Translations:Portuguese cuisine/45/en
Coffee
As other southern European countries, and as a former colonial power, Portugal has a strong coffee culture. Coffeehouses can be found in almost every street of every city, town and village; they are simply called café, Portuguese for 'coffee'. Going to "the café" or going out to "take a coffee" are linguistic expressions, meaning "going out" or a calm encounter with someone. Like the Italian cultural trait, the Portuguese equate a café to an espresso, the default way to have the drink. Café is usually served after meals but also at any other time of the day. In Portuguese homes, coffee machines or coffee pots are a staple utility. Using mainly robusta beans, Portuguese coffee is made very strong, and the usual order is a bica (mainly in the Lisbon area), a very bitter shot of espresso. According to urban legend, this is an acronym for beba isto com açúcar, which translates to 'drink this with sugar'.