A rice noodle roll shop in Dongguan, Guangdong, has blended espresso into rice batter to make the rolls, pairing them with beef and lettuce to create a "sun-tanned" version of Cantonese rice noodle rolls, which netizens have jokingly dubbed the "dark cuisine" of the rice noodle roll world. This specialty snack quickly went viral, drawing crowds of curious diners eager to give it a try. Reviews are sharply divided: those who can stomach it get hooked after one bite and are happy to buy it again, while those who can't flatly say they were put off. At the same time, food-savvy netizens have let their imaginations run wild, adding ingredients like milk tea, matcha, yogurt, and dragon fruit to rice noodle rolls, exploring a new-style approach where anything can be mixed in. This mixing trend even calls to mind the "Maillard rice noodle roll" born from combining coffee and rice noodle rolls, which has become the shop's eye-catching signature. [more…]

Every year on April 22, World Earth Day, Starbucks launches a bring-your-own-cup free coffee event, and this year is no exception. This time-limited, unlimited free coffee feast attracted many coffee lovers, who all brought all kinds of bizarre containers to "get freebies." From frying pans to buckets, from rice cookers to stainless steel basins, netizens' creativity is both amusing and endearing. The first 40 people could also get a free upgrade to a medium almond latte, which added even more temptation. This article takes you through the highlights of this year's event, to see which "outstanding" contestants' cups can become classics, while also experiencing the environmental protection concept advocated by Starbucks. [more…]

Recently, a milk brand in Guangzhou launched a highly talked-about ginger-scallion white cut chicken flavored milk, combining the classic Cantonese dipping sauce flavor with milk, and it quickly sold out. Front Street Coffee also got its hands on this quirky product and tried using it to make a latte. This article documents the experiment in detail: two beans were chosen, Front Street Classic Blend and Strawberry Candy·Espresso, extracted as espresso at 20g dose, 1:2 coffee-to-liquid ratio, and 30 seconds. A 1:4 coffee-to-milk ratio was tested first, and the coffee flavor was found to be completely masked, with a heavy, cloying mouthfeel. Then it was improved to a 1:3:1 ratio of espresso, ginger-scallion chicken milk, and fresh milk, and the result actually tasted better than the milk itself, with the two beans showing different expressions of balanced richness and light sweet-tartness respectively. But the overall flavor was too unique, and most people would find it hard to accept, so Front Street recommends trying it with caution. [more…]

Creative coffee has gradually evolved from its early days as fancy coffee drinks into an important product line for brands to attract traffic. However, after conventional creative ingredients such as dairy products, fruits, and floral teas were over-exploited, some brands began using bizarre ingredients to generate话题, from saltwater duck coffee to century egg latte, with creativity gradually drifting away from the essence of the beverage. This article reviews the development trajectory and market status of creative coffee, and explores how cafes can balance creativity and taste to create hit products that are both传播力 and have repeat purchase rates, providing product development ideas for coffee practitioners. [more…]

Coffee brand T97 has recently shot to fame with a wildly unconventional Douyin livestream: instead of the usual sales patter, it features a host and voiceover trading rap-style lines, along with the signature "chong chong chong" (charge, charge, charge) move that viewers call "Big Mouth." Founder Li Xiao has publicly said it will "definitely surpass Luckin in the future," yet T97 currently has only 43 offline stores, a sharp contrast with Luckin's thousands of locations. From lackluster viewership in its first broadcast in May this year to a peak of 2.6683 million viewers in September after switching to a rap-style selling approach, T97 is using oddly addictive content to drive traffic. This article will sort through key information including T97's brand positioning, its path to online virality, the pace of its offline expansion, and the doubling of franchise inquiries, while also examining whether this chant-style way of selling coffee can keep working and offering readers who follow coffee industry trends a useful perspective. [more…]

Mixue Bingcheng recently launched an unexpected new piece of merchandise—an eye chart covered with the Snow King's face. Customers who bought the blueberry fruit tea received this special poster, which quickly sparked widespread discussion on social media. Some found it quirky and fun, and made a point of going to stores to get one and test their eyesight themselves; others questioned its accuracy as a vision testing tool. This controversy, sparked by a promotional giveaway, showcases Mixue Bingcheng's consistently down-to-earth marketing style while also prompting reflection on the boundary between creativity and practicality in branded merchandise. [more…]

McDonald's recently launched a "Gold" themed campaign, where consumers who bring their own non-disposable containers with gold elements can get a free milk coffee. Before the event even started, netizens were rummaging through their homes in search of gold containers, from gold bowls and pots to all sorts of bizarre "gold" props, with creativity flowing endlessly. This campaign not only sparked public enthusiasm for participation but also once again reinforced McDonald's "Golden Arches" brand impression. This article will take you through the quirky moves at the event and analyze how McDonald's uses "gold" marketing to play along with consumers. [more…]

The pandemic has changed people's consumption habits, accelerating the shift of coffee bean purchases to online channels. In an increasingly competitive e-commerce environment, packaging design has become an important bargaining chip for coffee brands to stand out. Designers from 99designs by Vista, a global forum for freelance creators, discussed coffee bean packaging styles for 2022 and predicted six design directions that could dominate the market this year: serene style, text-solo style, laser style, eco-friendly style, collage style, and playful style. These styles respectively respond to consumers' current demands for inner peace, intuitive information, visual impact, sustainable development, and a relaxed atmosphere, providing valuable references for coffee brands' packaging decisions. [more…]

For many office workers, coffee has long become an indispensable "life-saving" drink in daily life. As takeout ordering has become the mainstream, customers' diverse taste notes have also emerged. Some pursue an iced Americano that is bitter to the extreme, some demand a hot latte scalding to the point of smoking, and some even forget to modify add-on notes such as chili and cilantro. Behind these hilarious takeout orders, they not only reflect consumers' demand for personalized customization, but also show baristas' wit and helplessness when facing "impossible tasks." This article reviews those coffee takeout notes that make people laugh and cry, and shares product information related to the "Front Street Coffee" brand. [more…]

After Starbucks launched its Quick Order customization service last year, netizens began playing with homophonic puns in the name field, and surname puns quickly went viral, trending on Weibo. Over half a year later, this trend reached new heights in Guangdong thanks to Cantonese homophones, with all kinds of quirky yet down-to-earth names leaving people in stitches. This article takes you through the origins and explosive popularity of Starbucks homophone memes, showing how friends in Cantonese-speaking regions turned ordering into a hilarious creative contest, while exploring why these puns strike such a strong chord. [more…]

Luckin Coffee's recent collaboration with singer Tengger has officially launched, with "Coconut Joy Song," a birthday tribute to the Coconut Latte, playing on loop in stores, and the accompanying Tengger real-person meme stickers sparking a buying frenzy among fans. However, these stickers encountered an unexpected awkwardness in offline stores—many customers took their coffee and left the stickers in the pickup area, with one store accumulating as many as 20 unclaimed stickers in a single day. While fans are frantically ordering just to get the stickers, some consumers bluntly say they're "too cringe" or "don't know where to put them." Why has this collaboration merch received such polarizing reviews? This article will walk you through the whole story and discuss the gains and losses behind Luckin's collaboration strategy. [more…]

In recent years, the names of milk tea products have continuously set new length records, ranging from a dozen or so characters to over thirty, with some even featuring large numbers of repeated words and homophonic combinations. Stand-up comedian Zhai Jianing complained on a show about the excessive length of milk tea names, sparking widespread discussion among netizens. Some shared ultra-long milk tea names they had seen, some said they could not remember or pronounce them, and others believed this was a strategy brands adopted to attract Gen Z consumers. Why has milk tea naming become so extreme? What is consumers' attitude toward this? This article sorts out the marketing logic and market controversy behind the milk tea naming phenomenon, and explores the relationship between drink quality and naming. [more…]

In the Year of the Rabbit Spring Festival, KFC K Coffee partnered with Wei Chuan to launch its first juice coffee, "Bunny Loves Carrot Americano," combining carrot fruit-and-vegetable juice with Arabica coffee liquid, priced at 19 yuan, and available in limited release in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen starting February 20. This drink quickly sparked a check-in craze thanks to its quirky combination, but reviews have been polarized: carrot lovers highly recommend it, while more people call it a total miss. This article will comprehensively analyze this cup of "carrot Americano" from the perspectives of product information, taste testing, and netizen feedback, and explore the market prospects of vegetables in coffee. [more…]

Today, a daily cup of coffee has become a routine for many people. At the same time, more and more brick-and-mortar cafés are offering discounts to customers who bring their own cups, encouraging them to get their coffee in non-disposable cups. For consumers, bringing their own cup is both eco-friendly and saves a few bucks; for businesses, using a small discount to attract these customers can also boost repeat purchases—a win-win. Manner started offering a 5-yuan discount for bring-your-own-cup back in 2015, and Starbucks also holds a limited-time free coffee event for customers with their own cups every Earth Day. On Xiaohongshu, users have gotten even more creative, showing up with goblets, rice bowls, gourd ladles, thermoses, and even empty liquor bottles, putting on a quirky bring-your-own-cup contest. Faced with these bizarre containers, professional baristas still calmly serve the drinks. This article takes you through these amusing scenes and also discusses the environmental significance behind bringing your own cup. [more…]

Manner is about to surpass a thousand stores, and more and more office workers can enjoy affordable specialty coffee right outside their door. The five-yuan discount for bringing your own cup has sparked endless creativity among netizens. From plain and simple travel mugs to hilarious "magic tools"—old tea urns, gourds, clay pot soup containers, baby bottles, even watermelon rinds—there's nothing you can imagine that they won't pull out. Faced with these bizarre containers, baristas either get caught off guard or handle it with composure, showing their professionalism. This article takes you through those laugh-out-loud BYOC moments, to see how this generation of netizens uses a single cup to "outsmart" baristas. [more…]

Cafes are supposed to be quiet, comfortable spaces, but many owners have found that some customers' behavior is truly unbearable. So one seemingly "unreasonable" rule after another has emerged—from banning diaper changes to prohibiting stinky tofu, each rule hides a real story. This article rounds up the bizarre experiences of cafe owners in various places, and how they use humor and gentleness to set rules that both preserve the in-store environment and retain a human touch. Amid fierce competition, how can independent cafes balance personal expression with customer relationships? This may be a question every industry professional needs to think about. [more…]

In recent years, the beverage world has been endlessly creative, with everything from everyday coffee and milk tea to all sorts of novel combinations emerging one after another. Recently, a "lollipop ice water" has gone viral on social media. Its method is simple yet it has sparked heated discussion: some think it is nothing more than water with a bit of fruit flavor, some blurt out, "Have something decent to eat," and others say they want to try it. Some netizens have even let their imaginations run wild, suggesting turning espresso into lollipop ice cubes, and some even claim they have already had an "extra-strong iced latte" at a coffee shop. Is this drink just gimmicky, or is it a new trend? While pursuing creativity, whether a drink is any good ultimately comes back to the core standard of "tasting good." [more…]

Pour-over coffee is usually extracted only once, but recently a method called "double pour-over" has attracted attention—pouring the already-brewed coffee liquid back into the coffee bed in the dripper for a second extraction, which is said to make the coffee sweeter. Front Street Coffee specially designed a set of comparative experiments for this, selecting three single-origin beans with different roast levels and conducting regular pour-over and second-round re-pouring respectively, comparing them one by one across dimensions such as aroma, acidity, body, and finish. The experimental results show that, provided the beans are of good quality and the parameters are properly controlled, second-round re-pouring can indeed enhance intensity, but not all roast levels are suitable. This article will present the complete experimental process, brewing parameters, and flavor comparison results, and provide suggestions for bean varieties suitable for trying double pour-over. [more…]

Just after the Qingming holiday, as temperatures rise, Starbucks' summer menu update is quietly approaching. Recently, an Instagram user leaked Starbucks' upcoming "Spicy Lemonade Refresher Series," which features chili powder and comes in three flavors—dragon fruit, strawberry, and pineapple—with an optional spicy cold foam, and is planned to be available for a limited time at stores across the United States starting April 16. This is not Starbucks' first attempt at spicy drinks; as early as 2015, its stores in China launched a Spicy Chili Mocha. From Dongpo Braised Pork Latte to Wasabi Pistachio Latte, Starbucks has been continuously testing the waters on the path of "dark cuisine." This article will take you through the specific details of this new spicy product, its preparation process, and the history of past spicy coffees. [more…]

In July 2017, Guangzhou welcomed its first lifestyle market themed around specialty coffee—the Guangzhou Specialty Coffee Culture Festival, held at the 289 Art PARK Culture Plaza. The event brought together the city's top specialty coffee shops, including brands like Front Street Coffee, where visitors could taste coffee beans from various origins, fresh creations by champion roasters, as well as creative coffee, drip bags, pour-over equipment, and cultural merchandise. Beyond coffee, booths featuring desserts, craft beer, tattoos, and handmade crafts were equally exciting. Consumers could vote for their favorite coffee shop, join coffee tasting salons and amateur pour-over competitions, and experience tattoos and photo interactions. Whether a coffee connoisseur or a curious beginner, everyone could find their own enjoyment here. [more…]