I'd been eyeballing this new location of Dutch Bros Coffee directly in front of Castleton Square Mall since construction began.
While I honestly have known very little about Dutch Bros., I've long heard good things about them and I love the design.
I'd driven by a couple weeks ago, and I could tell they were open for business. So, on a recent trip to Castleton I finally made the time to stop.
Dutch Bros., in case it's not obvious, is a drive-thru or pick-up coffee joint founded in Grants Pass, Oregon in 1992 by Dane and Travis Boersma (and yes, really of Dutch descent. On a sad note, Dane has since passed away from ALS). It's now headquartered in Tempe, Arizona now and is still primarily known for being in the western U.S. However, they've gone as far as Florida and only recently entered the Indiana market.
Dutch Bros has both franchise and company-owned locations. The vast majority of locations are drive-thru with a pick-up window. Each location sells both hot/cold drinks, non-coffee options, and a relatively small selection of baked goods.
Tbetween 2010 and 2015, only 3% of all Dutch Bros franchise locations closed.[8] In 2017, Dutch Bros stopped franchising and started opening only company-owned stores.[12][32] As of June 2021, franchisees were running 264 Dutch Bros stores and another 207 were fully company-owned.[30] The company has a history of buying out franchisees that failed to meet the company's customer-service standards.[8]
Dutch Brothers has an annual fundraiser called "Drink One for Dane," an event that supports the Muscular Dystrophy Association. They also support other events.
On this particular day that I visited, it was particularly cold and the line was long. There's a recommendation that you use their app, an app that offers quicker service and a variety of offers. There was one employee periodically standing outside to take orders as the line was definitely moving slowly. Several cars went around and parked to use the pick-up window.
I ordered simply - a large iced Americano. I was actually pretty stunned at its affordability. It honestly was delicious and I would easily order it again, though I do plan to try other offerings.
I see great potential that this will go up to five stars for me, however, given how slow service was I just can't justify it right now. The employees were friendly, ordering is simple, prices are definitely lower than some key other chains, and the product was delicious.
So, I'm sticking with a 4-star review for right now. I'm thrilled Dutch Bros has entered the market. They're right next to the Krispy Kreme. I kind of wish we'd had an entrance right off East 82nd Street, however, it's worth the detour and once they work out the bugs this should be a top-notch option in the Castleton area. read more