Lee Tran Lam
@leetranlam.bsky.social
Freelance journalist, The Unbearable Lightness of Being Hungry podcast, New Voices On Food book editor, Should You Really Eat That podcast, Diversity In Food Media Australia and more. Yes, there once was a sandwich named after me!
"My reading can sometimes lag (it's taken me 4 months to read 92 pages of Samantha Harvey's Orbital)" – partly 'cos I savour the book in 2-page bites.
Thought I'd finish it before the next Booker Prize winner was announced – but no, still some pages to go!
Congrats to David Szalay's Flesh, BTW!
Thought I'd finish it before the next Booker Prize winner was announced – but no, still some pages to go!
Congrats to David Szalay's Flesh, BTW!
November 11, 2025 at 1:07 AM
"My reading can sometimes lag (it's taken me 4 months to read 92 pages of Samantha Harvey's Orbital)" – partly 'cos I savour the book in 2-page bites.
Thought I'd finish it before the next Booker Prize winner was announced – but no, still some pages to go!
Congrats to David Szalay's Flesh, BTW!
Thought I'd finish it before the next Booker Prize winner was announced – but no, still some pages to go!
Congrats to David Szalay's Flesh, BTW!
Love that you are doing that, Sofia/Not Sophie!
November 7, 2025 at 10:39 PM
Love that you are doing that, Sofia/Not Sophie!
Argh, so sorry you have had to deal with that! If coffee names can help people feel a bit more protected, I guess that is a good thing. I really hope you encounter better (and nicer) baristas, too!
October 10, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Argh, so sorry you have had to deal with that! If coffee names can help people feel a bit more protected, I guess that is a good thing. I really hope you encounter better (and nicer) baristas, too!
You are not alone in this at all and it’s definitely still an issue. This is something that the baristas talked about when I interviewed them - getting three Matts in a row who have ordered strong flat whites. That’s why one of the Matts asked if his order could be for “Batman”!
October 10, 2025 at 11:08 PM
You are not alone in this at all and it’s definitely still an issue. This is something that the baristas talked about when I interviewed them - getting three Matts in a row who have ordered strong flat whites. That’s why one of the Matts asked if his order could be for “Batman”!
I ran into one yesterday and asked for the most creative coffee name someone asked for and they said Nintendo!
October 9, 2025 at 10:20 PM
I ran into one yesterday and asked for the most creative coffee name someone asked for and they said Nintendo!
LOL, there were 2 reader comments about this!
“Every so often I use ‘Spartacus’ as a coffee name. Maybe 1 in 20x someone else in the cafe picks up on the joke and joins in…”
“Spartacus could be amusing but there is a strong chance a fight would break out and you'd never end up getting the coffee.”
“Every so often I use ‘Spartacus’ as a coffee name. Maybe 1 in 20x someone else in the cafe picks up on the joke and joins in…”
“Spartacus could be amusing but there is a strong chance a fight would break out and you'd never end up getting the coffee.”
October 9, 2025 at 10:00 PM
LOL, there were 2 reader comments about this!
“Every so often I use ‘Spartacus’ as a coffee name. Maybe 1 in 20x someone else in the cafe picks up on the joke and joins in…”
“Spartacus could be amusing but there is a strong chance a fight would break out and you'd never end up getting the coffee.”
“Every so often I use ‘Spartacus’ as a coffee name. Maybe 1 in 20x someone else in the cafe picks up on the joke and joins in…”
“Spartacus could be amusing but there is a strong chance a fight would break out and you'd never end up getting the coffee.”
It was also great to chat to @sukhmanikhorana.bsky.social and barista/cafe owner Rowena Chansiri for this @australia.theguardian.com story about “coffee names”.
Even famous people get their name misinterpreted (@wolfblitzercnn.bsky.social had a Starbucks order delivered to “Oof”)!
Even famous people get their name misinterpreted (@wolfblitzercnn.bsky.social had a Starbucks order delivered to “Oof”)!
October 9, 2025 at 5:12 AM
It was also great to chat to @sukhmanikhorana.bsky.social and barista/cafe owner Rowena Chansiri for this @australia.theguardian.com story about “coffee names”.
Even famous people get their name misinterpreted (@wolfblitzercnn.bsky.social had a Starbucks order delivered to “Oof”)!
Even famous people get their name misinterpreted (@wolfblitzercnn.bsky.social had a Starbucks order delivered to “Oof”)!
I guess this is why people use Batman or Beyonce as their coffee name!
October 9, 2025 at 5:00 AM
I guess this is why people use Batman or Beyonce as their coffee name!
I first came across the concept of having a “coffee name” when I heard Samin Nosrat say in an interview that her “coffee name” was Sam.
She had mixed feelings about it - and so do I! But I totally understand why people use one, as the intro to my @australia.theguardian.com story explains.
She had mixed feelings about it - and so do I! But I totally understand why people use one, as the intro to my @australia.theguardian.com story explains.
October 9, 2025 at 2:18 AM
I first came across the concept of having a “coffee name” when I heard Samin Nosrat say in an interview that her “coffee name” was Sam.
She had mixed feelings about it - and so do I! But I totally understand why people use one, as the intro to my @australia.theguardian.com story explains.
She had mixed feelings about it - and so do I! But I totally understand why people use one, as the intro to my @australia.theguardian.com story explains.
Ah, thanks for your nice comment! I've definitely gone through a variety of emotions about this, and have settled for convenience (fake name!) rather than my real name. I'm sorry to hear your friend has to deal with misspellings (and a fake ID) as well! Hopefully he's found a 'coffee name' he likes!
October 9, 2025 at 1:07 AM
Ah, thanks for your nice comment! I've definitely gone through a variety of emotions about this, and have settled for convenience (fake name!) rather than my real name. I'm sorry to hear your friend has to deal with misspellings (and a fake ID) as well! Hopefully he's found a 'coffee name' he likes!
Olive oil has been used as fuel, bug repellent & it's so valuable that counterfeiting it is like drug trafficking! Influencers believe in taking olive oil shots – but should we really? Great talking to @emantzioris.bsky.social about health & history for this podcast!
www.sbs.com.au/audio/podcas...
www.sbs.com.au/audio/podcas...
Olive Oil: Lamp fuel, criminal swag, pharmacy staple
For thousands of years, we’ve used olive oil for everything: from lighting lamps to chasing bugs out of our ears. In Australia, the oldest olive trees – planted 200 years ago – are still alive today. ...
www.sbs.com.au
September 22, 2025 at 3:38 AM
Olive oil has been used as fuel, bug repellent & it's so valuable that counterfeiting it is like drug trafficking! Influencers believe in taking olive oil shots – but should we really? Great talking to @emantzioris.bsky.social about health & history for this podcast!
www.sbs.com.au/audio/podcas...
www.sbs.com.au/audio/podcas...
Absolutely - that’s why they headed to India for supplies. Also, Ango-Indian cuisine was popular in early days of settlement, too.
September 9, 2025 at 4:24 AM
Absolutely - that’s why they headed to India for supplies. Also, Ango-Indian cuisine was popular in early days of settlement, too.
Yeah, it is sad that the viral photo of anti-immigration protesters eating yum cha seems to suggest there’s a massive disconnect between what they were apparently marching for and where they like to eat.
September 9, 2025 at 4:22 AM
Yeah, it is sad that the viral photo of anti-immigration protesters eating yum cha seems to suggest there’s a massive disconnect between what they were apparently marching for and where they like to eat.
Migrants have been feeding Australia for a long time, esp. with people from China and Italy setting up market gardens (see this historical note, which mentions how Chinese market gardens produced affordable fruit & veg after a severe drought in 1892, www.migrationheritage.nsw.gov.au/exhibition/w...)
September 8, 2025 at 7:36 AM
Migrants have been feeding Australia for a long time, esp. with people from China and Italy setting up market gardens (see this historical note, which mentions how Chinese market gardens produced affordable fruit & veg after a severe drought in 1892, www.migrationheritage.nsw.gov.au/exhibition/w...)