Boy did I feel like a country cousin today when I was in a cafe in Ponsonby and I asked for sugar for my flat white.
The server pointed at the little jar of brown crystals in front of me and said “well, you’ve got coconut sugar there, or I can get you some white sugar if you like?”
Oh this will be fine thanks! I said, having never heard of coconut sugar. It looks more like crushed biscuit crumbs than grains of sugar, and doesn’t dissolve very well, but it was sweet enough. I presume there are some (perceived) health benefits for the hipper crowd?