variazioni sul tema 'un latte' / variations on the theme 'un latte'

If you want to make sure you are not served a glass of cold milk, these are a couple of words you can add to your basic order of un latte:

• caldo: steams the milk so it is hot and frothy
• macchiato: steams the milk and adds a shot of espresso
• caffelatte: warms up the milk, so it is hot but not frothy, and adds coffee. This is what I had for breakfast as a child. I would never order it in a coffee shop: it would be embarrassing.

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variazioni sul tema 'un latte'

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Comments

[Paolo @ DisgracesOnTheMenu]

It's funny, but I would also find it embarrassing to order a caffelatte in a Italian coffee shop :) I wonder why it's that... I *still* have it every day for breakfast at home!

[Simona Carini]

I am not sure I have the answer, but I have some ideas: you go to the coffee shop to get something different from what you usually get at home, so you get a cappuccino; you can drink a cappuccino by itself, but a caffelatte really needs something (biscotti, pane e marmellata, fette biscottate); caffelatte ties us to our childhood and it's a private relationship. I think that a mix of these facts are at play here.