The cooling properties of takeaway beverages revealed a lower starting temperature than drinks prepared in the home,
but as these liquids were served in cardboard cups (with the lids left in place) they retained heat for substantially longer
periods. The takeaway drinks which were made with cold milk (cappuccino, latte and soya latte) had lower initial temperatures but cooled at a similar rate to black coffee (Americano). Legal proceedings, which have been well publicised, have been taken against companies for serving hot drinks at too high temperatures [10] and although warnings are placed on takeaway beverages, these liquids have the potential to cause a scald injury 30–60 min after being served. The prolonged retention of heat will be related to the type of vessel the drinks were served in. This is in keeping with the results of Ramanathan et al. [5], in which the cooling gradient of tea and coffee was examined in four types of cups, and supported by our findings of the considerably longer time taken for coffee in an insulated mug and boiled water left to cool in a kettle to reach ‘safe’ temperatures