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by: Krystel Obaņa
Coffee, as most of you know, is a way of living. It compliments almost anything---something intriguing like a mood, something enchanting like an idea---and most of all, something fabulously good.Like food.
After going around stalking and harassing coffee drinkers, I got the top ten list of favorite things and foods that go with their coffee. And here they are:
Common favorites
- At the 10th spot, we have sandwiches...and what a range of sandwiches there are to pick from. There's the ham sandwich, tuna, chicken, beef, seafood, vegetable, cheese, cold cuts, and turkey. Anything can be made into a sandwich these days! And as if it wasn't hard enough to decide on what's to be sandwiched, you have to pick the kind of bread to use: rye, wheat, white, Italian, etc. Sandwiches are lovely companions of coffee because, "Sumasarap yung lasa!" and "It's a complete meal - completely delicious!"
- Number 9 is whipped cream. What an odd thing to be "eating" with coffee. But really, how does one describe the intake of cream? What word is fit for it? Do we eat it? Drink it? Slurp it? Chew it? Or do we just plain swallow it down? It doesn't matter to anyone how cream is devoured really. Now, those who didn't like their coffee too strong, I think cream is God-sent. It's fluffy, white, has amazing texture, melts down your mouth and sends one to coffee heaven.
- Number 8 came as such a surprise to me, because it's pastries. This includes fantastic, mouthwatering eclairs, cream puffs, cupcakes, cookies and the lot at number eight! (let me take a minute to compose myself) I was flabbergasted so I searched around and asked why it wasn't so popular. The reason was that sometimes pastries are too much to handle because of the heavy aftermath of gulping, let's say, two slices of an Oreo chessecake. "Heabigat pare!" Nonetheless, coffee and cakes = "Grabe na 'to!" Heck, if you're not satisfied with that, there's a million coffee cakes out there, but that's a whole different article altogether.
- At number 7 we have... (sounding the trumpets) ...believe it or not, it's alcohol. Alcohol over pastries? I still couldn't believe it. Alcohol is actually good with coffee. I encountered a few Kahlua drinkers, and boy, did they have a lot to say about their favorite beverage. And there's more. You take coffee in shots! And no, I'm not just talking about those amazing expresso shots at Starbucks, but shots of coffee and alcohol. Have you ever heard of "jello-shots?" Well, you take gin, mix it with coffee and the jello mixture and voila! You've got coffee jello shots. Go figure! Teenagers, that of course includes me, are outrageous.
I'm sure there are a lot more uncanny alcohol-and-coffee pair-ups but the best friend of a drunk is coffee. After the painting the town red, there's always coffee to go home to and save the day and your head from a migraine! Unless of course coffee jello-shots are the reason for your pain.
- Sumptuous number 6 belongs to candies and chocolates (aren't all things that start with the letter "C" just divine?). These are ultimate aphrodisiacs. Eating them along with coffee just sends you to a place better than any pleasure known to man. Of course, I'm exaggerating. But why number six once again?! Because---listen to this---most of those who drink coffee are health freaks (but of course coffee is an exception - it's not that bad for you). Don't they know that chocolate is healthy! Poor, unfortunate dieters souls.
- At number 5 we've got bread and biscuits. People use these for dipping and dunking it into their hot coffee, or for scooping out the cream-and-chocolate shreds from their cold coffee drinks. The number one type of bread is pan de sal, followed by bagels with cream cheese, and the scrumptious Spanish bread. "It really absorbs the taste of the coffee and after chewing it down you follow it up by taking a sip of your huge cup of joe and you're just in for it, it makes your day complete!"
- The number 4 place goes to (cough cough) cigarettes. Cigarettes and coffee: "things couldn't get any better than this." The dynamic duo can increase your social life and earn you connections from the world-wide caffeine and smoker's guilds. The taste of a puff and a gulp of coffee is said to be a delicious sin, an addicting drug. As the saying goes, "You, me and five bucks" completes the day. (For those of you who don't know that saying, it means : good conversation, coffee and some cigarette = $5.)
- Number 3 on the list, and I would have to agree with this, are books. Apart from the richness of coffee, we embrace the knowledge and wonder from novels and textbooks (yes, even textbooks) that send our nerves a-twitching from excitement or from fear of failure. Although this is not "food" food, this is definitely soul food. We see a lot of people hanging around, brandishing a cup of coffee on one hand and a book on the other. Some think they're pretentious: "Nagpapa-cute lang 'yan". I beg to differ. The aroma of coffee and the timeless smell of published books are the enough to keep the mind and stomach full.
- Number 2 is, amazingly, coffee. This just means that at number two, people like coffee just as it is. All alone. The flavor, the fumes, the luscious feeling of it as it teases your taste buds. That's enough for some people who are true addicts of coffee. I'm referring to those who can't go out into the world without a cup in the morning. This is a warning: Stay away from these people. They are the ones who drink coffee black, no sugar or cream (gasp!) It's like coffee...with extra coffee, please.
- And at the number 1 spot, sinangag at tuyo gets the most votes as the best companion of kape. True-blue Filipinos know and understand this. Coffee is definitely THE breakfast companion. You got the yummy rice, the even yummier tuyo and eggs or what not, and you know you're ready to face the world.
Coffe and Company
Gaga Over Java, Cuckoo for Coffee