Honestly, I was looking at a new cafe's menu board yesterday and the kerning on their 'espresso' was so bad it looked like 'expresso'. | Graphic Design Inspo - Guest Forum
Bad kerning can definitely trick your brain. My eyes read it as 'expresso' first too, even though I know the right spelling. It's a funny little brain glitch.
Totally get that. Reminds me of a sign at a local diner. They have "fresh lemonade" painted on the window. The "fr" in fresh is so close it looks like one weird letter. My brain always reads it as "resh lemonade" for a split second. Makes me laugh every time I drive by.