The Best Coffee Food Pairings (To Get the Best of Both!)

In our opinion, coffee is great anytime and any way. But we do agree that there are some coffee food pairings that just bring out the best in both.

In fact, the science supports this. Researchers from Aarhus University in Denmark have found that coffee actually enhances and changes our sense of taste. So, after a cup of coffee, sweet foods taste sweeter and bitter foods aren’t as intense. And interestingly, it’s not the caffeine in coffee that’s the driver for the change, as decaf coffee has just the same effect.

But don’t just take our word for it! We’ve pulled together some of the best coffee food pairings for you to try yourself.

The Best Coffee Food Pairings 

Sweet Baked Goods

We know this is a very broad category, but honestly, we’ve never found a sweet bakery item that didn’t taste better with a cup of coffee. From the flaky, buttery layers of a croissant to nana’s jam topped scones, coffee compliments and intensifies the sweetness of these little slices of heaven. And don’t forget the donuts! Great for dunking in your cup, and all the better for it.  

Our favourite coffee pairing for sweet foods—Ethiopian

Breakfast Foods

We tend to think of breakfast foods as sweet or savoury. Waffles, pancakes and French toast, all fall in the sweet category and, just like baked goods, are simply better accompanied by a cup of coffee. Of course, savoury breakfast foods, like bacon and eggs, work well, too. Ironically, the salty, moreishness of these meals are also enhanced by coffee. And can you really call it breakfast without a cup of your favourite beans?

Our favourite coffee pairing with breakfast foods—Guatemalan 

Cheese

Yes, you heard right. Cheese. Cheese platters are incredible served with single origin, or a unique blended coffee. People have long drunk coffee with dairy, such as milk or cream. And it’s not a big leap (and well worth it!) to deconstruct those flavours and serve them together. 

When it comes to what coffee to drink with your arvo cheese platter, the dominant flavours and textures of dairy demand a full flavoured coffee. We love a rich medium roasted espresso shot or French Press served black.

Our favourite coffee pairing with cheese—Colombia

Berries

Most berries taste absolutely phenomenal with coffee. And berries are very good for you, filled with antioxidants and other micro nutrients. But when it comes to berries, you want to make sure you get the right coffee food pairing to best bring out the fruity notes of the coffee and highlight the berries best flavour.

For strawberries and raspberries with love African coffees—Ethiopia, Kenya and Burundi. But for blueberries, we love the slightly more substantial body of our BANTAT Blend of Kenyan and Ethiopian beans.

Our favourite coffee pairing with berries—Ethiopian or the BANTAT blend

Chocolate 

We couldn’t leave chocolate off our best coffee food pairings list. When it comes to coffee and chocolate, it’s pretty much a match made in heaven. From our perspective this pairing works whether you’ve got dark, milk or white chocolate, but we generally can’t go past Belgian milk chocolate like our Mochas you can try at the shop.

Our favourite coffee pairing with chocolate—Brazilian 

Spicy Foods

Capsaicin, the thing that gives spicy foods the heat, dissolves in fat, oil and alcohol, but not in water. So, if you’re eating a breakfast of eggs with sriracha (and we recommend you do!), then taking a sip of coffee after will give the kick more intensity.

But it doesn’t just add to the heat. People who eat spicy foods with a cup of coffee say helps them taste the flavours with more clarity. Give it a try!

Our favourite coffee pairing with spicy foods—Colombian

 We’ve got loads of different beans in our shop that are great for your favourite coffee food pairings. Check them out!