café / coffee

1. café instantané / soluble / poudre : instant coffee

Instant coffee also comes decaffeinated.

Very easy and widely used. A lot of French people drink it for breakfast.

How to use it ?

One or two teaspoons to a cup of hot water, add milk or sugar to taste.

Where to find it ?

Next to the coffee beans and ground coffee. Close to the cocoa drinks and tea. Packaged in glass bottles between 100 and 200 grammes. This department is sometimes called "rayon petit déjeuner", "thé & café".

How to store it ?

Several months in a cupboard, a few weeks once opened. Avoid humidity.

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2. Café moulu, qualité filtre : ground coffee


Choose between Arabica and Robusta or a mix of these. Robusta is stronger than Arabica, and is used in restaurants and bars to make espresso (expresso).

You can also make filtered coffee with it, in the morning (if you have enough time or a good coffee machine) and/or after lunch. The after-lunch coffee is usually stronger than the breakfast one, and is served in a small cup, as opposed to the morning bowl.

How to use it ?

You need a coffee machine and depending on the type of machine, you may also need filters filtres.

Where to find it in a supermarket ?

Next to the instant coffee, in an aluminum package or in a metallic box.

Elsewhere :

If you like coffee, just go to a « torréfacteur » or « torréfaction » (the torrefacteur is the person working in a torrefaction). Torréfaction is a small shop where they roast coffee in small batches and grind it to order. In a torréfaction you can buy coffee beans from all over the world, ranging from light to dark roast. Choose the coffee beans you want, and enjoy (café à moudre : coffee beans). You can also find specialty teas of different kinds in a torréfaction.

How to store it ?

Several weeks as long as it's not opened, then a few weeks in an airtight box.

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Other kinds of coffee powders in the same department :

Capuccino : an instant coffee powder that contains milk and cocoa powder, and is sometimes sweetened. You only need to add water, and that's it.

Café au lait : also a mix of instant coffee and milk, sometimes sweetened « sucré ».

Chicorée : chicory. Usually chicory is mixed with coffee « chicorée café ». It resembles instant coffee, you just need to add water. It has a milder flavour than instant coffee, and less caffeine.