Rumor about change of Coffee Supplier?

[Wenda]

I can remember my first trip to the Magic Kingdom two years after it opened and they served "100% Columbian Coffee" everywhere. It was a shock to stay of site years later and taste the coffee We will stay in a moderate this fall and I will pack a bag of Starbucks and some coffee filters. There are restaurants outside Disney that serve decent coffee and offer refills - Panera Bread for example. I sure hope that change but doesn't Nescafe come from Coke? Would the change mean they don't have Coke brand anymore?

 

[madcoco]

Be careful, very careful. We just returned 2 weeks ago and Disney just switched from name sweeteners (splenda, equal, ...) to generic. They are now generic yellow, pink, blue, and white.

May have changed. However, nothing to beware about. It is the Domino Sugar Nutrasweet Brand. Not cheap quality.

 

[Joshua_me]

One of the many great things about staying at The Dolphin is the in-room coffee makers, complete with starbucks coffee packs, starbucks coffee cups and even those round cardboard thingies that go around the cup to help you not burn your fingers.

One frosty night, we brought two cups with us into the MK. We must have had 10 people approach us within minutes, asking us WHERE we got Starbucks coffee !!

Surely Disney sees the vast market potential here.

Seems to me it would be "win win" for both companies.

 

[tmbcole]

Anything would be an improvement to Nescafe. I would not call that coffee. My cousin took his son to the World and upon his return, he asked what was up with the coffee . . . we told him it was Nescafe.

 

[crzy4my2]

Sorry, but I am a Dunkin's girl myself...

 

[apostolic4life]

I can remember my first trip to the Magic Kingdom two years after it opened and they served "100% Columbian Coffee" everywhere. It was a shock to stay of site years later and taste the coffee

In the early years the crowds were smaller and squeezing every penny out of everything was not the main focus. Today the crowd levels are 10 times as big as in 1971, maybe bigger. Shareholder profit often is the basis for all decisions today, where in the beginning service and quality were not sacrificed for the sake of profit......they used to care about all aspects of your experience then, but now the experience may be trimmed back for the profit!

There are restaurants outside Disney that serve decent coffee and offer refills - Panera Bread for example. I sure hope that change but doesn't Nescafe come from Coke? Would the change mean they don't have Coke brand anymore?

Yes, Panera does offer refills, but they do not have to account for refilling tens of thousands of cups multiple times every day. I used to be a Lead Baker/Trainer for Panera and they figure most people only get one refill (if they eat in), and most people grab and go without a refill. Brewed coffee can be profitable on a small scale like that, but on large operations where coffee production is thousands of gallons daily, brewing cost per cup is high due to filters, beans, and labor cost.

As for Coke, it is there to stay.....Coke would not risk losing the largest single site account in the amusement industry. Besides, they did just redesign Club Cool from the previous incarnation (Ice Station Cool??) within the last 3-4 years......and I am sure WDW locked them into a long term contract so the idea of them leaving is not likely.

One of the many great things about staying at The Dolphin is the in-room coffee makers, complete with starbucks coffee packs, starbucks coffee cups and even those round cardboard thingies that go around the cup to help you not burn your fingers.

Swan and Dolphin are not Disney owned resorts. They have their own staff, contracts, and management. They are more like "good neighbor" hotels than a WDW Resort.

One frosty night, we brought two cups with us into the MK. We must have had 10 people approach us within minutes, asking us WHERE we got Starbucks coffee !!

Surely Disney sees the vast market potential here.

Seems to me it would be "win win" for both companies.

Yes, there is potential and Disney has allowed for that. Many kiosks have been set up in deluxe resorts, parks and even the TTC where they think people will be willing to pay $3-$6 for a single cup of coffee, espresso, or cappuccino. The coffee used at these locations rivals coffee supplied buy the nationally known companies without the brand cost.

Starbucks will never drop the pricing to fit WDW price needs. I have worked with a national catering/amusement food service company who purchased Starbucks in crazy quantities and we saw little to no price breaks after a certain point. We are talking millions of dollars in coffee being purchased annually too, not a small customer. They are selling a name and brand recognition, that is what you pay for when buying their coffee.

 

[apostolic4life]

Sorry, but I am a Dunkin's girl myself...

I agree, I prefer many brands over Starbucks. I think they have convinced many people that the bitter finish on their coffee denotes quality.....it reminds me of over roasted beans. Starbucks also owns Seattle's Best which has a much better front end and finish. Starbucks makes great espresso and cappuccino, but as far as regular coffee give me many other brands first!

 

[crzy4my2]

I agree, I prefer many brands over Starbucks. I think they have convinced many people that the bitter finish on their coffee denotes quality.....it reminds me of over roasted beans. Starbucks also owns Seattle's Best which has a much better front end and finish. Starbucks makes great espresso and cappuccino, but as far as regular coffee give me many other brands first!

Plus I think Dunkin's has spoiled me..DH and I went to our 1st Starbucks out in California. He was hitting the restroom and asked me to get him and iced coffee.. I ordered a small iced w/cream Xtra sugar..the kid looked at me and said. "ya, you make it yourself over there" DH came out as I was paying and asked "why did you get me a coke, I wanted coffee" LOL..I said No, you pay more and make it yourself...which ended up being a good thing since we really needed to add the Xtra cream and sugar.

It's funny to me that Disney doesn't sell iced coffee..you would think that since Florida is usually hot/warm they would. When we went in 2008 I went into Cosmic Ray's and got DH and I coffee(hot) and asked if I could get 2 more of the hot coffee cups with ice in them so I could make iced coffee. The kid had no idea what I was saying. He kept trying to give me a kids small plastic cup. I started to think that maybe I wasn't making sense..I turned to the guy next to me who was laughing at the "who's on 1st" conversation I was having with the CM and I asked him if he knew what iced coffee was...He just kept laughing and said "yes, I do" I did finally get my cups with the ice in it

 

[Ava]

Tim Hortons is inexpensive and highly addictive.

Because I swear it has twice the caffeine of every other brand! A lot of the Dunkin' Donuts locations near my office in Manhattan have switched to being Tim Horton's; I got a medium iced coffee from TH once and felt like I was going to jump out of my skin for the rest of the afternoon. I felt like I could've run a marathon, that's how hyped up I was. And I can drink Dunkin', which makes my partner's heart race, with no problem.

Disney should at least be able to brew real coffee in all of their TS restaurants. If every diner & restaurant in NYC can do it (with free refills!), Disney should be able to as well. I'm not talking about anything fancy, just regular drip coffee. I don't know what they charge now for a cup of Nescafe in the TS locations, but they could probably get away with charging a good bit more if they were selling "100% Columbian Coffee" or whatever.

 

[princessallegra]

Be careful, very careful. We just returned 2 weeks ago and Disney just switched from name sweeteners (splenda, equal, ...) to generic. They are now generic yellow, pink, blue, and white.

So if Disney keeps this pattern going, they may just switch to a generic, no name coffee which might be even worse!!!!! (is that possible?)


We bring our own coffee!

BLASPHEMY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But seriously, I love my Splenda! Sheesh!

 

[apostolic4life]

Disney should at least be able to brew real coffee in all of their TS restaurants. If every diner & restaurant in NYC can do it (with free refills!), Disney should be able to as well. I'm not talking about anything fancy, just regular drip coffee. I don't know what they charge now for a cup of Nescafe in the TS locations, but they could probably get away with charging a good bit more if they were selling "100% Columbian Coffee" or whatever.

Yes, they could, but they won't. Disney will not set up a completely separate system to serve only TS venues. This would also mean having cut volume from the purchasing power they get for using concentrate at all venues. The cost per cup is practically nothing for Disney because of the volume. Splitting that volume by providing brewed to some and concentrate to others would mean the price per cup would go up on both.....this cuts into the profit, therefore will not likely happen. Smaller quantities of either type means the volume pricing goes up.

As for the restaurants and diners in NYC, they are small operations where volume is not a factor in price for most. Disney on the other hand gets huge price breaks because of the overall operational coffee volume. Even a one penny savings per cup could add up to millions annually for WDW. You can't compare the largest NYC operations to WDW operations when comparing volume or bulk buying discounts.

I think a cup of coffee at TS currently runs around $2.50. What they charge is probably considered to be in the high range for most plain coffee drinkers: switching to brewed and charging another dollar would be applauded by many, but would be resented by the majority. Yes, they could charge the same, but as I said before, it means a reduced profit for Disney so it will never go that direction.

 

[Sleeping Becca]

Starbucks VIA is the way to go while in Disney.

Nescrape' is not potable.

The coffee stand at the Contemporary Resort makes a great Cafe Latte.

 

[kittycat9]

I was thinking the exact same thing! Tim Hortons is inexpensive and highly addictive. they could start by opening up a small counter at the Canada pavilion at Epcot and people would love it so much they'd have to extend the contract to the resorts!

Many, many years ago I worked in marketing at Wendy's Corporate (not long after they acquired TH). We had unlimited access to Tim Horton's coffee, and to this day I swear it's like the Crack Cocaine of all coffee. When I moved back to IL I went through withdraws that even starbucks couldn't break. That sweet, smooth rich flavor that draws you in - and unlike starbucks, you don't even know how hooked you are until it's too late. So many nights we would be working late, and I can still smell that pot brewing up the hall at 7 or 8PM. We would all stop what we were doing and go get a cup, but not before passing through two sets of doors, and walking 40 or more feet down the hall, and in to the kitchenette.

I remember after leaving my friend sent me an email once asking me if I missed working there, and I joking said I missed the free coffee/how I was addicted to it. She joked about it being the kind of coffee that if you called in sick, the coffee grounds would drive down the street, break in to your house, pick you up out of your bed, smack you in the face - and haul your backside in to work, but not before making a stop to pick up a cup. Now THAT is a cup of coffee.

There might be, if someone offers them a better deal.


Douwe Egbert, a Sara Lee brand, for one. They supply Cedar Fair parks, Delta airlines, etc. It's actually marginally better than Nestle, but only marginally.

Douwe Egbert would be a huge improvement over nescafe.

 

[Mamu]

I'm sure over the years Disney must of had millions of complaints about their coffee. It's the all time worst I've ever had.Wouldn't it be wonderful after all these years to be able to get a good cup of coffee.

I bring my own coffee from home refuse to drink that DISHWATER

I have one cup in the morning, the rest of the day is withdrawal. I would love an after dinner coffee maybe with a shot of Irish Cream, but the coffee is just so bad that even adding a shot of something it's still aweful. My cricket conscience refuses to allow me to waste a good shot of liquor on DISHWATER

 

[apostolic4life]

My cricket conscience refuses to allow me to waste a good shot of liquor on DISHWATER

Funny!!!

 

[seadd67]

I'm sure over the years Disney must of had millions of complaints about their coffee. It's the all time worst I've ever had.Wouldn't it be wonderful after all these years to be able to get a good cup of coffee.

I bring my own coffee from home refuse to drink that DISHWATER

I have one cup in the morning, the rest of the day is withdrawal. I would love an after dinner coffee maybe with a shot of Irish Cream, but the coffee is just so bad that even adding a shot of something it's still aweful. My cricket conscience refuses to allow me to waste a good shot of liquor on DISHWATER

Dishwater, I look at It this way, I am at Disney so Its something i only have there, IT helps me get over the dishwater taste
I am shipping down a coffie pot for our room, I will still drink the coffie but not as much. But get this my MIL, actualy buys the stuff now thats scary, and Its Instant! and she likes It!!! the Horror

 

[reiella]

If they're going with "institutional-grade coffee-flavor-concentrate mixed with hot water," then there's no point in switching from Nestle. However, is there any other large manufacturer of that kind of coffee product? My guess is there is not.

Hopefully, they will go to a brewed coffee. I don't want or need a barrista; brewed beans alone would be a huge improvement.

Very forunate here I guess. Locally, we have a coffee importer's distribution center, so most place's 'institutional-grade' coffee at least is at least tolerable.

 

[seadd67]

we are really lucky up here In the NW part of the US. We have starbucks right in our back yard and on every street corner(It seems) along with Seattles Best,its a darker almost burnt coffie and stronger we seem to go crazy over It. I personal would not mind Disney going to that Brand,but I know there Is alot out there that dont care for It so I would just be fine with Foldgers,or Maxwell house I can not belive it would cost more then Necafe

 

[DevilDog]

I look at it kinda like SEADD67......Even though it is really pretty bad coffee....the only time I drink it is at Disney World, so in a weird way it kinda holds a special place in my heart.....on my taste buds though....not so special.

 

[crisi]

Nescafe is owned by Nestle.

Nestle sponsors The Land. (At least I believe they do).

Disney is not going to stop buying Nescafe unless Starbucks starts paying the electric bills for Soarin'

Pay attention at the amount of advertising Disney is selling - or giving in exchange for pricing concessions. That answers a lot of questions about whose jelly is on the table, whose mac-n-cheese is served in kids meals, and whose coffee is served.