Have you heard of Muzz Buzz? It’s a drive-through coffee outlet that’s been operating in Western Australia - and now, it’s arrived in Melbourne. This is their outlet at DFO Cheltenham:
Muzz Buzz has a large variety of menu items, from iced drinks to flavoured coffee to food, ice-creams and energy drinks. Their coffee flavourings are at no extra cost, which is unusual.
I’m not a huge fan of drive-through coffee outlets, but I thought I’d give it a go. Here’s what their coffee looks like - note the straw. Who drinks coffee through a straw?
Unfortunately the coffee was close to lukewarm and a little weak (I ordered strong). My girlfriend Marjorie ordered a flavoured coffee, which was definitely nicer.
They got at least one satisfied customer that day:
Recommended for: Drivers who like the convenience of drinking coffee through a straw. Flavoured coffee lovers.
Not recommended for: People who like coffee that tastes like coffee.
——
Later the same day, I got to try Nespresso.
Nespresso is a novel attempt by Nescafe to market themselves as the high end of the coffee market, although perhaps not high enough for coffee snobs. Basically, the system consists of a very easy to use coffee machine that uses Nespresso coffee pods - and nothing else. There are, I think, a dozen varieties of the pods available. Others have criticised the system for using stale coffee in the pods, plus the proprietary nature of the pods will be a concern for some. What concerns me, as always, is how the coffee tastes.
At their kiosk in Myer, I had a chance to find out. After enduring their marketing spiel, I had a latte using a ‘Ristretto’ pod (the strongest pod available). So how did it taste? Not bad at all really. The latte was creamy, with little bitterness I thought. The flavour was a bit lacking compared to a good cafe, but still beats a lot of mediocre cafes and about 90% of home setups.
Recommended for: A take-away or similar business looking to sell quick and easy espresso on the side, without serving watery weak swill. Or, someone wanting a semi-sophisticated setup at home, without spending four figures.
Not recommended for: Coffee snobs. Get a better machine, and fresher beans.
10 comments
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July 29, 2008 at 12:18 am
Joe
I am not a huge coffee drinker but both of these seem like really cool and interesting ideas. Keep up the good work.
July 29, 2008 at 1:40 pm
benjamin
Yeh I don’t like drinking coffee through a straw either. I really dig all the Muzz Buzz logo and brand look and convenience, but it’s not fantastic coffee.
July 29, 2008 at 10:24 pm
markk
I agree about the brand look and convenience. The other products might be better than the coffee!
August 7, 2008 at 7:11 am
Hands
When did you drive through? I’ve been a fan of Muzz BUzz for a while, they’ve been in Vic for at least a year…and using a coffee blend like 5 senses makes sense, maybe you should stick to Starbucks………….
August 7, 2008 at 7:29 pm
markk
Do a search for ‘Starbucks’ on this blog - or even read the next post - and you’ll see that I’m not a fan of that establishment either!
August 15, 2008 at 1:55 pm
themolk
We had someone from a corporate pen/paper company try and push a ‘Nespresso’ solution in for us… yuck…
August 18, 2008 at 9:33 pm
markk
At work, you mean? I think Nespresso would be superior to most work setups!
February 17, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Patty Adams
We bought one of the nespresso machines about 2 years ago. I was sceptical at the time but has been brilliant. i certainly don’t find the coffee stale and it means that my husband and I can have different styles of coffee without having to buy 2 lots of ground beans at once and risk that going stale. In fact we can order lots of types at once. The machine is easy to use and clean, no messy coffee grounds and ordering online is simple and quick. I had concerns about being stuck with one brand of coffee but they have a good range. We are not coffee snobs, but do enjoy our coffee and this has been a great solution for us that we use regularly as opposed to previous machines that have sat and gathered dust! We chose a magimix one and the frother for the foam is fantastic…. I really hate thin froth and we get a good creamy froth with this machine.
February 23, 2009 at 7:03 pm
markk
Patty, good to hear that someone has a use for Nespresso! I think there is definitely a place for it in the market; particularly the home market. Thanks for your comment.
March 2, 2009 at 9:36 pm
Jo
I was not impressed with Muzz Buzz’s service. It was five minutes of shutting and the window for walking coffee orders was closed. The window did not display the closed sign so I decided to wait my turn behind a car that was serviced at the time. When It was my turn to make an order the male employee had told me ” we are Closed”. I looked at my watch and it was five o’clock. This gentleman refused to serve me. Very disappionting Mandurah Muzz Buzz. Will not buy coffee there. This happened on monday 1st of march public holiday.