Once upon a time, I had a Russian boyfriend who used “democratic” as an adjective to describe cafes and bars. In his opinion, it seemed that “civil” was its antonym, and as the native English speaker, who was I to beg to differ?

It’s taken a number of years now, but Vanya – I’m finally on your rave-length, I finally understand what you were rabbiting on about for all that time. It only took a weekend in Portugal, away from Paris, to have your ir-rationale finally dawn on me, clear as mud. I guess it’s all about context…

Because Guillaume and I have just spent the weekend away in Lisbon, and after a lethargic few beers in the sunshine, I found myself waxing lyrical about the marvel of “democratic” cafes.

The revelation goes something like this: in a democratic cafe, you can get whatever you want, whenever you want, at a price accessible to everyone. It’s the unpretentious point-and-choose domain of snack bars and kiosks, and I was instantly won over by it in Lisbon.

On one hand, there’s the liberty and equality of Paris, where everyone is free to purchase alcohol or soft drinks at an equal price – yet rest assured the patron has taken liberties with the prices. Budget travellers in Paris are confronted with a veritable minefield of seating arrangements and drink options – do you want that coffee enough to sit down for it, or are you happy to settle for standing at the counter with the old men and other 1€ espresso aficionados? Paris is best for those working on their poker faces, for you get very adept at not raising an eyebrow to a 4.50€ slurp of beer…

Lisbon, on the other hand, is coffee and cake pick-me-ups, snacks and sandwiches galore, and well-endowed bowls of fruit. All in the same sitting, if you’re that way inclined – but with prolific snack bars you may as well wander and graze.

When I see a hot chocolate flavour list reading like an ice-cream parlour menu (classic, dark, white, orange, mint, hazelnut, toffee, coffee, fruits or white & fruits – I kid you not!) tucked away in some corner of a cafe in Paris, maybe I’ll come around.

But for the meantime, I’ll have my taste buds nostalgic for some Portuguese “democratic” cafe culture…