Cortado? Lagrima? Café con Leche?…..Buenos Aires Coffee

When going into a coffee shop or restaurant it is really helpful to know a little about what the things listed on the menu actually refer to. Particularly here in South America, depending on which country you’re in, the terminology for the different dishes and the different ways in which they are served differ greatly.

For instance, a cafe latte in Sydney, New York and London, all mean the same thing. Here, however, amongst the language of an infinite number of verbs, adjectives and nouns, particular to country and then to regions within countries too, common ground is a little more difficult to find.

Therefore, the following is a breakdown of what I have come to learn over the past two years in Buenos Aires and I hope that you find it useful…

• Expresso is a very short, black shot of strong coffee, best taken with a little sugar in my opinion.
• Lágrima is my favourite for its translation.  The word ‘lágrima’ literally means ‘teardrop’ and so this is a coffee served with a lot of milk and a mere ‘drop’ of coffee. How cute!
• Cortado is when your coffee is served with just a dash of milk. It’s a good choice to give yourself an energy kick in the mornings.
• Café solo is served in a large cup and nothing but pure, honest, black coffee.
• Cafe con Leche is exactly half milk, half coffee and is served in a larger cup than the cortado.
• Cafe con Crema is the same as a cafe con leche, but obviously with cream instead of milk.
• Cafe Doble is when you want to order a double serving of a normal coffee.
• Cafe en Jarro (sometimes ‘Jarrito’) is a reference to the size of the coffee cup as opposed to the way in which the coffee is poured. Therefore, you can order a cafe con leche in a ‘jarro’ or ‘jarrito’, as it is sometimes known, and you’ll be served your tasty little number in a mug instead of a cup. Very simple!
• Cappuchino is exactly what it says on the tin, but it’s worth noting that it’s always served in a tall glass and as such is normally one of the biggest caffeine fixes you’ll get here.
• Submarino is a large, tall glass of hot milk, served with a bar of chocolate that you can dip!

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