Milk Coffee and Croissants

Mornings at a bakery start early.

I wake up at 5:00 AM.
I get ready in 30 minutes, put on some light makeup, and leave the house.

"Good morning!"
"Morning~"
"Looking forward to working with you today."
"Likewise!"

I greet the baking staff, who have already started prep, and the manager, then receive my locker key. I put on my white blouse, brown uniform, and tie, tie back my hair, pop on my hat, and attach my name tag. After carefully washing my hands down to my fingertips, I am ready to go.

Looking at the board with notices, I see a row of photos of breads made with plenty of autumn ingredients like pumpkin, sweet potato, and chestnuts.

"The new items all look delicious."
"We have a lot of items we're confident in this autumn. Some won't be out first thing in the morning, but please learn them one by one."
"Understood!"

When I first started my part-time job, the manager was a man with a gentle way of speaking, perfectly fitting the image of a "bakery manager." He was kind to me as a beginner and taught me each task carefully. I remember that there were many other veteran staff members during the morning shift, which was reassuring.

The rich scent of butter.
Freshly baked bread lined up in orderly rows.
The sharp, fragrant aroma of coffee.
Relaxing music.
Warm orange lighting.
I have loved the atmosphere of bakeries, where time flows slowly, since I was a child.

The bakery where I worked was a so-called cafe bakery with a small eat-in space of about 20 seats. We served not only bread but also drinks. Because there are coffee machines and drink prep involved, the morning shift is a bit busy. For someone like me who didn't even know that the beans for hot coffee and iced coffee were different, every task was fresh and interesting.

At first, I struggled to remember the types and names of the bread. While I knew the names of common breads like baguettes and melon pan, it took time before I could instantly identify the names of savory breads and creative breads at the register.
On my first day of work, the manager handed me a white sheet of paper and a pen, and I spent the time just writing down the displayed breads and their names. Even after my shift ended, I would visualize them in my head and memorize them like studying for a test. Once you learn the standard products and best-sellers, you only need to learn the seasonal breads that change periodically, so it's not that difficult once you get past the beginning.

In the morning, there were many orders for freshly made burger sets, sandwiches, hot dogs, and toast sets. After a while, when I switched to only working night shifts due to my class schedule, I realized that set menus are sold significantly more during the morning hours. Since sandwiches and hot dogs can only be made until the evening when the cooking staff is present, they are often sold out at night.

"We open in 3 minutes. I'm opening the shutters."
At the manager's signal, we straighten our uniform collars and stand up straight.
"Looking forward to working with you today."
"Likewise!"

7:00 AM, open.
Since the shop is inside the station, we start off at a leisurely pace while watching the backs of commuters and students. That day, a fair where you could get a deal if you bought three or more croissants had just started, and croissants were selling even more than usual.
I feel that the rich scent of fermented butter is the very scent of a luxurious morning. Those crescent-shaped items on silver trays were selling like hotcakes, not at all like it was morning time.

"Manager, croissants are selling well today."
"Yeah. I'm glad I put the poster out early. I'm going to start prepping the savory breads, so I'll be in the back. I'll leave the front to you."
"Understood!"

Bread names, set menus, drinks, cleaning tasks. Although I had learned all the tasks and was getting used to them little by little, I had only been working part-time for a few months. I felt anxious, but I thought it would be fine since there were no difficult tasks.

"Excuse me. Can I eat inside this bakery?"
The person who spoke to me was an elderly man wearing a deep blue jacket.
"Yes, you can. It's relatively empty right now, so I can guide you to a seat immediately."
"Thank you. Then, I'll go choose some bread."
"Yes. Please take your time choosing."
"Thank you for your kindness."

He looks about the same age as my grandfather, but with his crisp jacket and large black bag, he looks like a fully active professional. Watching him smile happily as he looks at each piece of bread on the shelves warms my heart. I can tell at a glance that this person really loves bread.

"Excuse me, young lady. Could you tell me what the shop recommends?"
"Yes! If it's your first time here, I recommend the croissants. We're having a fair right now, and you get a deal if you buy three or more. Though, three for one person is... a bit difficult, isn't it?"
"Haha. Three for one person is a bit greedy, isn't it?"
"My apologies. If you're looking for a set menu, I also recommend our freshly made sandwich or hot dog sets."
"Oh, that sounds good. Then, I'll have the sandwich set."
"Understood. Our drink menu is here."
"Understood. Thank you."

I remember being surprised that there was a customer who used such polite language with a young person like me. When I received the tray and tongs, he said thank you again.

"I have a question."
"Yes. What is it?"
"I'd like to order a milk coffee, is that on the menu?"

I heard the term "milk coffee" for the first time then. American coffee, blend coffee, espresso. As for coffee menus using milk, there were only cafe latte, cafe au lait, and cappuccino. Judging by the name, it was certain that it was coffee with milk, but I wasn't sure what kind of menu item it was.

"I'm sorry. My knowledge of coffee is still shallow. May I check with a more knowledgeable staff member?"
"No, I'm sorry for asking a troublesome question. Then, do you have anything with milk in the coffee?"
"For a menu item that combines coffee and milk, we have cafe au lait. Would that be alright?"
"Then, I'll have that hot, along with the sandwich set."
"Certainly. Please wait a moment."

I felt apologetic for my lack of knowledge, and at the same time, I was inwardly relieved because it seemed difficult to call out to the staff who were busy in the back. I received the payment, placed the freshly made sandwich on a plate, and prepared the hot cafe au lait and a wet towel.

"Thank you for waiting. If you'd like, I can bring it to your seat."
"Thank you. Then, please do."
When the man sat at a counter seat by the window where he could see outside well, he smiled and said thank you again.
"Please enjoy your time."

When I looked at the clock, it was past 8:00.
The number of people walking quickly through the station increased, and the shop was starting to get crowded. From the back, I could hear the baking staff's voice saying, "Croissants, freshly baked!" I felt the scent of butter, richer than in the morning, and felt a little regret that I should have recommended the croissants to the man after all. No sooner had I thought that than the line for the takeout register started to get even more crowded, and I became absorbed in nothing but ringing up customers and stocking items.

I finished my part-time job that day at 11:00.
I handed over to a housewife just before the lunch peak and headed to university.

On the train, I looked up "milk coffee."
I found out that while cafe au lait has a 1:1 ratio of drip coffee to milk, milk coffee has a higher proportion of milk. There doesn't seem to be a strict rule for the ratio. Is it something like coffee milk? When I looked up various cafe menus, it seems that it is still served as "milk coffee" in old-fashioned coffee shops.

If that man had wanted a drink with a strong milk flavor, would it have been better to suggest milk tea or hot milk as an alternative? There might have also been a suggestion for a cafe latte, which is espresso but has a higher proportion of milk.

Honestly, my interest in bread was stronger than in coffee, and I had never thought about the differences in coffee menus until now. It must be obvious to coffee lovers, but the more I looked into it, the more I realized it was a deep world. Cappuccino with fluffy foam milk looks mild, but it seems to be more bitter than a cafe latte. If you add chocolate sauce to that, it becomes a cafe mocha.
Even after arriving at university, I found myself spending most of my break time researching coffee.

After that, I was busy with another part-time job and university exams, and it ended up being two weeks before I could work at the bakery again. When I apologized to the manager for not being able to work shifts during the busy fair period, he gave me his usual kind words: "Good job on your exams. Another fair starts today, so I'm counting on you."
My first morning shift in two weeks. Waking up early is a bit tough, but smelling this fermented butter makes me feel so happy that I forget all about it in an instant.

It seems there was a delivery of coffee beans the day before, and as I organized the piles of them in the storage room, I realized I had more of an attachment to those beans than I did two weeks ago, and I laughed at myself. When I looked at the new menu recipe sheet handed to me by the manager, I saw that a marron latte had started last week. It's a recipe where you extract a cafe latte into a cup with marron syrup and top it with whipped cream and marron sauce. This must be absolutely delicious. It seems they will be lining up more autumn seasonal breads from the morning in addition to the standard breads. While having the baking staff show me the dough before it's baked, I quickly memorize the positions and colors of the register buttons.

7:00 AM. Another day at the bakery has begun.
There were many people in the station from the morning that day, and there were many takeout customers, perhaps for lunch. While ringing up customers, I cut loaves of bread into 8-slice and 6-slice pieces with a slicer. I set aside the thicker slices of bread for toast sets. I carefully put the freshly baked bread into bags but don't seal them, instead applying stickers and ingredient labels. Inside the counter, we proceed with prepping sandwiches and hot dogs for set menus and make coffee stock.
While I was spending my time in such a flurry, I was suddenly spoken to from behind.

"Young lady, good morning. It's a beautiful morning today, isn't it?"
I knew it was him immediately just from his voice. It was that man from before.

"Good morning! Oh, um..."
It was so sudden that I panicked. The man tilted his head slightly but waited for me to continue.
"I've been wanting to apologize..."
"Apologize?"
"When you came in the other day, I didn't know much about milk coffee and gave you a vague answer, and I am very sorry for that."
The man looked surprised and waved his hands left and right, as if to say it was nothing.
"I looked up a lot after I got home. Unfortunately, we don't have the same menu item as milk coffee, but I think I can guide you through the menu in more detail than before."
"I'm the one who should apologize for ordering something not on the menu. You looked busy after that, so I couldn't call out to you when I left, but that coffee was very delicious."
Hearing those words, I felt as if the small knot that had been stuck in my heart for so long was slowly melting away.
"I'm relieved to hear you say that. The autumn menu has also started, so if you'd like, please let me introduce it to you."
"Thank you. I'd love that."

Since there were few customers at that time, I explained the standard menu and drink menu, focusing on the new autumn products while looking at the bread on display. The man worried for a few minutes about what to do, but what he chose was a croissant, a Naruto Kintoki sweet potato bread, and a cafe latte.

"When I talk to you, I want to try everything."
"Thank you very much. If you'd like, please tell me your thoughts again."
"Understood."
The man smiled happily and sat at the same counter seat by the window as last time.
"Please enjoy your time."
I bowed slightly and returned to the register counter.

After that, the time past 8:00 was again crowded with takeout customers, and I was moving around more busily than usual, slicing bread, preparing bags for baguettes, stocking items, and ringing up customers. That day, the morning sandwich set sold out at 8:30, and just as I went outside the shop to take down the poster, the man called out to me.
"The Naruto Kintoki bread was exquisite. The croissant's butter flavor was also wonderful. The cafe latte had a strong milk flavor, and it was hard to say which was better between it and the cafe au lait. Your recommendations are spot on, young lady."
Watching the man talk happily all at once, a smile naturally spilled out.
"Just those words are enough to keep me going today. If you'd like, please stop by again."
"Thank you. I'll come again. Have a good day, young lady."
"Yes!"
I straightened my back and bowed deeply, saying thank you to the back of the deep blue jacket.

The rich scent of butter.
Freshly baked bread lined up in orderly rows.
The sharp, fragrant aroma of coffee.
Relaxing music.
Warm orange lighting.
That was the moment when one more reason why I love bakeries was added: "kind customers."

"Croissants and brioche, freshly baked!" Following the staff's words from the back, I also call out outside the shop.
"Fermented butter croissants and fluffy brioche, freshly baked!"
I make eye contact with salarymen and students who suddenly look up from their smartphones. With slightly relaxed expressions, they enter the shop one by one.

It looks like it's going to be a happy day today, too.