NEWS RELEASE
June 1, 2009

Howard Schultz likes to think of his Starbucks cafes as the third place, an expression that refers to a comfortable social environment separate from the home (the first place) and the workplace (the second place). But when it comes to simply satisfying your lust for caffeine, what you sometimes need is not a place at all. You just need coffee, and you need it fast! ThatÕs where drive-through espresso comes in. 

Ray Weisgerber spent the past five years studying and photographing drive-through coffee stands all over the Northwest. Of course, they were not hard to findÑthere are hundreds and hundreds of them! Photos of his favorites, about 100 of them, are in a new book called Driven to Espresso: Drive-through Coffee Stands in the Northwest. The photographs are delightful and detailed, however, the book is more than just a documentation of small buildings with a specific focus; it chronicles a fascinating intersection of three long-lasting influences on the American culture: the automobile, entrepreneurship, and of course, coffee.

Drive-through espresso stands are an extension of the mainstreaming that specialty coffee has experienced over the past two decades, not only in the Northwest but globally. Although other cities in the United States are discovering this new face of caffeine addiction, they have a lot of catching up to do. Starting around 1990, untold numbers of them popped up in the Northwest, mainly on arterial roads used by commuters as well as nearly every freeway interchange. Occasionally, an intersection will have more than one. Weisgerber even found them in locations such as junk yards, statuaries, car washes, and small rural roads. 

Accompanying the photographs is an easy-to-read but comprehensive overview of the evolution and business characteristics of drive-throughs, as well as insights from several industry experts, as well as the challenges and rewards of owning one of these small businesses. Weisgerber points out why so many sprouted up in such a short time, and are spreading elsewhere in the nation.

But mostly, you will love to see the amazing variety and cleverness of the buildings themselves, which are the focus of this book. Besides functional and simple ones, and weathered-looking ones, there are ones shaped like coffee pots, boats, lighthouses, log cabins, and much more. It may inspire you to go out and hunt for some of these quirky buildings, or perhaps dare to open one of these businesses yourself, or at least to rush right out for a quick skinny double tall extra hot caramel macchiato.


Driven to Espresso: Drive-through Coffee Stands in the Northwest
ISBN 978-0-615-23089-4
Publisher: 1 by 1 Publishing
Author/Photographer: Ray Weisgerber
Publication date: July 20, 2009
Paperback, 8x8 inches, 128 pages, 105 photos, $19.95
Trade discounts available for retailers

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