SAN FRANCISCO, CA— Last night at a local latte art throwdown, barista Thomas Chin brought his own custom tamper and milk pitcher to make sure he could “truly demonstrate his best work.” In a perhaps-unrelated coincidence, no one likes him. “The tamper has razor-sharp edges to prevent channeling, and I also got my initials engraved on it,” he…
By Camillia Nazanin NEW YORK, NY— Hamburgers. Doughnuts. Hot dogs. Pizza. The US has always been a melting pot where foreign treats undergo a metamorphosis and become hometown heroes, often to the chagrin of their original owners. The Italian affogato, an import already beloved in the States, is the latest treat to cause outcry from its motherland as…
By Reed Liebezeit LOS ANGELES, CA— Barista Sebastian Benton had been back from break just one half hour today when he described his shop’s single origin espresso offering to a customer as “bright and fruity.” It was while filling a milk pitcher for a prior order that Benton wielded the description—completely by rote and without any consideration for…