Coffee & Tea

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The least expensive beverage on any café or restaurant menu is normally un café (espresso). The price goes up if you want it with steamed milk or cream (café crème). You can also order a noisette (an espresso with a drop of milk), a décaféiné (decaffeinated, also called déca), a café serré (extra strong shot of espresso) or a café allongé (watered-down espresso). In a restaurant, the coffee comes after the dessert unless you ask the server to bring them at the same time. Sugar is always on the side, sometimes with a square of dark chocolate, too. The flavored coffees of Starbucks haven’t made it to France yet, but you can still find cappuccino and hot chocolate at any given Parisian café. The French drink café au lait (half-coffee, half-milk served in a bowl) at home for breakfast, so you’ll get strange looks ordering it in a restaurant. Thé nature is just plain black tea. You can also order it with milk (avec du lait) or lemon (avec citron). If you want non-caffeinated herbal tea, ask for a tisane or infusion. In tearooms the selection is obviously much more elaborate.

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