Move out of the way Melbourne. It turns out Queenslanders are the original coffee hipsters. A deep dive into the origins of the flat white has revealed that this popular coffee order most likely has its roots in regional Queensland.

Of course, as with any truly great culinary invention, there’s plenty of contention over who actually created the flat white. And this time, it looks like we’re once again going head to head with our neighbours across the ditch. (BTW, according to the ABC, the original pavlova recipe is definitely an Aussie invention, but the Kiwis were the first to use the name ‘pavlova’. So we both kind of win.)

Who invented the flat white?

New Zealand coffee company Karajoz claims that its founder Derek Townsend invented the flat white at his DKD cafe in Auckland in 1984. In a 2015 article on NZ news site 3 News, former Wellington barista Fraser McInnes claims he invented it at his cafe Bar Bodega in 1989, as a result of a failed cappuccino. 

But Aussie cafe owner Alan Preston claims that not only was he the first to bring the milky brew to the world, he brought it from his hometown in Far North Queensland. 

And just like most of the best things in life, we have the Italians to thank for it. Gather round, class. It’s time for a history lesson.

In 1891, immigration agent Chiaffredo Venerano Fraire spearheaded a plan to recruit labourers to work the cane fields north of Townsville and managed to lure more than 300 Italian migrants to the region, prompting a huge influx of Italians in the years that followed.

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By 1925, 44 percent of the sugar cane farms in the region were Italian owned, resulting in a whole lot of cashed-up farmers craving a taste of home. Individuals and cafes alike began importing the best espresso machines available from Italy to their new home in Queensland.

Preston outlines on his website, aptly named Flat White History, that the cafes of the sugar-producing regions generally had five coffee options on the menu, including a milk-heavy option called ‘the flat’. When Preston moved south to Sydney in 1985, he brought ‘the flat’ with him, christening it with a new name ‘the flat white’.

After opening his first Sydney cafe, Moors Espresso Bar, Preston went on to open four more cafes across Sydney with the flat white on the menu. And thus, a star was born.

Did Preston really ‘invent’ the flat white? Who can say? In the same 3 News article, former Sydney cafe owner Ian Bersten says he has a menu from his old cafe Belaroma dating back to 1984, which features a flat white. He also says that “the flat white existed in Australia as early as the 1960s and no one can claim it”.

Of course, ‘the flat’ isn’t the only example of how hyper-regional coffees in Australia can take hold – Melbourne’s version of the flat white comes by way of ‘the magic‘, which is a slightly stronger white coffee, Perth loves a ‘long mac topped up’, and across the globe in Basque country, it’s all about the cortado – espresso, steamed milk – perfect in any language.

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