Dutch Bros Coffee’s new food sparked plenty of excitement, but after trying it, I would tell them to stick to the drinks.
Dutch Bros is a well-known chain that offers a variety of customizable drinks from coffee to energy drinks. The food menu originally had muffin tops.
The food menu has recently expanded. Some of the new items include muffins, bread, breakfast sandwiches and wraps. Overall, the quality of the food was good. The food had good flavors and textures, but it was lacking in portion size, ultimately not making it worth the money.
If I had to compromise, I would pick a bakery item over hot food. The hot food was good, but the bakery items felt like better value due to the flavors, textures and portion size.
I tried the sausage slider, maple waffle and banana bread. The slider reminded me of a McDonald’s Egg McMuffin and cost $3.25 (or 2 for $6). The size of it was not worth the price. The slider is roughly the size of a Post-it note, the only part that tasted good was the sausage. The sausage had a hint of spice to it, which was really good. The rest of the slider was bland and lukewarm. I’d rather go to McDonald’s. The maple waffle was nothing extraordinary. The flavor of the waffle wasn’t cohesive, and some bites were extremely sweet while other bites were bland.
Out of the three items I tried, I would get the banana bread again. While it was the most expensive item I tried, it was worth it. The bread was $3.75, but it was the best item even though it was pricey. I wanted more afterwards because it was so good. The quality of it topped the other two items. It was the perfect flavor. The banana wasn’t too overpowering and it had a crumb coating on the crust that added some sweetness to the bread. The bread was served cold but was still soft and moist.
I saw the potential in the items. They had the variety, but the quality was lacking. I was most excited for the sliders, and they need the most improvement before I would be willing to spend $3.25 again.
The menu feels like Dutch Bros is slowly turning into Starbucks. The food items are almost identical to what Starbucks has been offering for years, and at the same price point. If I can get the same food for the same price elsewhere, why would I choose Dutch Bros, where the portions are smaller? What makes their food so special?
The food menu feels thrown together like a last-minute thought. It doesn’t match the brand. Drinks at Dutch Bros are creative and fun, while the food is the forgotten middle child. It makes the company feel like they are becoming more focused on competing with Starbucks than on customer satisfaction.
As much as I enjoy Dutch Bros, the food is not worth it. Unless it’s banana bread, skip it.
