1/01/1999 08:37:00 PM|||Scott Lewis|||

Many people have been emailing us and asking us to put up a feature where people could comment on what really is a Regular Coffee.

The folks on the East Coast are telling us - especially those in the Boston area - that a Regular Coffee contains both cream and sugar. It's a darker brown in color, but not too dark; there is enough cream there to be seen and tasted. And the sugar does not over power the taste of the coffee, but it just enough to sweeten it.

Now the folks on the West Coast are telling us that a Regular Coffee is simply straight up black - no additives of any kind. If they're using cream, it's low fat milk and if they're using sugar, it's a sweetener substitute like Splenda; but those people are definatley in the minority.

We haven't heard much from the Midwest, but from those I have coffee with often, most of them have it black too.

If you're interested in how I take my coffee, it's mostly cream and sugar with some Dunkin' Donuts coffee added. Generally when I'm done doctoring it, it's whiter than a Chicago snow fall.

Let us know what how you take your coffee and what you believe a regular coffee contains:

|||110558394626029546|||So what is a Regular Coffee?1/13/2005 7:15 PM|||Greta (Hooah Wife)|||East coast gal - cream & sugar - but not too much of either. Light regular - a little lighter.1/14/2005 9:42 PM|||Mizz Crow|||I lived in MA for seven years; several of us in the family worked at DD... and a Regular is 2 sugars and 2 squirts of cream.

I'm a hot Hazelnut extra/extra, and I like my iced coffee the same way.1/15/2005 7:00 PM|||Nic 'n' Cher|||Tall full fat hazelnut latte, that is the only way to go.1/16/2005 7:02 PM|||Jason|||In the south a regular coffee is generally taken with milk. Will Dunkin' Donuts consider a coffee and chicory blend? That's the preference of many people along the coast lines. And no sugar, not in a regular coffee.1/16/2005 8:38 PM|||Angry Atheist|||California girl here. Worked in a coffee shop for 4 years, sadly. If someone ordered a "regular coffee," they would get the "house blend" - if there is more than one choice of coffees, with a teeny bit of room at the top to put their own cream in if they so prefer. Myself, I drink mine black, preferrably from a French press...1/18/2005 8:02 AM|||Old Man Mosey|||In NY a regular coffee is with milk and sugar.
A french press leaves too much tannin in the coffee which will rot your guts out and give you an ulcer.1/18/2005 9:41 PM|||Vertman in NH|||I wish DD would put all sizes in a card cup like their small size...there is a taste difference to styrofoam...
LargeRegExtraExtra1/19/2005 3:29 PM|||Brian|||From NE Pennsylvania originally, and without a doubt a regular coffee is a coffee with cream and sugar in non-excessive amounts.1/20/2005 7:32 AM|||Anonymous|||In Chicago it's coffee - Black ....period!1/20/2005 12:59 PM|||howard|||sigh ... I worked for a year at a north-of-Boston DD, this is about 23 years ago. across the street from a hockey rink, so we got tons of parents early say & sun monrings (when kids' hockey ice time was cheapest). the way it works is this -- black coffee is black, light coffee is light. sweet coffee is sweet, "no sugar" doesn't have any sugar in it. if you want what's in the middle -- tan-colored, slightly sweet -- you order "regular." our shop was calibrated so that 2 jiggers of cream was regular and 4 was light, same with spoonfuls of sugar. before "the big one," we also had 3 sizes of coffee cup, small/regular/large. and we all know a "regular" donut is an Old Fshioned or plain. so a tired mom or dad can sit down and order a regular regular with a regular and get a not-too-light, not-too-sweet, not-too-big coffee with a donut to dunk.

PS I agree, styrofoam cups are just wrong. that's why I always pushed thermoses, and loved the ceramic mugs we used for in-store coffee.1/22/2005 3:28 PM|||NRGxtreme|||I think it is black, that is regular coffee.
De caf is de caf and unburnt is best in both areas

Ah yes- the freshly ground just brewed cup with hazlenut and sweetner of choice,

that is the real deal, that is good stuff, seems there is a trend for the love of hazlenut
ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm1/22/2005 7:40 PM|||Kimberly|||My regular coffee is black. Forever black.1/24/2005 9:15 AM|||WP|||The way it is made in South India : Peaberry with a hint of chicory served in small steel glasses (called tumblers). It usually has milk it in.
Besides that, cappuccinno at Lookout Joe's comes real close, rest is just hot water :)1/27/2005 5:18 AM|||Johnny D|||In PORTUGAL a regular cofe is small, black, without sugar. like the italian expresso.
come to Portugal & try it.1/28/2005 4:21 AM|||Wicak|||In Indonesia it's coffe black and sugar. :)
If anyone is interested, i have a blog on Indonesians' Food/Drink/Eat at foodid blogspot com1/28/2005 8:21 AM|||Ann-Margret|||Here in Melbourne, Australia, a regular coffee is just plain ol' black coffee with sugar to sweeten, if so desired. We Melbournians love our coffee!! :)1/28/2005 3:53 PM|||Anthony|||In and around New York City, it's definitely non-decaf, with both milk/cream and sugar.1/29/2005 1:46 AM|||joe|||Small regular = 2 cream/2 sugar
Medium regular= 3 cream/3 sugar
large regular= 4 cream/ 4 sugar
and it goes up from there....

I personnally have grown accostumed to the small french vanilla iced coffee triple (6 cream) double (4 sugar). It sure keeps ya goin on the long hauls1/29/2005 1:53 AM|||Róisín Rua|||Regular here in NYC usually means cream & sugar....me, though, I take mine black.1/29/2005 10:04 PM|||SilentMajority|||In Toronto Canada...coffee favourite is ordered a DOUBLE DOUBLE..2 CREAMS 2 SUGARS....and 99% from Tim Hortons1/30/2005 4:16 AM|||SonicJMC|||As far as I'm concerned, "Regular" is just a shorter way of saying "Not that ****ing DECAF ****!"
Don't even THINK of taking that orange pot near my cup!

I take my coffee blazing hot, black, and so strong it disolved the cup it's in!
If it's iced, it's black with sugar, and just as strong!

Hey Dunkin' Donuts! Would it kill you to offer soy based coffee creamer? Some vegans do drink Dunkin Donuts coffee! How bout a nice vegan donut to dunk in it?! Is that so much to ask for?1/31/2005 2:34 PM|||.campino2k|||My coffee is usually colored black, no cream, but sugar in it (if i get some).2/01/2005 3:19 PM|||Anonymous|||A regular coffee has cream and sugar. It's a fact, get over it world. It does not matter that one may "regularly" drink coffee black etc. It is regular whereas that is how the majority of people prepared it and thus came to be known as such. I wonder if that means that someone may do a study of today's coffee preferences and then we will have an old regular and a new regular. Although I think that defies the bogus laws of regularity.

Odd that coffee keeps us regular as well. Does that mean it is a fruit?2/02/2005 5:15 AM|||darkmike800|||cream,suger lots and lots of suger!!!2/02/2005 11:42 AM|||Gary|||This post has been removed by the author.2/02/2005 11:52 AM|||Gary|||Dunkin' Donuts should put up a "Regional Definitions" sign in each store, that defines what common coffee terms actually mean at those locations. This way when visitors from other regions patronize a store, they will know what they're actually going to get. "Regular Coffee" might be black, milk and 1 teaspoon sugar, cream and 2 teaspoons sugar, etc. Also, the sizes will be clearly indicated--small is 8oz, medium is 12oz, large is 16oz, etc. This would also be a venue for creating new terms. Afterall, should Starbucks have all the fun? ;-) D&D could publish this with some artistic and humorous flair to liven things up, too.

I absolutely can't stand it when I order a regular coffee and I get what tastes like 2 heaping tablespoon fulls of sugar! To me, it's like drinking hot liquified coffee ice cream. So, I found a solution: I order a "regular coffee with half-sugar". That way, it's already gotten some sweeteness mixed in when I receive it. From there, I can decide if I need to add a little more sugar.

In my opinion, if the coffee beans used are of high quality and not BURNT (like Starbucks coffee typically is in their stores), it is nice to forgo the sugar and taste the pure coffee bean flavor. Otherwise, some sweetener is needed to take off the "edge"--inferior beans, too much roasting, or overcooked coffee.2/02/2005 7:39 PM|||Brent|||Ditto, Mizz Crow. I get nervous when I leave northern New England and find - Egads! A Dunkin Donuts on one side of the highway WITHOUT one across from it on the other side!2/05/2005 1:24 PM|||mrsmogul|||Hazelnut coffee is the best!!

Though..sigh..I am sorry to say..I am a Krispy girl myself.2/06/2005 3:22 PM|||Artemis|||I was just @ a DD yesterday; on a trip to town to do errands. A 'regular' coffee. Shoot. I guess the most common definition is one with cream and sugar, both in moderate amounts.

I used to like Starbucks, but not much now; I too think that it just all tastes burnt there, and there's nothing worse than burnt coffee!

My ex-husband got me addicted to caffeine; when we were dating, we'd stop somewhere after going to a club, and sit for hours on end, talking and drinking coffee. I've drunk it ever since. I am very picky about my coffee; my favorite is prepared at home using Gevalia coffee-it's about my only indulgence due to a very tight budget. Gevalia coffee is the best, IMHO.

Coffee is good served at ANY temperature!!2/12/2005 9:58 PM|||John Galt|||Dunkin D's just came back so to speak after a long time gone. The town went on a "K.K" jag for awhile but bad management and horrible coffee is sending them packing. The Regular coffee is fresh, full-strength, with sugar and cream, and a double chocolate doughnut on the side. Welcome back Dunkin' Donuts, I,ve missed you !2/13/2005 9:08 PM|||Anonymous|||in bahstin, home to DD, a regular means real coffee with real sugar and real cream. you want a decaf or black or any other variation, you can't say regular. you'll confuse em.
i grew up in south jersey; a regular coffee meant you didn't get decaf. here in phoenix, i have to travel an hour round trip to get a DD. but it's worth the trip.2/14/2005 12:46 AM|||Anonymous|||black. just -- black.2/14/2005 2:15 AM|||Rye|||I grew up in Portland, OR, where we had Dunkin' Donuts and then later Starbucks, but I didn't start drinking coffee until I moved to New York and met my wife, who drinks her coffee "dark & sweet" (tiny tiny amount of cream and 4 sugars).

I worked in a coffee shop for the first few weeks I lived there, and everybody who came in ordered a "regular" coffee, and everybody wanted something different, and every one of them got mad at me when I asked them what they meant.

I've since come to understand that, in New York at least, a "regular" coffee is milk and two sugars. The donut shop I frequented would prep for the morning rush by stacking piles of cups upright with two sugars already added. The Dunkin' Donuts people gave me funny looks when I asked for "only a tiny bit of milk", and when I got coffee at the bodega near my job and told the guy "just a bit of milk", he'd tell me "I know what I'm doing" and pour milk until the coffee was khaki-colored. Yech.

I moved back to Portland recently and found my favorite Dunkin' Donuts is now a Starbucks. Stupid west coast.

Other funny story, though: I would tell people in New York now and again about how I've been to the first Starbucks and how weird that was, and they'd always say "Oh, is that downtown?"

For the record: the first Starbucks is in Seattle, and Dunkin' Donuts is from Rhode Island, not Boston.2/14/2005 2:44 PM|||Anonymous|||am a flight attendant working routes from nyc to anywhere from asia, uk, europe, the west coast, florida, etc....
the coffee regular question has plagued flight attendants since god was a baby.
if i'm feeling especially generous, i'll ask what the person means by coffee regular. the east coast people are generally the only people that order "coffee regular".
those that live outside of the nyc metro or chicago or boston or d.c. RARELY order coffee regular unless they are snowbirds that live in florida.
if i'm feeling bitchy and not so generous, i'll give a coffee regular person coffee w/cream + 2 sugars. if that's not how they like it, i then roll my eyes and sigh when they say they want it a different way...and then i give them decaf whatever way they want it.2/15/2005 8:16 AM|||Anonymous|||A regular coffee for me has both cream and sugar in it - and lots of it!2/15/2005 8:19 AM|||Anonymous|||A regular coffee for me has a lot of cream and sugar!2/17/2005 10:54 PM|||lytri|||Coffee is black for a reason. I'm from the Midwest and have since moved to NYC. I hate when people ask me twice if I really mean black when I say black.

"No cream or sugar?" (looking surprised)

"No...thank you, just black."2/18/2005 3:12 PM|||The Dude|||A regular coffee is black, and hopefully not burnt.2/18/2005 5:59 PM|||Mel|||having grown up on the West coast, i can say that a regular coffee there is black and unsweetened. having lived in the midwest for years, i can say that regular coffee there is cream and sugar, not too much of either.2/20/2005 1:58 AM|||Tony C|||If it's Bean Town DD we are talking about it is called a Regulah and it has two creams and two shugahs. Also the employee needs to be mildly rude saying things like "Next!" or "What Da Yah Want!" Here on the west coast a regular coffee is black and the service is polite (how boring).2/20/2005 10:37 AM|||Lance|||Regular is just regular, like it comes out of the pot.... Regular decaf same thing, like it comes out of the decaf pot. Let me doctor it if it needs it...2/22/2005 10:55 AM|||Glenn|||Regular coffee is brewed coffee (black) with cream and sugar (2+2) added. This is the standard and it is frustrating when the person behind the counter askes (after I've requested a Regular coffee), "Cream and sugar?"

Duh

Black coffee is not Regular coffee. Black coffee is Black coffee.2/23/2005 2:58 PM|||jaimee007|||coffee is good2/23/2005 8:15 PM|||Nakedmostly|||i was once at d.d. and was showing my line of workout clothing to a worker while waiting for my everything bagel with th plain creamcheese toasted,, when the girl became so involved with my portfolio that she burn't my damm bagel,,what's up with that!!!!
Nakedmostly.com is a real site with hot clothing but not worth burning my friggin' bagel over tell me what you think eddie2/23/2005 8:20 PM|||Nakedmostly|||I was once at d.d. and was showing my line of workout clothing to a worker while waiting for my everything bagel with plain cream cheese toasted,, when the girl became so involved with my portfolio that she burn't my damm bagel,,what's up with that!!!!
Nakedmostly.com is a real site with hot clothing but not worth burning my friggin' bagel over tell me what you think eddie2/23/2005 8:22 PM|||Nakedmostly|||I was once at d.d. and was showing my line of workout clothing to a worker while waiting for my everything bagel with plain cream cheese toasted,, when the girl became so involved with my portfolio that she burn't my damm bagel,,what's up with that!!!!
Nakedmostly.com is a real site with hot clothing but not worth burning my friggin' bagel over tell me what you think eddie2/24/2005 11:24 AM|||Dave|||I always said "regular" when at FL DD and every time they asked if I wanted cream and sugar. Used to drive me up a wall. One day, I was served by a kid from Boston who actually asked if I was from Boston. He knew what I meant and made my coffee to perfection. Now, if only the rest of the world would catch up. I believe (much like Bush) that we should impose our views on others. I believe that DD should make it a policy that if people order regular coffee, they get cream and sugar, no ifs ands or buts. Eventually as DD continues to take over the global coffee empire, people will learn and these problems will cease to exist.
Dave2/25/2005 12:18 AM|||Eddie|||I grew up in Beantown and everyone in my family always orders a regular coffee from DD. This means a cup of coffee in the standard paper cup and it has 2 sugars and 2 shots of cream! I think DD should make this a standard practice throughout all DD's!!!

Eddie2/25/2005 10:52 AM|||Anonymous|||After spending 30 years in the North East corner of the US. I have found only in this region of the country or world, does it inhabitants maintain it's own dialogue for coffee preference. Often coffee is ordered by grunting a few words through an automobile (or caah) window into a small metal box in which a coffee technician would reply (that'll be a dollah sixty fouah, please drive up).
Here is the preferred method to order you're coffee when visiting this region.

Black - nothing but coffee
Regular - equal amounts of cream & sugar. brown in color and sweetened only enough to bring out the taste in the coffee, but not mask it.
Xtra, Xtra - Plentiful amounts of cream and sugar. often removing any taste of coffee leaving the drinker on a sugar high rather than caffeine rush.

These are just a few of the ways to order your coffee, but please do not try these out of this region, it may bring undesirable results.

I consider myself a man who is above average, but when it comes to coffee I am just a regular guy.2/25/2005 5:14 PM|||Rob|||Now, this a question from NY for Chicago. David Mamet has his characters in his play American Buffalo order "A Boston"--(not a donut, but a style of coffee). What is "A Boston"? Maybe this is a question for Boston too?2/27/2005 5:47 PM|||Chris|||Yes regular coffee should have some cream and some sugar in it. Just straight black coffee is considered black coffee, whereas very sweat coffee is one of those expensive starbucks type coffee.3/02/2005 12:38 PM|||NYPol|||Regular coffee is regular only by virtue of the fact that it is not a flavored coffee. What makes it regular has nothing to do with its sugar or cream content. Those are incidental factors, not essential.3/02/2005 3:27 PM|||stroessler|||regular? even at DDs in Chicago (at least most places) it is cream and sugar. unfortunately, if you ask for a regular coffee somewhere else, they just roll their eyes :)3/05/2005 7:44 AM|||Kondrik|||I made the misstake of ordering a "Medium Regular" at a DD in Detroit on my way back to Boston. I was in a hurry to get to the airport and didn't take a sip until I was already out of the parking lot....DAMN! Black coffee! I was so PO'd until my friend explained the regional difference.3/06/2005 8:33 PM|||JerseyGirl|||I'm from Jersey and a regular is cream & sugar. Tell those Californians that a REGULAR coffee is not black...if it's just coffee in a cup then it's just BLACK!!! HELLO!!!!

:)3/19/2005 12:16 PM|||Nakedmostly|||back again to D.D. the girl say's how do want your coffee? I say regular .. She say's how about hot and sweet like your clothes site (Nakedmostly.com) Give me a break and the coffee please "what's everybody a critic these day's? I thought coffee to go was " TO GO PEOPLE" Next time im in the drive through.... eddie4/05/2005 7:07 PM|||Anonymous|||Girbil-
Albuquerque
REGULAR COFFE HAS NO CREAM OR SUGAR ADDED. 5/12/2005 12:11 AM|||redsoxguy|||Lived my whole life in New Hampshire--just a an hour away from the original store in Randolph. Sadly now in San Diego where there is no Dunkin Donuts for 500 miles. Regular was always light cream--(not half&half) & sugar. Not too much of either. Knew a lot that worked @ DD--I agree...2 sugars and 2 squirts of light cream.

The coffee shops in California seem pretentious, the coffee is way too strong and there's hardly any fun in them. I pine away for the days of going into a Dunkins sittin down at the counter and chatting with real down-to-earth people. The hell with their Double Shot Gingerbread Macchiates with 1 Splenda & 1 Equal with skim milk. UGH! Hehe5/12/2005 12:12 AM|||redsoxnewhampsha|||This post has been removed by the author.6/14/2005 9:06 AM|||Anonymous|||A regular coffee is the perfect amount of cream and sugar. I am from the east coast, but just moved to the west.

I CANT FIND ANY DUNKIN DONUTS AROUND HERE EITHER.

Drinking at Star Bucks is killing me.6/20/2005 4:09 PM|||Slacker Turtle|||drop of cream, 1 sugar

I like the coffee taste, so i only use a little sugar so as not to overpower the nutty-ness6/21/2005 9:50 PM|||Anonymous|||I take my coffee, either regular or decaf, with a 'little bit of milk' and one sweet and low. I step up to the counter and say that and 99 out of 100 times in about 15 different stores per week it comes out just right.

I get a small usually, possibly because I'm used the the proportions and it tastes better to me in the paper cup. ( or possibly becuase of the proportions of sweetner to coffee and milk )
I live in the Boston area and there is a DD on just about every major intersection, especially where I live south of the city. I would bet our area has the highest density of DD outlets in the chain with coffee and donuts and bagels available in stores, drive thrus (about 75% of stores have them ) and stand alone drive thrus...a new thing I think.
best
nrg7/05/2005 11:21 AM|||Anonymous|||well i work at dunks and we have a machine that shoots regular with cream and 3 sugars from boston7/06/2005 7:59 AM|||kyle|||regular coffee=cream and sugar
black= no cream and sugar7/07/2005 1:29 PM|||Anonymous|||i run a dd in nh.......and regular is a regular coffee
small: 2 cream, 2 sugar
medium: 3 cream, 3 sugar
large: 4 cream, 4 sugar
great one: 5 cream, 5 sugar
you want it a different way, DONT SAY REGULAR!!!!! all the machines are calibrated for size so yes a regular coffee has cream and sugar in it....not black....oh and by the way your "regular" of skim milk and 1 1/2 splendas is nobody elses regular so how do we know to make it that way unless you tell us????? i hate the idea of a "regular" coffee...you want your coffee made right just tell us exactly what you want in it!!!!!!!!!!!7/12/2005 7:08 AM|||Anonymous|||In Connecticut a regular coffee is Caffinated with Cream and Sugar.

Me - French Vanilla Extra Cream Extra Sugar. But most of the DD folks can never get it right,usually too much cream and too little sugar