For our first review, we’re not reviewing fewd! We need to kickstart this site, and what better way than with coffee!
Dunkin’ Donuts coffee is the perfect start for our site. Why? It is NOT Starbucks! Starbucks is fine and great, and blah blah blah. But it isn’t typical coffee for Fewd Snobs. Dunkin’ is perfect.
Dunkin’ Donuts was founded in Massachusetts in 1950. Once upon a time, the focus of the brand was donuts. Remember that? They even had this grand concept of the “Dunkin’ Donut.” It had a handle built into the donut. The idea was that you could “dunk” the “donut” into coffee. Somewhere long ago, the original “Dunkin’ Donut” was dropped from the menu.
For some time now, Dunkin’ has changed the focus of the brand from donuts to coffee. Although they have specialty coffee drinks (the idea being competing with Starbucks), the main draw is the original coffee.
First, the price is appealing. For around 2 bucks, you can get a large coffee. Not a venti. Not a grande. This is just a LARGE! There is also an extra large available! Not Extra Grande!
Dunkin’ has several different kinds of drinks available including espressos, iced coffee, and teas. Dunkin’ also now has a dark roast. This review is for their standard coffee. This is the one that you get when you just order a “coffee.”
There is nothing wrong with plain black coffee, but the Fewd Snobs agree that the best way to get a cup of Dunkin’ is with cream and sugar. Herman is a black coffee drinker, period. He likes Dunkin’s cream and sugar. And that is saying something. Denny puts so much sugar in his coffee, he sometimes slips into a diabetic coma. Both of us agree that this is the way to go.
There are rumors all over the internet about what makes Dunkin’ taste different than all competitors. Some say it is the temperature the coffee is brewed at. There are other theories. But the difference between Dunkin’s coffee with cream and sugar and all competitors’ is the cream. There is SOMETHING different about their cream. We cannot get a confirmation on what they do to the cream, but they do something.
Another interesting thing about Dunkin’ is that when you order, you say, “I’ll have a coffee, cream and sugar.” They put in a standard amount of both. You don’t say, “4 creams, 2 sugars” like you do at some places. They don’t leave room for cream and you add your own. No, theirs is pre-measured. And it always is perfect. I suppose you could ask for custom amounts, but there is no need. They have this down, people.
The regular roast coffee has a medium body. It is not acidic. It won’t take the paint off of your car, or eat the inside of your esophagus like some coffees tend to do (no names, we’ll save that for another post!) There is no bitter aftertaste. It is the same through the entire cup. It has a clean consistency, not a thick tarry mess like some coffees (again, no names!)
With the cream and sugar, the taste is rather sweet. But it isn’t overpowering. It is a perfect balance. One bitch we have is that the sugar isn’t always stirred properly, although we suspect that is our test location. When drinking the coffee in other cities, we haven’t seen this problem. It wouldn’t hurt to get a stirrer and stir it up a little, just in case.
Another thing we like, although it isn’t related to the coffee itself, is that Dunkin’ uses styrofoam cups. This keeps the coffee hot, and doesn’t burn your hand. Paper cups let all the heat out, and you are stuck with a cold cup of coffee right away. And those stupid paper slips don’t save your hand from a visit to the hospital, either. Styrofoam is bad for the environment you say? You are on the wrong site!
Herman’s Thoughts: I’m new to Dunkin’. It has not always been readily available and aside from the few occasions where I have had it while traveling, I really have only been drinking it for the past 6 months. That said, this coffee is awesome! You can’t beat the price and it always tastes great. I will be drinking it on a regular basis.
Denny’s Thoughts: I have been drinking Dunkin’ for years. It is my “go to” cup of coffee. It isn’t too strong. It isn’t too light. It is perfect. Cream and sugar is the only way to drink it to appreciate the true taste that is Dunkin’. It is truly a universal coffee. It is good first thing in the morning, late in the day, or as an evening cup. The bottom line is that Dunkin’ is a perfect cup of coffee.
Dunkin Donuts coffee is pure swill. Years ago when they made their donuts right in the store they were wonderful. Now the coffee taste like dirty dish water and the donuts are sub standard. I will stick with Starbucks. Never been disappointed.
I agree, Michael. Lived most of my life on Long Island and my town had a DD open up in the mid 70’s where you sat at the counter with your coffee and donut. There were no refills, a cup (not that big either) was .35. The coffee had a better aroma and body and was very smooth without being overpowering. Recently went to a DD in Florida, where I now live, and it’s not even close to what it once was.
you are so right, here in pa it sucks all of Allentown pa shops.
I don’t know what happened to dunkin’s coffee, it went from having a great unique taste to nothing. I asked the owner of the local shop and he didn’t know but he gets his supplies straight from dunkin. It doesn’t smell like coffee nor does it taste like coffee. I have to find somewhere that sells coffee flavored coffee.
Dunkins coffee is a joke I bought a small which every where else is at least 12 oz this couldnt have been more than 8 It was warm not hot and tasted like it had been setting in the pot for a while I will not buy coffee there again when I can get it somewhere else for the same price and more oz 2.00 for that no thanks
THEY ARE PIGS IN HE 69TH GRAND AVE LOCATION NO GLOVES ALL BARE HANDS
Dunkin is about the best out there as far as chain store coffee goes. Starbucks is so hit and miss. Most of there coffee is over-roasted to cover up poor quality/stale beans so all acidity and sweetness is lost (the Sumatra might be an exception). If I have to drink Starbucks, the blonde is about the only way to go as even the Pike has that burnt bitterness.
Dunkin is good, but you have to try a local coffee roaster. If you consider yourself a few/coffee snob, that really is the only way to go. Bear in mind that a lot of the hip places are now pushing African beans, which are more floral in flavor, and cascara is slowly popping up in more places. But look hard enough and you’ll find a good, classic Columbian or Mocha Java. mmm
Tried the drunken coffee and I did not like it…I’m a new coffee drinker 6 months now. I have only tried speed way coffee and Maxwell House coffee…I’ll keep drinking Maxwell House Thank you
Worst coffee I’ve tasted since the early 60’s, when all we had was Folger’s and Hills Brothers. If you drink your coffee black and pure, you ain’t swilling this crap, fer sure.
I’m still a dunkin donuts fan. My daughter works for Starbucks, and although I know they truly have a loyal following, I’ll still stick with Dunkin. Starbucks seem to over roast their beans, which gives the coffe sort of a burnt flavor. I want to taste the quality of the beans in the coffee when I;m drinking it, and if you over roast coffee beans, to me it just plain and simple tastes burnt. I do have to admit, at one time 30 years ago or so, Dunkin Donuts coffee had a much smoother taste and aroma, which leads me to believe that they had someone else suppling the beans and roasting them. It also seems to me that Dunkin coffee tastes differently depending on certain months of the year, maybe it has something to do with where they sorcing the beans from at different times of the year.
Coffee rationing during WWII caused Americans to become accustomed to low-grade, tasteless coffee. That preference has been handed down thru many families who still prefer weak, tasteless coffee. I can’t argue or disagree with them. Everyone has different tastes and preferences.
After reading all the very high recommendations for Dunkin Donuts coffee, I decided to try it. Ran out of my regular coffee so brewed up a pot of the Dunkin Donuts this morning. I had preconceptions about what I would find, and I was right on. Weak, tasteless and unrewarding……………..for me. I will blend the remaining Dunkin Donuts with a strong coffee to try to get a good cup. And by the way, Dunkin Donuts coffee is very expensive!