How to Order at a Coffee Shop for the First Time? What Coffee Do Connoisseurs Usually Drink?

Getting Over First-Time Coffee Shop Nerves

If you do not know how to order on your first visit to a coffee shop, just talk to the barista, tell them what you like or what kind of coffee you are after. An enthusiastic barista will gladly answer your questions and suggest something that suits your taste.

Recently a line from the hit Korean drama "The Glory," in which the heroine orders coffee, had netizens marvelling: the screenwriter is brilliant, this scene is so real, it is exactly my experience.

In the show, the heroine Dong-en, played by Song Hye-kyo, seems to order with confidence at first. "I want a cold coffee, make it the strongest," she says. The staff then "translates": "An iced Americano with an extra shot, would that be okay?" She pauses for a moment and agrees.

Meanwhile the man behind her orders: "I want an iced Americano and a hot mocha with light cream, lots of it, and please squeeze some extra chocolate sauce on top, thank you." The heroine overhears, then reacts with a faint, self-deprecating expression.

Netizens found this brief exchange very relatable. Walking into a coffee shop for the first time, everyone feels nervous, stares at a dazzling menu, feels overwhelmed, and ends up ordering something at random that they do not really like.

Why Coffee Shops Feel Intimidating

In fact there is no need to feel nervous, because coffee shops are very much part of daily life and they are everywhere. Even at work you often see all kinds of coffee on colleagues' desks, and these days some schools and markets have coffee shops too.

The panic probably comes from feeling that entering a coffee shop means entering a completely new social circle. The people working and drinking there seem to have a distinctive temperament, and first-timers feel they do not fit the surroundings. That creates tension, a worry that others will see them as an inexperienced newcomer, and a fear of losing face.

Embracing Coffee Culture

But not knowing how to order on your first visit is completely normal. Everyone has a first time and everyone has things they do not understand; nobody is born knowing everything, and everyone learns gradually. So if you do not know how to order, go ahead and ask. Baristas are happy to recommend good drinks, because they want customers to have a good experience and to say sincerely, after drinking a coffee they brewed with care, "this coffee is really good."

As a daily beverage, coffee does not need to be treated as something especially high-end. It is just a condiment in our daily lives, something that adds atmosphere.

Coffee itself is very inclusive: it can be enjoyed in an exquisitely decorated store or at a roadside stall. It is just an ordinary agricultural product, just a beverage. More and more people are taking an interest in coffee, learning about it and studying it, and that is something to celebrate for the coffee industry, for coffee shops and for every coffee professional.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Once you are comfortable ordering, the next step is choosing beans to brew at home, and americano is the easiest place to start. FrontStreet Classic Blend is a good first buy for beginners using a machine: built from Indonesian Mandheling, Brazilian Red Bourbon and washed Vietnamese beans in a traditional Italian-style recipe, it carries the low-acid, full body and herbal, woody tones of Asian coffee alongside the balanced, smooth, creamy quality of the Americas. It extracts with aromas of butter, nuts, spice and dark chocolate, and whether you make an americano or a latte, its bold character and generous crema are its signature.

If value is the priority, FrontStreet Dark Cocoa Base Blend pairs Yunnan small-bean coffee with Brazilian Cerrado. As an americano it brings aromas of nuts, chocolate and cream with the acidity of ripe plum, a soft overall body and a friendly price, which also makes it a popular choice for a coffee shop. For something sweeter, FrontStreet Strawberry Candy Espresso is roasted medium and brings together single-origin Arabicas from Colombia, Costa Rica and Ethiopia, lifted by washed, natural and honey processing. Rose on the nose, low bitterness and gentle acidity, with grape, dried blueberry, sweet orange and fruit candy in americanos and lattes, and a distinctive almond note in the finish.