re: Being an American about espresso...

In NOLA, not BR. For espresso--Velvet on Magazine St has Stumptown and Intelligensia beans, decent equipment, and employees who know how to use it. La Divina's Mag St location has a decent machine and usually fresh beans--theirs is a custom roast, very Italian in style. I like Z'otz on Oak, depending on who's pulling the shots. Merchant on Common uses Illy, but it's been fresh & not old (unlike some Illy users). I'm sure other 'hoods have decent coffee, these are just the spots convenient to me. Most of my coffee drinking is done at home, as my better half is a coffee geek.

Just not a fan of places serving sugary, milky drinks with flavors--sorry, that's not coffee.