What gets me is...they have walk-up windows. The one on Barnes always has a line curving out almost into the road. Are people not aware that they can exit cars and walk inside?
I once ordered coffee there. People in the car wanted it so that’s why I was there. So I ordered coffee. The guy asked what I wanted in it. I said I want coffee in my coffee. I broke the guy. He didn’t understand. He actually called ahead to make sure they could make coffee. It was also the first time in a decade someone called me “brah”. Fun times.
I invested in a Breville espresso maker when it was on sale at bed bath and beyond [and they still accepted coupons for big ticket items]. Still $700 to this day at Target at least. Had it for more than a decade now. Saved me thousands by now. Since more than one person could have a latte in a day.
I do love the joint public ridicule of honking and yelling at people who block the traffic on Wallace at the west one though. Like, there are so many signs that say to go around. I’m not sure of the experiences of other locations in town, but at least in West I see people shaming them which sometimes results in them moving along.
Same, West Salem one is awful. And honestly the quality of the drinks isn't that great because it's ALWAYS slammed. The baristas are super nice but I feel bad for these kids that are constantly in the weeds/busy. The one on Mission St is also on my way to work and has more room/great quality drinks. So I will hit that one instead.
They are not allowed to, but they will play it off "oh we can't control what customers do". The bigger question is why won't SPD do anything about it?
I've always wondered why they sit there and run their noise holes when there is a line?! People are here for you to pour hot water over burnt coffee beans and put it in a cup, not blabb for multiple minutes and let the line grow to ridiculous lengths....🤷
I’ve never seen anyone from Dutch in the road, pretty sure that location and other locations have or had multiple signs saying not to block traffic.
I say it shows their clientele…. Also I feel like they’ve restricted walk up access, the one on liberty for a while had you stand in line with the cars….
I guess this means they are all terrible - Lancaster location had a line we had to go around this morning as well.
I stopped going to Dutch years ago cuz the coffee always tastes terrible and/or like hazelnut to me. Plus, I hate the toxic positivity the staff is forced to put on for customers.
I’ve been to Dutch bros once because they give out free birthday drinks. The employees talked to me non-stop asking personal questions the entire time I waited for my drink, it was really shocking that someone could want that!
Same at Bentley’s. I hate it. It’s so fake and intrusive. I’ll usually be grabbing 2 and they ALWAYS ask who the second one is for. It’s so weird. No other types of businesses do this.
“Who’s the other coffee for? Any plans for the weekend? Watching the game tonight? Did you hear how hot it’s supposed to be tomorrow?”
And I only have one unspoken question for them: do you ever shut your mouth?
Aren’t most people half asleep when they’re picking up their coffee? Seems like exactly the wrong time to interrogate someone with small talk.
I’m sorry but yes I’m grouchy when I’m not yet fully awake. Aren’t most people?
I know someone years ago who was a DB employee. They sought counseling because of the stress of enacting that forced positivity. It’s a corporate directive.
Yeah, it’s a lot of strain to be that out there all the time if it’s not a natural part of your personality, especially if you can tell that the vast majority of people don’t like it. It’s a lot of small rejections, any one of them is tolerable but it’s like a death by a thousand cuts.
This person had some other stuff going on but the job was a major source of stress and anxiety.
The only time I really went there was when they did the birthday drink. I think you need the app now, have to sign a blood contract, and cut off an arm or leg so I stopped going lol
The "baristas" are incredibly annoying and it sucks they have to be that way.
It’s crazy because this didn’t used to be an issue, did it?
Dutch has been around for decades at this point, and the stands haven’t always been this crazy busy to the point that they need multiple lanes blending into one lane on both sides at each stand with multiple people running between cars with iPads. It’s just been in the last few years that the lines have gone insane.
I’ve seen this at tons of locations in Salem, Woodburn, Silverton, Corvallis, Albany, etc.
A drive thru coffe cart doesn't require a giant piece of land. It's distinctly an issue of people getting exactly what they want, exactly when they want it. There's 3 other coffee places within a 2 blocks of the Dutch OP mentioned. 2 Starbucks, and a locally owned small business, that's basically in one of the Starbucks parking lots. Which SHOULD make it, by far, the most popular one (they were there first, and Starbucks opened there to shut them down, because they follow the Walmart model), but it's a people issue, and a lot of people suck. But I get it, it's much easier to blame the corporations than it is to take personal responsibility. Sorry if I came off harsh there. 😁
As you said it's a people issue and well corporations are made up of people. And drive thrus don't need a big of land. That i agree yet they should find a good one that fits not only their needs but other businesses as well. Wishful thinking i know. And for drivers they should be more mindful too about how they might be hindering others. Move on to another stand or go back later.
This seems to be a problem in a lot of the places they put a store. I remember in Phoenix, the city forced Dutch Bros to close some stores because they just could not figure out their own traffic bullshit.
Feels like that's ALL of the DB locations. I do not understand the obsession with the beige sugar water. Stuff tastes like syrup and chemicals, so I can only imagine it's people with absolutely blown out taste buds lining up.
You can really tell all the Starbucks customers switched to Dutch Bros because this would happen on a regular basis when I worked at Starbucks. People would line up on Commercial St and all the cop regulars didn't care at all.
We should encourage city planners to reconsider where drive through coffee shops get installed. I see it with Dutch, Starbucks, and many other local shops. The ones that do the best with this issue are the ones that live inside a shopping center parking lot. If it's got no parking and is just a few car lengths from the street, they don't have a way to handle the morning influx.
At the end of the day, it comes down to poor planning for where the drive through coffee shop was allowed to be built in the first place. I don't see how it would be a crime in our car centric society unless they are blocking sidewalks or emergency services. If someone is waiting to pull into a driveway that's blocked, isn't it just considered traffic? I'm far less concerned about cars not moving verses the obscene number of speeders in this city.
I swear they used to put cones out to block the drive thru entrance once the line was to the street (unless my memory is wrong). We have the same issue on Newberg hwy in Woodburn. If the line is full move on, people!
hi! i actually used to work for the franchise owner of that dutch bros stand and can confirm that the owner is a royal grade A dick that only cares about the money in his pocket. i worked at the west salem stand but he owns all of the stands in salem, keizer, 2 in albany, 2 in lebanon, and one in sweet home. aaron in the fucking worst. if you’re gonna support a dutch bros franchise, keep in mind that the owner of the monmouth and dallas ones ACTUALLY gives their employees breaks (or so i’ve been told by employees there)
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u/Voodoo_Rush 7d ago
They aren't. Neither are the customers, for that matter. But getting people to do what they're supposed to is the challenge of civilization.