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Permalink Reply by Jay Caragay on September 25, 2008 at 3:01pm

Brady said:

Hi Jay,

Haven't been anywhere near The Spro in a while, but plan to stop next time I'm near. Love the concept.

Do you have customers come in asking for "something like a frappuccino"? If you do, do they usually just end up ordering a mocha or vanilla latte over ice? I'd expect that most would be perfectly happy with a well-made iced mocha, vanilla latte, etc. Is this the case?

I guess the bottom line is, has it been your experience that a quality iced drink program is a good alternative for the "nonsense"?

Thanks.
There's always someone who will come in asking for a frappuccino type drink. It's like the guy who came in one day asking about a fish sandwich - we just don't do it. However, we do offer an assortment of drinks over ice and can accommodate most of our customers. Of course, there are some that only want blended and we wish them a fond bon journee and look forward to seeing them another time.

An iced drink program for us isn't a good alternative, it's the only alternative. What I mean by this is that we've set a standard for ourselves to follow and its' our duty to uphold our standards. Frappuccinos are just something we don't do, like cheeseburgers.

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Permalink Reply by Joe Marino on September 25, 2008 at 4:03pm

Hey guys,

I agree with Jay in saying that there are certain things that I just can't offer, again, I am a coffee purist. I also agree that iced lattes and mochas are the way to go for a good cold drink, and yes, bringing out the different characteristics of the coffee is my goal.
However, I need to explain the context of my shop. It is a BRAND NEW shop in a small central Illinois town. Although we do already have a fantastic specialty shop, The Coffee Hound, in town, it has only reached a relatively small number of the population. My shop is on the outskirts of this town, while Coffee Hound is right in the middle of town. Either way, the point is, most people that come into my shop are still oriented to the Starbucks way of doing things. Now, with that said, since my shop is brand new and on the outskirts of town, we do not have a high volume of foot traffic, nor do we have a base clientele. What I am trying to say is that the people that are coming into my shop are coming in for the first time, and they are already predisposed to the "evil empire's" products. So, in order to keep the people coming into the door, it is hard for me to refuse to serve a beverage that they are so used to getting elsewhere. Like I said before, the key is to bring them in, once they are in, then I can turn them on to the fantastic nuances and characteristics of the coffee world.

Thank you for all of the comments! Please keep them coming!!
Joe

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Permalink Reply by Banks Thomas on September 25, 2008 at 4:09pm

It will be hard to change their mind after the fact. If you are happy serving blended drinks that don't highlight your coffee then that's fine, and I understand. You need to decide who and what you want to be, and then go with that. Once again, good luck.

Joe Marino said:

Hey guys,

I agree with Jay in saying that there are certain things that I just can't offer, again, I am a coffee purist. I also agree that iced lattes and mochas are the way to go for a good cold drink, and yes, bringing out the different characteristics of the coffee is my goal.
However, I need to explain the context of my shop. It is a BRAND NEW shop in a small central Illinois town. Although we do already have a fantastic specialty shop, The Coffee Hound, in town, it has only reached a relatively small number of the population. My shop is on the outskirts of this town, while Coffee Hound is right in the middle of town. Either way, the point is, most people that come into my shop are still oriented to the Starbucks way of doing things. Now, with that said, since my shop is brand new and on the outskirts of town, we do not have a high volume of foot traffic, nor do we have a base clientele. What I am trying to say is that the people that are coming into my shop are coming in for the first time, and they are already predisposed to the "evil empire's" products. So, in order to keep the people coming into the door, it is hard for me to refuse to serve a beverage that they are so used to getting elsewhere. Like I said before, the key is to bring them in, once they are in, then I can turn them on to the fantastic nuances and characteristics of the coffee world.

Thank you for all of the comments! Please keep them coming!!
Joe

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Permalink Reply by elsirafy salah on September 25, 2008 at 5:44pm

make cafe crema in big cuos and fill a big jug while its hot,put some brown sugar and carameel flavour,and vanilla,then put in a fridge,tell it gets iced cold,put a scupe od vanilla ice cream,then chocolade sauce,then pour the iced coffee,you can serve it with whipped dream,and garnish it with sauce

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