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Trope · Genre
Synonyms:	coffeeshop AU
Related:	Bakery AU
See Also:	Food in Fanworks
Tropes · Slash Tropes · Tropes by Fandom
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	Contents 1 Some Fanworks; 2 Gallery; 3 External Links; 4 References;
	Contents 1 Some Fanworks; 2 Gallery; 3 External Links; 4 References;

The Barista AU (or coffeeshop AU, or the closely related bakery AU) is a popular fanfiction trope in LiveJournal fandoms. In most cases, one half of the main pairing is the barista and the other is or becomes their favorite customer; in some stories the whole cast works at a coffee shop.

This trope is especially popular in fandoms where one character is very attached to coffee, either in canon or in fanon, or is frequently stressed.

Other explanations^[1] for the popularity include:

"almost unrivaled opportunities for schmoop: cinnamon scents, coffee bean metaphers, yenta or intended lover regulars, small enough that an OTP running it could work"
"write what you know; the 16-year-old anime fans write high school AU, the 20+ media fans write coffee shop AU"
"for the same reason every second hipster wants to open a cool little latte place and serve organic cupcakes, they think that working in a coffee shop is as much fun as being served in one (thus, reading about it, is like emotional chai tea or something...)"
"a perception that these occupations are more fun or lighthearted than many others, or more satisfying [...] or simply that they might be less intense (allowing the BSOs to focus most of their emotional energy on each other, as in pairing stories they should, instead of on office politics, promotions, or the size of holiday bonuses) in terms of time spent at work or the energy given to it."

The earliest example may be a popslash story, Café de l'Amour, by NSyncGrrl, written no later than 2001. In the author's note, she speculates that the story started a trend in popslash.^[2]

Stargate Atlantis also saw an explosion of Barista AUs, due to fans interpreting Rodney McKay's canonical love of coffee as caffeine addiction. Wank ensued around a story in which Ronon Dex was a barista, while the rest of the cast had positions of higher status;^[3] this coincided with a general discussion of the roles Ronon and Teyla often had in SGA AUs. (See also String Theory, A Concerto for Violin in D Minor and Race and Fandom.)

The trope spread out and had become very popular by 2008 (?).^{[citation needed]} In 2011, thefourthvine stated "I think we can all agree that the barista AU is a fine and honorable tradition in fandom."^[4] In the header of her own Suits barista AU, friskaz said "Every fandom needs a barista au."^[5]

Barista AUs are especially popular in Bandom, in part because Jon Walker of Panic! at the Disco had actually worked as a barista prior to joining the band. He and other characters are often depicted as working in coffeeshops in College AUs.^[6] Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance also has a well-documented love of/addiction to coffee, causing him to be frequently cast as a coffeeshop customer.