Coffee was prohibited from the working classes on the grounds that it caused sterility, but this simply gave rise to a lively black market trade. The king finally outlawed the roasting of beans in private homes, even appointing "coffee sniffers" to track down illicit aromas to their source. This ludicrous state of affairs was short-lived, though, and by beginning of the 19th century, coffee had been reinstated.
Germany now took the lead in European coffee consumption. Coffee was served at mealtimes and at family get-togethers on Sunday afternoons. Coffee houses nevertheless remained no-go areas to respectable women. However, in public parks there were pavilions and special tents ( Zelte) to which families could bring their own pre-ground coffee, and the patrons simply provided hot water. The turn of the century saw the rise of another family-style institution - the Cafe - which sold cakes as well as hot drinks. At first these Konditorein were used as an alternative to the coffee houses, but eventually they took over and the old-style coffee house gradually disappeared.
resources: ""The World Encyclopedia of Coffee""
