Is There A Difference Between A Café And A Coffee Shop?

You would be forgiven for assuming that a café is nothing more than a coffee shop in cursive — that is, a somewhat classier word for the same thing. Dunkin', for instance, would be defined as a coffee shop, while Starbucks, with its venti lattes, would be labeled a café. While some people use the two terms interchangeably, depending on who you ask or where you are in the world, you may find that cafés and coffee shops refer to two different things.

In the United States, coffee shops are places where you can get hot beverages, like coffee, tea, or hot chocolate (which is slightly different to hot cocoa), as well as some light food, including snacks, sandwiches, and pastries. Cafés, on the other hand, are restaurants which offer a wider and more substantial variety of food. Essentially, if it's a place where you can get coffee and maybe a light lunch, it's a coffee shop, and if it's a place where you can get a hearty lunch and some coffee, it's a café. It is also important not to confuse either with a diner, where you can get food and coffee 24 hours a day (or at least you could, before the pandemic).

While the meaning of the phrase "café" is unchanged in Amsterdam, a "coffee shop" refers to a communal place where you can buy and consume marijuana. You can still buy coffee in these places, just as you can read the articles in an issue of Playboy, but it's generally acknowledged that those who frequent Amsterdam coffee shops aren't looking for good java. If you're afraid your naive mother traveling through Europe might fall into a den of iniquity while looking for a nice cup of tea, don't worry. These coffee shops make their true purpose clear to all but the most oblivious prospective customers through their color scheme and imagery.

Even if you accidentally end up in an coffee shop by mistake, don't worry. By and large, they're pretty chill places. Like the endangered British pub, Amsterdam coffee shops are one of those mythical "third places," or hangout spots outside of one's home or workplace, that all societies desperately need more of.