Coffee Trips
I tend to end up in a coffee shop at least once a week – they are spaces with good vibes, yummy food, and delightful beverages. One of the best parts about being in Bonn has been getting to try out a variety of different ones. On campus, I end up at Mojo516 far more frequently than prudent. In Germany, my favorite is a local chain called Cafe Nova – they have three locations in Bonn and two in Cologne.
While some differences between German and American coffee shops are expected, some definitely took me by surprise. Europeans are notorious for being much less fond of cold coffee and customizations than Americans, and most German coffee shops don’t carry my typical order in the States. Instead, I’ve learned to appreciate the simplicity of cappuccinos and espressos.
Coffee is an important crop that dates back centuries. It’s a tropical plant, with many disadvantaged communities being required to bear the burden of the industry. While the consumer gets a lot of different choices in terms of roast and origin, the initial producers are often only able to sell to one specific group, which sets deliberately unfair prices. While fair trade organizations are attempting to fix this issue, the current global economy actively discourages businesses from paying the producers adequately. This issue is going to worsen in the upcoming years since climate change will drastically alter and decimate the coffee industry.
Coffee has been used historically in the Middle East. With the help of Venice and the Ottoman Empire, coffee had conquered Europe by the eighteenth century. Current coffee shops make the beverage in a variety of styles, both hot and cold. I personally am partial to cold brews and redeyes. (A redeye is a drip coffee with a shot of espresso added, while cold brew is an entirely different method of preparing the beans, requiring a long term soak. Both beverages are known for their caffeine content.) While cold brews and frappuccinos can be found at large American chain coffee shops like Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks, your standard German coffee shop doesn’t include these caffeinated concoctions or sugary indulgences. Instead, they focus more on the “standard” coffee shop fairs: espresso shots, cappuccinos, and the ever popular lattes.
There are a variety of reasons that could contribute to the differences on the cafe menu. Cafes in Germany are open much later than American coffee shops, which could incentivise beverages with less caffeine in them. Highly caffeinated coffees can often not taste as good as a simpler beverage, leading coffee shops to exclude them when patrons initially dislike them. Americans often take their drinks colder than Germans. This can be seen in the fact that most American restaurants will expect guests to want ice in their water, which is not the case in Germany. American coffee shops are also known for sugar-laced drinks such as a Starbucks Frappuccino that place enough sugar into the beverage to mask coffee’s bitter taste. Since bitterness isn’t as much of an issue, American consumers choose their beverages based on caffeine content instead of flavor.
Coffee shops are about more than just the beverage, however. That being said, both American and German coffee shops maintain similar atmospheres that enable both simple work environments and pleasant chitter. Bonn has a nice variety of coffee shops, including multiple American chains if you need an ultra sugary, ultra caffeinated fix. But at that point you might as well go to a grocery store for an energy drink!
Sincerely,
Carden
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (2025b, April 9). Coffee. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/coffee
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (2025a, February 28). History of coffee. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-coffee
Baker, N. (2024, February 15). What is a Red Eye Coffee?. Food & Wine. https://www.foodandwine.com/red-eye-coffee-8583160
