Dinner and a Cup of Coffee? What Were They Thinking?

I was just sitting down to a post-lunch cup of tea and thinking about the movies from that era of Hollywood when people would belly up to the counter and order lunch or dinner with a cup of coffee. Growing up as an offspring of that culture, I never thought much about it... it was in so many movies, plus parents and seniors would still eat meals and drink coffee. As a 40-something adult, I shudder to think of sipping a coffee alongside a ham sandwich, or tipping the java down the gullet next to my spaghetti dinner and salad. On the flip-side, a diner breakfast is not complete without sipping coffee all the way through. Why has drinking coffee during other meals fallen out of favor and habit among subsequent generations such as mine?

Health: we have learned over time that something like water is a better alternative to drink with or after a meal. Here's an article from Raw Food Explained that discusses the impact of different types of foods and liquids in conjunction with each other, some wreaking havoc and blocking the proper ingestion of important nutrients.

Glam: perhaps drinking coffee with meals is falling off the hip charts, like smoking in the movies used to be. I found this neat blog about the history of everything to do with restaurant-ing, if you are a fan check it out. I'm also currently reading Appetite for America by Stephen Fried, about how businessman Fred Harvey invented the chain restaurant business, the chain hotel business, and the chain bookstore business all while building the nation's growing railroad system. I can imagine riding the rails for hours across the midwest, hot and arid, smoke and dust, stopping at this snappy clean eating establishment and eating meals only found in fancy restaurants in Chicago or New York. Harvey exclusively used Boston area Chase and Sanborn coffee. I bet you I'd be drinking coffee with my salmon after that rail tour.

I'd love anyone who does drink coffee with non-breakfast meals to tell me why, what is the allure?

A Cup of Coffee, a Sandwich, and You (1925)

Frozen Coffee Drinks

So a couple of weeks ago, driving home from a wedding in Boothbay Harbor, ME, I made what seemed like an innocent stop at a gas station. I grabbed a Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino from the refrigerator -- a decision which would alter my mornings for the foreseeable future. Frozen Coffee Drinks are the crack of the coffee family.

... and so began my quest to explore these highly addictive drinks...

Tuesday, August 7th, Au Bon Pain - Mocha Blast
Rating: B-
While definitely not known for its coffee, Au Bon Pain had the advantage of being located on the first floor of the building my office is in.

In terms of taste, the Mocha Blast was decent, but provided weak coffee flavor. The Mocha Blast shined when it came to texture. The drink was was blended perfectly, not too smooth, not too slushy.


Wednesday, August 8th, Dunkin Donuts - Coffee Coolatta
Rating: B
Anyone who lives in the Boston area knows about Dunkin Donuts. A quick search using the Store Finder on dunkindonuts.com yields 4 locations within 2 miles of my home and a whopping 24 locations within 2 miles of my office.

While the coffee flavor of the Coolatta was tasty, it was weak. The texture was good, but by the time I got to the bottom, there was no trace of coffee -- only slush.


Thursday, August 9th, Starbucks - Mocha Frappuccino
Rating: A-
Starbucks is one of those places you hate to love. It's an icon for a manufactured experience at a chain store. Starbucks is to coffee what the Black Eyed Peas is to Hip Hop. You don't want to like them, but you just can't help it.

The Frappuccino's coffee flavor was great -- the best of all the frozen coffee drinks. Additionally, they used real whipped cream (yes, I got them with whipped cream). The only problem with the Frappuccino was the texture. It was blended too thin. One of the cornerstones of a good frozen drink is the slight icy texture of the drink -- the same thing that makes a slush puppy so great.


Friday, August 10th, Peet's Coffee - Mocha Freddo
Rating: A
Peet's Coffee, primarily located in California, has a few stores in the Boston area.

Like the Frappuccino, the Freddo had great coffee flavor. Additionally, for a little more, they'll up sell you to the higher quality Scharffen Berger chocolate flavor for your mocha. While I'm generally sensitive to being upsold, I can say that this appeared to be a worthwhile investment -- the chocolate flavor was delicious. While Peet's appears to use the same blenders as Starbucks, they solved the over-blending problem by adding a few coffee beans to the Freddo to give it texture.