Evening Edge
What’s For Dinner?
Home > Smart Eating > Archives > 2008 > July > 18 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USWill McDonald’s replace Starbucks as the coffeehouse king?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Fast food restaurants have been trying to upgrade their coffee in recent years, with mixed success. Some restaurants definitely offer a better cup; some don’t seem that much different than the inexpensive, stale brew they’ve always served. Almost all of the chains have focused on breakfast service.
Not McDonald’s. The hamburger giant is slowly adding McCafe units to most of its restaurants, adding espresso-based drinks to a menu better known for Big Macs and Happy Meals. A couple of years ago McDonald’s revamped its standard coffee, renaming it Premium Roast Coffee and pledging to throw out brewed coffee after 30 minutes. Last year it rolled out iced coffee.
Now the next step, the McCafes, are showing up in Atlanta. About 10 stores have them so far, offering coffeehouse-style treats like iced mochas and caramel lattes, as well as hot standards like cappucinos and lattes. Prices are a little lower than you’d pay for a similar drink at Starbucks, and the names are more user friendly — small, medium and large, not tall, grande and venti. (Starbucks, by the way, is preparing to close 600 stores nationally, including a handful in metro Atlanta. You can read more about the local closings in this AJC article.)
I tried an Iced Mocha today at a company-owned store on Pleasant Hill Road in Duluth, just west of I-85 and across the street from Gwinnett Place Mall. Topped with whipped cream and a dusting of chocolate, with enough caffeine to banish any afternoon blahs, it’s worth checking out if you’re a fan of these types of drinks. A store across from Perimeter Mall also offers the McCafe drinks, and so do a few other restaurants around metro Atlanta. By the end of the year, most area McDonald’s should offer them, Ken White of McDonald’s told me this afternoon.
It’s an interesting change from the first McCafe I visited, a prototype in a Chicago restaurant several years ago. There, the coffee came in large mugs and drinkers lounged at quiet booths on the second floor of the restaurant. The Duluth store has one quiet nook, but otherwise it’s a bustling place, with the parking lot full even after the lunch hour peak, and the coffee served in disposable cups.
By adding the McCafes, McDonald’s hopes to convince its regular customers to increase their visits, or to bump up their check total by adding an espresso-based drink. The chain also reaching out to others who might be skeptical about Mickey D’s turning into a coffeehouse, complete with a more upcale feel that may include Wi-Fi, stacked-stone columns, brushed stainless steel and lots of blond wood. Kind of like, well …
Have you tried any of the McCafe espresso-based drinks? If you haven’t, would you go to McDonald’s for this type of drink, or stick to your favorite coffeehouse?
Permalink | Comments (32) | Post your comment | Categories: Dining out
Comments
By big t
July 18, 2008 6:34 PM | Link to this
In havent tried the coffe but those new chocholate chips cookies are GREAT!!!
By JD
July 18, 2008 7:21 PM | Link to this
I’ve been going to mcdonalds for the coffee since i first tried them several months ago. They are so much better then Starbucks! Now if they would just make a drink like the frappicunio!
By FCM
July 18, 2008 9:22 PM | Link to this
Radio 750 woke me up one morning—last fall—with the news that in a double blind taste test, MickeyD’s won cups down over ‘Bucks. Well, I have never liked just plain jane ‘Bucks anyway…but this had to be tested. Sure enough MickeyD’s was good coffee. Plus it costs a fraction of the price. I am sorry those 10 stores are going to be losing workers…I hate for ANYONE to be out of a job…maybe they can go brew coffee at Mickey D’s? For me, I will spend my hard earned money on good INEXPENSIVE coffee…oh, that’s right I started brewing at home…Well, anyway when I am out getting coffee premade…McDonald’s will be the place to get it.
By Dan29316
July 19, 2008 10:58 AM | Link to this
I have tried Iced coffee from McDonalds (having a coffee addiction in the summer, you go iced), I would put McDs iced coffee fourth on my list of iced coffee places: 1. Brugger’s (NJ bagel chain we have here in SC-gets the nod b/c I have a bottomless cup card and all the iced coffee I desire is free!) 2.Dunkin Donuts 3. Starbucks 4. McDs
For Regular coffee-I brew at home with my ‘rotation’ Regular Folgers, Folgers Hazlenut cream, Starbucks Pike Place Roast
By Bird1
July 19, 2008 11:17 AM | Link to this
MickeyD’s Iced coffee should be renamed. It is nothing more than over sweetened milk with just enough coffee to melt all the ice and water it down even more. Granted, anything cool in this heat would be somewhat refreshing, but when I want iced coffee, I would like to taste the coffee!
By shadow7071
July 19, 2008 3:40 PM | Link to this
My List
By ELLE
July 20, 2008 2:23 AM | Link to this
My favorites: 1. Dunkin Doughnuts 2. RaceTrac 3. Quicktrip 4. Starbucks
By Dennis C. Brown
July 20, 2008 8:30 AM | Link to this
McDonald’s will have a difficult time replacing any quality coffee shop in my opinion. My favorites in order: Starbucks, Caribou, and Einstein’s Bagels.
By Dennis C. Brown
July 20, 2008 8:30 AM | Link to this
McDonald’s will have a difficult time replacing any quality coffee shop in my opinion. My favorites in order: Starbucks, Caribou, and Einstein’s Bagels.
By Sarah
July 20, 2008 11:36 AM | Link to this
There’s a reason we have an obesity problem in America. McDonald’s large vanilla iced coffee (one of their biggest sellers) has 270 calories. Why do you think it tastes so good? Starbucks iced coffee is just that—and a venti iced coffee at Starbucks is just 130 calories. Don’t fool yourself that just because it’s iced coffee that it’s healthier than the other option, a large 350 calorie iced mocha from McDonald’s.
By Doris
July 20, 2008 3:51 PM | Link to this
MacDonalds as a coffeehouse is not gonna work until you get rid of the supervisors who yell at their employees in full hearing of the customers and all the other distractions of the place.
Granted, the coffee is plenty good enough, but it just doesn’t give the coffeehouse feel. I will always choose mcdonalds over the other fast food restaurants for breakfast because they are the only ones with drinkable coffee but if I want to go study for a couple of hours or hang out with friends, not gonna go to mcdonalds.
By awm
July 20, 2008 5:04 PM | Link to this
I tried the iced coffee at McD. I would not go back, the server held the cup with her fingers over the lid, disgusting, tasteless.
By rck
July 20, 2008 5:34 PM | Link to this
I tried McDonalds “premium” coffee last week, and it had that same old stale coffee taste and smell that you always seem to get anywhere but a coffee house. I got the last inch in the pot, but no way was it less than 30 minutes old, and the kids running the restaurant couldn’t have cared less. Starbucks has nothing to worry about.
By pow
July 20, 2008 6:07 PM | Link to this
the iced coffee ROCKS!
By dyno
July 20, 2008 10:19 PM | Link to this
The ice coffee isnt good. No consistency. Plus the workers act offended when you ask them to fix it.
By Mandy
July 21, 2008 8:49 AM | Link to this
There is no comparison between McD’s and Starbucks. If people were really educated about where Starbucks gets their beans, how they roast them and what they do for the community, the farmers, they would understand the whole process. McD’s coffee tastes stale on every occasion I have visited (different locations, different times of day) and also you don’t get people who are smiling and care about the company. To them making minimum wage is all it’s about! Visit Starbucks and you can get a great cup of coffee (tall - small for about $1.50). Wake up and smell the coffee folks!
By art
July 21, 2008 9:21 AM | Link to this
Were I to be forced to choose, I would have to say McD is superior to Starbucks for basic coffee without all the stupid frills. The old complaint about Starbucks tasting like the coffee beans were burned is TRUE. Can’t stomach it, no matter how much crud they treat it with.
As for whether one should buy McD or Starbucks, the answer is even more simple: NEITHER. Make your own!!! Coffee is one of the easiest things to make. People should be ashamed of themselves for wasting money on this drink. A cup of coffee made at home costs less than $0.20, even with premium roasts like Blue Mountain—one of the world’s most expensive coffees. In addition, the restaurants adulterate the coffee they make with cream, sweeteners and other flavorings that make it UNDRINKABLE.
Go ahead and make the pimple-faced “barista” happy and pay him for pouring your drink, then tip him 20% for doing it. Makes lots of sense, doesn’t it?
By Rodney
July 21, 2008 9:22 AM | Link to this
I was in Berlin, Germany earlier this year and stopped in a McDonalds while craving a cup of coffee. As soon as you walk into the McDonalds, there is a coffee bar area on the left. The McCafe area included a display case with a huge selection of cookies and deserts. Right next to it was a seperate area with some plush chairs. While it wasn’t Starbucks, it was a good place to relax with a pretty good cup of coffee. I just don’t know if most people can get past their lifelong image of McDonalds to sit there and have a cop of coffee.
By alice holliman
July 21, 2008 10:03 AM | Link to this
at first i did not go to mcdonalds for coffee’ i meet a friend there once and have not been back to starbucks. the coffee drinks at mcdonald are better tasting, cheaper and you do not have to wait as long.starbucks your day has come and gone.
By VoiceOfReason
July 21, 2008 12:01 PM | Link to this
Seriously,
McDonald’s coffee sux big time.
By VoiceOfReason
July 21, 2008 12:03 PM | Link to this
TO: By Bird1
I agree alllllll the way!!
By Stand Tall
July 21, 2008 12:56 PM | Link to this
Go to Costco, buy a five pound bag of Blue Mountain BLEND (a fraction of the price for Blue Mountain - which can garner up to 25.00 per pound in it’s purest form..) Drive right home and make it as strong as you like, and avoid the over-priced, over-zealous, trend-gone-bad coffee houses that ALL proclaim to have a good cup of coffee. Folks, there is no better way to enjoy coffee than at home. And even if you are on the go, a thermos makes a great gift for any coffee drinker, and when you tally it all up in the long run, you have saved enough money to buy your own hybrid and help the environment at the same time! Blue Mountain coffee in any form blows away any of these so called coffee conglomerates.
By Not Yet a Coffee Afficiando
July 21, 2008 1:11 PM | Link to this
I have not yet tried a McCafe but some McD’s currently serve their version of a cappucino. It is their basic coffee with a flavored syrup and not always mixed very well. They are going to have to do better than that to get me to try a specialty coffee made there. I’m still a Starbucks fan!
By bobby dee
July 21, 2008 6:27 PM | Link to this
We love McDonalds coffee. Being on the road 8 weeks a year, we drink lots of it. In the afternoon, I often ask if they will make a fresh pot. The kids do so cheerfully nearly everytime.
By FCM
July 21, 2008 8:28 PM | Link to this
Yes, of course coffee fresh ground and brewed right in my own home is best…dang I do not even have to get dressed to have it and my couch is pleanty comfy…It is also a good place to have friends (though, then I WOULD have to be dressed)…It’s not that Folgers stuff either….Costco’s Blue Mountain is ok…I prefer Trader Joe’s. They have several styles, I do not like the breakfast blend…Smooth and Mellow is good for evening/after dinner. I like a good kick start in the morning so the Moka Java works well then. However we’re talking about out and about coffee…I stopped for a ‘Bucks this morning it was NASTY….burnt tasting, and gross.
By Stew
July 21, 2008 11:39 PM | Link to this
A Bunn Coffee maker at home can make most brands taste great. You can get them for under $100.00 and they will make coffee instantly, good and at home.
By Coffee Fan
July 22, 2008 9:24 PM | Link to this
I agree about Trader Joe’s- try the Italian Roast and grind your beans right before brewing. A 16oz can costs about $6. I was previously hooked on Mocha Java from Whole Foods, but it’s $12/lb and doesn’t have as rich of a flavor as the stuff that’s half the price at TJ’s. Another nice add is to put a sprinkle of cinnamon in the grinds before brewing- adds a little kick and flavor!
By Kim
July 23, 2008 10:41 AM | Link to this
McDonald’s iced coffees are DISGUSTING! They have the taste and powdery texture of one of those “International Coffee” mixes from the grocery store that has been watered down and poured over ice. YUCK!
By B.
July 23, 2008 2:01 PM | Link to this
Like Rodney, I tried this when I was overseas — in my case, in Budapest. I have no idea what the coffee will be like when they do it in Atlanta, but the Budapest McDonalds Cafe coffee was really pretty good. (It wasn’t quite as good as the local coffee — but Budapest is a city with a long coffee tradition, so that’s to be expected.)
By Cindy
August 20, 2008 11:37 AM | Link to this
I tried McDonalds Iced Mocha last night and it is awesome! Far better than their iced coffees which I enjoy but find too watery.
While I love Starbucks(especially their fraps), Mcdonalds in my area are open 24 hours and since I go to work at midnight Starbucks is always closed when I need one.
By Dianne
September 4, 2008 12:20 PM | Link to this
I love their iced coffees! I am wondering if I can find out the calorie content, however? They taste fattening.
By jessica
December 15, 2008 12:28 AM | Link to this
I happen to work for McDonalds, and all I can say about the crew’s attitude, is how would you feel with people talking to you like you’re stupid all day long? If you don’t like something there, don’t buy it; go some place else. I mean, what do you expect? It’s McDonalds, and most of the people that work there, where ever you go, are going to be teenagers. Who really wants to work there anyway??