Coffee and Coffeehouses

Drawing on the accounts of early European travelers, original Arabic sources on jurisprudence and etiquette, and treatises on coffee from the period, the author recounts the colorful early history of the spread of coffee and the influence of coffeehouses in the medieval Near East. Detailed descriptions of the design, atmosphere, management, and patrons of early coffeehouses make fascinating reading for anyone interested in the history of coffee and the unique institution of the coffeehouse in urban Muslim society

The early history of coffee, from its use in Sufi rituals to its widespread consumption in medieval Muslim coffeehouses, makes fascinating reading. Drawing on original Arabic sources and the accounts of early European travelers, Hattox describes the colorful history of coffee and the birth of the unique institution of the coffeehouse in urban Muslim society.