Espresso Express in my hometown of Longview, Washington. Image via Google Street View.
Springfield is rather large for a city in southwest Missouri, clocking in at just over 150,000. Northwesterners, think Eugene or Tacoma for cities of comparable size.
Now let me set the stage here.
I grew up near Longview, Washington, which is home to three Starbucks stores. Count ‘em: two on Ocean Beach Highway and one on Oregon Way right by the bridge. Population: 35,000. By comparison, Springfield only boasts four standalone Starbucks.
Absolutely stunning, right? Well, I mention this because most people here tend to think of Starbucks as the apex of their coffee experience. There are very few other coffee places in Springfield worth a dang, but only one of them, sadly, is the good old drive-thru coffee stand — such places are found everywhere throughout the Northwest and should be the REAL apex of a coffee experience.
You know a place is awesome when it offers a drive-thru coffee stand. Even Rainier, Oregon, the town I technically grew up in, had Kandi’s Koffee. Longview had at least five that I could count, even if I don’t remember their names. Heck, even Centralia had one that I stopped in on my way up to Tacoma to visit a friend on vacation.
I will give the East Sunshine coffee stand (sorry I forgot the name) an A for their efforts but WE NEED MORE OF THEM. Coffeehouses are cool in and of themselves but I would like to be offered a variety of choices for drive-thru coffee joints. The only drive-thru coffee places in Springfield are that one on east Sunshine, Starbucks on Glenstone, Starbucks on Campbell and some other Starbucks I think on Kearney?
This makes a morning coffee selection very monotonous and rather difficult. Starbucks has a grapple-hold on the “grab and go” coffee joints, and their product isn’t even nearly worth the price people shell out for it. I would much rather lend my business to a small local company that makes a better product at a lower price point.
I find it a tad bit irksome that no one, other than the coffee stand on East Sunshine, has really bothered to open a drive-thru coffee stand. Or am I not looking hard enough? Help me, people.
I think there is one in the Fremont Center on Battlefield. IN front of Heritage Cafeteria and Bambu.
Yeah, and I recall one or two on Glenstone as well. I’m pretty sure they’re around.
Fog City coffee on battlefield…haven’t been yet, but heard it’s good.
Evin, Jack–
Is that the new one that was recently built? If so I will have to check it out. Not a “mom and pop” coffee shop that I so dearly love, but if it is a better product and cheaper than Starbucks, I am all for it.
Matthew–
Whereabouts on Glenstone?
Fog City on Battlefield, next to Macaroni Grill as noted.
Hot Shots Espresso run by Levi is the name of the joint on E Sunshine
There has been one on Glenstone just to the South of the CVS Pharmacy, near the entrance to the country rock club there
In Pullman, Wash., there was one standalone “Daily Grind” and about five drive-through shops. Those were awesome. And they gave you free drinks on your birthday. Moscow, Idaho, had the Red Hawk Crossing, which was great.
In Louisiana, one drive-through coffee shop I had used had closed due to lack of business.
Oh — and if there are any shops here in north Springfield, I’d support them here, instead of Starbucks, when I need a coffee fix. I do support Rendezvous as it is now.