Coffee
Greek breakfast always starts with coffee. Coffee is an essential part of the Greek diet and it starts like most other cultures, first thing in the morning. However, I don’t know any Greeks that drink the traditional filtered coffee or “americano” in the morning. Most Greeks will drink a Greek coffee.
Greek Coffee: a very strong coffee with ground coffee beans, boiled and poured into your mug without being filtered.
It is basically the same as Turkish or Armenian coffee. It is my favorite coffee to drink early in the morning right when I wake up.
Learn how to make it here Greek Coffee
Is Greek Coffee actually healthy? Read the facts here
Then there is the famous Frappe. Before espresso got famous in Greece the Frappe was the go-to coffee. Frappe is made with Nescafe and also “nes”. Frappe is most common when you are home and want a coffee because it is very easy to make and you don’t need much.
Frappe: Nescafe, sugar, ice, and foam on the top from being stirred with an electric stirrer or shaken hard. (served with a straw) (milk also can be added)
Nes: Basically the same as a Frappe except it is served hot so no ice or straw.
Just so you know- If you drink your coffee without sugar, I don’t recommend these last 2 coffees. Whenever I drink Nescafe without sugar it burns my stomach!
Finally, the most popular coffee once the sunrises and in summer, is the Freddo Espresso or Freddo Cappuccino.
99% of Greeks drink this. Most of the time when they get there coffee out. However, having an espresso machine at the house is becoming more and more common.
Click on the link to know more.
How do you order a Freddo Espresso?
Cigarettes
As many know, Greeks are one of the biggest smoking countries in the world. It is definitely not a positive, but for the realism of this blog, a coffee and 2 cigarettes is many Greeks breakfast…
Food?
Food is a bit more complicated. Many Greeks won’t have breakfast and if they do, it is some biscuits or homey and bread. Nowadays, Greece had come a bit more modern and it is more likely to see cereal or other typical breakfasts being eaten. When they go out and eventually get their second coffee, a freddo espresso this time, they will buy a “tiropita”, “spanakopita”, or “bougatsa”.
These “pitas” are breakfast pastries made out of many layers of buttered Filo. On the inside it can be many different things from different kinds of cheese, spinach, cream, and more.
Filo- A type of dough
These Cafes open up around 07:00 am and will usually have these “pitas” ready around 08:30-09:00.
Children are different and may have your normal child breakfast, cereal, honey and bread, marmalade, and bread.
It is important to know this because you will not be able to find many breakfast places in Greece, however coffee places with these pies are everywhere.
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