Coffees are ordered millions of times a day, all over the world. So we thought that on European Day of Languages, it would be quite fitting to show you how to order a coffee in ten different languages. So, here we go:
FRENCH
“Je voudrais un café, s’il vous plait.”
- Coffee of choice: Espresso
- Snack of choice: Croissant or pastry
FINNISH
“Haluaisin yhden kahvin, kiitos.”
- Coffee of choice: Black filter coffee (and lots of it!)
- Snack of choice: ‘Korvapuusti’ (slapped ears) – Cinnamon Buns
GERMAN
“Ich möchte einen Kaffee, bitte.”
- Coffee of choice: Black coffee, drip filtered
- Snack of choice: Stollen or Franzbrötchen (a small, sweet pastry baked with butter & cinnamon)
SPANISH
“Me gustaría un café, por favour.”
- Coffee of choice: Café solo (a small cup of strong, black espresso)
- Snack of choice: Churros con Chocolate
ITALIAN
“Vorrei un caffè si, prega.”
- Coffee of choice: Cappuccino (in the morning only, if you’re a true Italian!)
- Snack of choice: Biscotti
SWEDISH
“Jag skulle vilja en kaffe, vänligen.”
- Coffee of choice: Black coffee, drip filtered
- Snack of choice: Cardamom bun
SLOVAK
“Chcel by som jednu kávu, prosím.”
- Coffee of choice: Espresso
- Snack of choice: Makovnik (Poppy seed roll)
ICELANDIC
“Mig langar eitt kaffi, vinsamlegast.”
- Coffee of choice: Latte (thanks to great Icelandic milk)
- Snack of choice: Skyr (a greek yogurt/soft cheese dairy product which is eaten at any time of the day)
POLISH
“Chciałbym jedną kawę, proszę.”
- Coffee of choice: Cappuccino, latte or espresso
- Snack of choice: Paczki – Polish doughnuts
And one outside of Europe…
MAORI
“E rite i kotahi kawhe, pai.”
- Coffee of choice: Flat white (in today’s New Zealand)
- Snack of choice: Lamingtons or Afghans
So there you have it, next time you’re in Spain, Sweden or Slovakia, you’ll know how to order your favourite beverage!
