The search for "good" coffee

[Maillot Rouge]

Isn’t Coffee just to be drunk after a meal?
Espresso after breakfast and lunch then a mug of white coffee,from beans or grounds after evening meal.
Might this be a European thing?

[Nearholmer]

So, all those cafes (note etymology) all over Europe, where people sit drinking coffee, watching the world go by, at all hours of the day and night, how do they fit into the “only after a meal” scheme of things?

And, what about a bowl of cafe au lait and a croissant for breakfast, rather than after it?

[Maillot Rouge]

What would I know being a French/Scot who grew up in South East France

I suppose you have a point regarding some of the touristy cities but where I grew up most cafe customers were not locals and those that were would have a small glass of wine or beer,especially the older generation.Cafe-culture is most definitely a younger city dweller phenomenon I think.

[Nearholmer]

I get it.

You’re right, I had cities in mind, but you’ve made me think about other places too, including one I went into to buy tobacco (this was a long time ago), where the cafe turned out to be a counter and three stools at the very back of a tractor showroom. On the stools were three guys having snifters of what was probably calvados.