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C Weien Liu

The language of coffee
is constantly evolving and

changing over time.

From Taiwan to Dublin: English: Barrier or Bridge?
A Barista’s Perspective
The specialty coffee industry might need to increase ef-
My own first contact with specialty coffee was back in forts to bridge language barriers. Although English has been
2018 when I took a job as a barista at a specialty coffee shop in used as the main international language, it doesn’t mean that it
Dublin, Ireland. That’s where I met Weien Liu and we worked is easy for everyone to communicate in it. Ivette points out that
as baristas together. Originally from Taiwan, Weien had to cope establishing a unique language such as English helps so that the
with the language barrier while working in Dublin. vast majority have a common language, but in the long run it
Weien made lots of efforts to learn English by getting ends up being a problem.
used to the accent and pronunciation of Dubliners. Though “Everything is centralized in a single channel of com-
she was initially apprehensive when it came to communi- munication, perhaps the fairest thing would be for us to have Ivette Vera Loor
cation, she eventually built relationships with customers other languages into account, or when it comes to creating
and staff members. a relationship between buyer and producer tries to be more
“It took me a little time to get used to the accent and some equitable, and try to speak the language of the other. It may
unique pronunciation,” said Weien. “But it was also sweet that sound very complicated, but I think it would be the most
people at my workplace were speaking slowly for me to better fair.” she says.
understand.” She also explained the challenges he faced when It’s also about accessibility at the end of the day. While
trying to communicate with customers and other staff members. chatting to Yiannis he told me that although many coffee pro-
“The most challenging thing was standing at the till. It’s so ducing countries in Latin America have access to a lot of research
overwhelming for my colleagues when it was raining outside in their language when it comes to agronomy but when it comes
and we had a massive queue out there,” she said. to roasting methodology, the majority of the information is
It wasn’t just Weien who faced language barriers in her available in English only.
workplace. She believes that customers would feel the same Ivette also reminds us that not all producers speak English,
pressure when they find that the baristas are using a different and this should not be an impediment for them to create a
language. When interactions between people are as short as business relationship with importers. “The vast majority of
ordering a cup of coffee, having the ability to communicate information that we can access from baristas, producers, roast-
in a language you are familiar with can make a real difference. ers is in English, but it is no longer just the information that
Weien’s advice to other baristas facing a similar situation can be generated, it is the events we attend, everything is very
in their own workplaces is to be brave and never miss the op- centralized in English. And you realize that it is a problem
portunity to explore. “If you have any chance to explore this when you see that the producers are obliged to learn a language
world by traveling and working in a different country, don’t to create a business relationship, bearing in mind that not all
let language barriers hold you back,” she said. have easy access to learning languages.”

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