In small towns, the local café is often the central gathering spot for conversation and meetings. Such cafés are especially popular for breakfasts. In central business districts (CBD) of larger cities cafés and coffee shops are often open only for breakfast and lunch, since their patrons leave the area after business hours.

A "café" can also refer to a small informal public discussion. These are usually live events, and often focus on starting an open conversation on a particular topic. Examples include science cafes in the US 1, Cafe Scientifique in the UK 2, and Cafe Society in Chicago 3.

In Europe

In European countries such as Austria, France, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, etc, the term café implies primarily serving coffee, typically complemented by a slice of cake/tart/pie, a "danish pastry", a plain bun, or similar sweet pastry on the side. Many (or most) cafés also serve small meals such as sandwiches. European cafés often have an enclosed or outdoor section extending onto the sidewalk. Some cafés also serves alcoholic beverages, although British cafés never sell alcohol.

In France, and some other countries, a brasserie is a "café" (in the American sense of the word) that serves meals, generally single dishes, in a more relaxed setting than a restaurant. In the Netherlands, a café is an establishment selling liquor, as opposed to coffeeshop, which sells soft drugs (cannabis and hashish) and is typically not allowed to sell liquor.

Spelling and pronunciation

A long history of lack of support for accented characters in (first) typewriters and (later) computer OSs (which can be explained principally by the fact that these technologies were largely pioneered by people whose native language, English, generally did not require diacritical marks) has guaranteed that the spelling cafe has also become common.

See also

• Cafeteria
• Coffeehouse
• Greasy spoon
• Internet café
• Sidewalk cafe
• Cafe Scientifique
• Corporate Average Fuel Economy(CAFE)

External links

• Internet Cafés Directory