Coffee Culture in America

By Natalie Stadler (Spring 2010)

America runs on coffee. Coffee culture has become a prevalent part of the everyday life of Americans of different ages, races and social statuses. Coffee is like a source of energy, with which people fuel themselves up starting from the early morning and until the sky turns black. It is a social element as well as just a habit for many. Coffee shops are within everyone’s reach – they are in the city, in the suburbs, at the universities, at the airports and in many bookstores. And furthermore, there are many varieties of coffee and coffee drinks available to suit everybody’s diverse tastes: hot, cold, espresso, mocha, latte, cappuccino, double shots, light and the list goes on and on.

The “coffee craze” starts from the early morning, as people head to work, classes, meetings and about their daily business. People line up at the Café waiting patiently for their favorite coffee drink to start their day with. After that, the work day has officially begun. Often on weekday mornings train cars are filled with the aroma of coffee, as people get their first doze of caffeine. Meanwhile, while walking on the streets of Chicago, more often than not, one will see people holding carton cups with sleeves containing fresh brew coffee or latte.

Coffee break for lunch is almost like a smoking habit. It doesn’t matter whether one is at school or at work, or whether the person is a university student or a police officer. For many, having lunch break without coffee is like having a cigarette without a lighter. Around noon time, once again people come alive and coffee shops are accumulating their revenues.  There coffee is also a social factor –  people meet up to chat over cups of latte or mocha, some people hold meetings or interviews, and what a great place a coffee shop is to make new acquaintances!

In the afternoon and until the night, for some, coffee serves as a life jacket. It helps one through overtime hours at work or for essays and project that are due the next day. It gives the necessary boost to keep working and have the mind stay active. Often one will notice students in the late evening at the university library sipping their coffee while studying as they try to stay awake.

Coffee is everywhere and for everyone. Some people are addicts, some are moderate drinkers, and some are light. Nevertheless, 54 percent of people in the United States drink coffee daily, plus 25 percent drink it occasionally (coffeeresearch.org).