Is it worth paying extra at coffee houses?

QUESTION:

Is it really worth the time and trouble to frequent places such as The Beanery, or are they known to take short cuts and sell an inferior product? If I knew I was getting the best of beans/grinding/etc the higher prices would not stop me.

ANSWER:

I dare say there are coffee houses that do serve inferior beans. But overall, you can expect the coffee you drink in gourmet specialty coffee houses to be as good as it gets.

The huge chains like Starbucks live or die according to the quality of the coffee they serve.

And many other coffee houses are part of smaller, regional chains. As with Starbucks, but on a much smaller scale, they typically roast their own beans.

Each chain will usually have a coffee buyer and in-house roaster. If these two people are passionate about coffee, they will not only get top-quality beans, but will also roast them to maximize their inherent qualities. Some beans are well suited to a light roast, others to a medium roast and so on.

Also, keep in mind that with most coffee houses the beans will be very fresh, and roasted on the day they are ground and used.

As I said, there are certainly a few duds out there. But the entire craze for gourmet coffee that has exploded over the last couple of decades is based on the superior quality of coffee that people enjoy when they visit a coffee house.

For more information about the various elements involved in brewing great coffee, read our page on how to make coffee.