EAT IN ASIA / Destinations / Other destinations / Northern america / Dominican republic
What is 'café dominicano' and where to buy it?
What is so characteristic for that coffee? How is it made? And what are the most significant and important coffee regions in the Dominican Republic? Finally, where to buy the most traditional and the best café dominicano?
Where to buy café dominicano?
The most important thing is, that it is available in almost all places in the Dominican Republic. It is like water. Shops, stalls, bars, canteens, and eateries usually do offer it. It is available in comedores, colmados, and sometimes in Dominican cafeterias (do not be misled by thy name – cafetería, in the Dominican Republic, cafeterías are different from what you know from other countries – read more about Dominican cafeterías here). Also, long-distance bus and guaguas stops have at least one small place where a person is standing with a thermo-flask coffee. Café dominicano is served in small, shot-like plastic cups with a lot of sugar and optionally with a milk substitute – coffee creamer, that actually, more or less, has nothing to do with a regular, fresh cow milk. But, as it is an alternative, there is no need of having it.
Café dominicano is relatively cheap, mildly strong, but due to the abundance of sugar and caffeine, gives a strong kick in the morning. This coffee is served hot or warm. I do not think it has any cold equivalent. Actually, I have never seen it in the Dominican Republic. Even Starbucks frappucino-like or just iced-coffee are really rare and appear only in touristic areas. What is more, Dominicans do not buy it. It is purely for tourist that can pay multiple times more. Just to give you a rough comparison – the Western style coffee will cost you more or less ten times as much as a regular, Dominican one. And what is important, it does not mean, it is going to be better. The only difference will probably be only in the size. But it depends on what you prefer – whether to have a good coffee or a lot of no matter what kind of coffee.
A quick intro to the history of the Dominican coffee
The Dominican’s history of coffee is relatively long, as it is one of the countries in this region (Central America and Northern America), where coffee was started being cultivated the earliest. And while there is nothing extraordinary either in the amount of the produced coffee (Costa Rica produces and exports much more), or in its quality (comparing it for example with Costa Rican coffee), Dominican’s coffee is still worth trying and buying.
Quick facts about the Dominican coffee
When talking about the Dominican coffee, there are some points that should be noted
- Generally speaking, in the Dominican Republic, cultivated is only Arabica.
- There are six coffee zones in the Dominican Republic, in which coffee is cultivated: Barahona, Cibao, Cibao Altura, Cordillera Central, Neyba, Valdesia.
- Top Dominican’s coffee brands: La Tacita, Café Santo Domingo, El dominicano, Café Pilón.
- All coffees that are named Dominican Coffee, are good for almost all coffee brewing methods.
- The quality of coffee, that is in regular shops is the same as the quality of the one exported (in many countries that export coffee, the best sort of grains is being exported, and what stays on the local market is of a worse quality).
- Even a relatively cheap coffee in the Dominican Republic is of a good quality, so there is no need of buying any super expensive one.
Types of coffee in the Dominican Republic – what means what?
- medio pollo – coffee with milk, espresso with a little bit of milk served in a small cup
- café con leche – coffee with milk, coffee with more water and a little bit of milk, served in big cups
- café – black coffee with sugar
- café amargo – black coffee with no sugar
- café americano – filtered coffee with more water, slightly diluted
