you will always come upon a cafe, locally owned and operated selling good coffee, tea and food. That’s just how it is in this country. You won’t often find a Starbucks or MacCafe (Amen!), except for inner city locations.
In July this year I was travelling through the western coast of the South Island with a friend. It was winter and winter in this part of the country means freezing cold and annoyingly windy. I found a small cafe in the town of Greymouth, where I had stayed overnight, and gravitated towards it unknowingly. It was zero degrees Celsius outside, and cosy degrees inside. Naturally the cafe was popular. I sank into an old sofa, no untrue let me rephrase, the sofa’s springs were so far gone, it had no choice but to let me sink into it. I was cast into the sofa but that was ok because there was jazz playing softly in the background and warming my hands was a cup of my favourite coffee: flat white.
© Cate Dowman
Most Kiwis and Aussies know what I’m talking about when I refer to a flat white. I have not been able to explain it properly to non Australasians but here goes. Take a doubleshot of espresso and add hot steamed milk, just a little, not too much or you will end up with a latte. It all goes in a cup smaller than a cappuccino size and bigger than a double shot espresso size.
This is a great drink for people who like their coffee strong without having to drink it black. If you end up with a drink thats milky and weak, you have either a lousy barista or the wrong drink.
To find out more about the history of cafes in Australasia you can read about it on this website I recently discovered, Cafe Culture Downunder.
It’s an informative website dedicated to coffee lovers and coffee professionals. A great read if you have some spare time.
So, to all you expat Kiwis and Ozzies who are, at this moment, pining for a good flat white, I dedicate this post to you.
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Cottages and Castles
1 year ago
Yes, there is nothing better than a cup of hot coffee in a cold winter day. but i didn’t know that the country has such a nice tradition and good specialists. Coffee is highly estimated everywhere, European countries have a long history of coffee tradition, so it would be really interesting to share the traditions and to find out how it is made in other countries and continents.
Taylor Davidson
1 year ago
I’ve been to Greymouth, but sadly don’t remember that cafe… even though it’s a very small place so it would be hard to miss!
I don’t think Americans have any idea what a flat white is, although I’ll admit I’m not a coffee aficionado, so I could be very wrong…
Erica Johansson
1 year ago
Perhaps the café Cate visited had just opened.
I didn’t know what flat white meant first, think you’re right about that Americans
have no idea since it’s only served in Australia and New Zealand.
If someone is interested, here’s what I found out from Wikipedia “A flat white is the same as a properly made North American Caffe Latte, but differs from a Starbucks style latte in the preparation of the milk. Australian lattes and flat whites are usually served in 215-240ml cups, making them stronger than some lattes in other countries.”