Ever felt like a Venti was just too small? This is over three times the size.

Do you ever find yourself sitting home feeling hungry or thirsty, and despite having a house full of food, you don’t really feel like having any of it? You contemplate going out for a drink or bite to eat, but then remember that it can be a little pricey. This is a situation that our Japanese-language reporter Mr. Sato found himself in recently; he was craving Starbucks coffee, yet couldn’t be bothered to go out and buy it. After considering it for a while, he came up with a brilliant idea: why not try out the coffee pot service?

Way back in 2018, another of our reporters, K. Masami, wrote an article about this ingenious service where you could order an entire pot containing about 2.2 liters (77 fluid ounces) of coffee—that’s roughly 10 Shorts. The great thing about this service is that, on top of the coffee pot, you get paper cups, portioned milk, and sugar, which makes it perfect for small meetings or gatherings.

If you contact the store you’re ordering from in advance, either in person or by phone, you can customize it a little further, by choosing your beans, requesting whether it’s hot or cold, or asking for larger amounts. They will even arrange to have the coffee pot returned after you’re done with it.

As Mr. Sato researched it further, he stumbled across something even more intriguing: the Coffee Traveler.

According to the website, you can get about 12 Short-sized cups out of it, and there’s no need to return it. The customization options for the Coffee Pot Service are applicable for the Coffee Traveler too. For a self-proclaimed lazy person such as Mr. Sato, not having to deal with the hassle of waiting around for the delivery person to come back to collect the coffee pot was a bonus. Plus, with more coffee, he could fulfill his role as a senior member of staff and treat his coworkers to some hot drinks.

The total cost of the coffee was 4,550 yen (US$31.78) which, when you break it down, works out to be about 379 yen per cup. At the store, a Short can cost you at least 380 yen, meaning that you technically save about one yen per cup.

Of course, being a delivery, the costs don’t end there as there’s a delivery surcharge of 219 yen, as well as a separate service fee of 360 yen. Although, if you consider the fact you don’t have to go out, an extra 579 yen isn’t so bad.

Placing the order at Yotsuya 3-Chome, the nearest store to our office in Shinjuku, the coffee was set to arrive 25–35 minutes later.

After around half an hour, the delivery person called Mr. Sato’s phone to let him know that he was at the front door.

The coffee had arrived safely! Mr. Sato was keen to see exactly what a non-returnable coffee pot looked like with his own eyes.

It seems that the coffee is inside the cardboard box.

Here it is: the Coffee Traveler! It traveled all the way from the store to the office: not far by any means, but a travel nonetheless. Will it be as delicious as it is in-store?

In addition to the coffee, there were enough paper cups, napkins, milk portions, sugar, and stir sticks for twelve people —  perfect for a small gathering.

Now it was time to enjoy the long-awaited coffee. But wait! How do you pour this…?

Checking the diagram, Mr. Sato discovered that he had the box upside down. On reflection, he realized the spout being on the top was a bit strange. This is how it should look:

Yet, despite fixing his little mistake, Mr. Sato still didn’t notice that there was a stand for the box included, so there was no need to set it on the edge of the table like he had done.

You might wonder how hot coffee stored in a cardboard box could be, but you shouldn’t underestimate it; it’s seriously hot. There was so much steam, Mr. Sato was worried about burning his hands.

Finally getting the coffee he’d been longing for, Mr. Sato really felt tempted to drink all 12 servings by himself.

However, his conscience caught up with him, and he invited the other reporters in the office to a round of drinks.

Even though there were only a few members at the office that day, they drank up the delicious coffee to help them power through their article writing.

Looking at everyone’s faces as they savored their drinks, Mr. Sato felt a warm glow inside as showing a little bit of generosity from time-to-time is essential for a senior team member. If something as simple as coffee can help elevate the mood in the office, it is money well spent. To think ordering coffee could make him feel so satisfied…

Yuuichiro Wasai: “Mr. Sato, could I have a minute?”

Mr. Sato: “What is it?”

Yuuichiro: “About the Coffee Traveler… I wrote an article about it before. I know we’ve already drunk it, but still…”

Mr. Sato: “Huh? You did?!”

Yuuichiro: “See, here it is. About a year and a half ago.”

Mr. Sato: “Oh… you’re right…”

Yuuichiro: “When I ordered it, pick-up at the store was a lot cheaper. In December 2023, it was 3,100 yen. It’s gone up to 3,500 yen now, but it’s still way cheaper than delivery, right?”

Yuuichiro: “Also, the returnable pot service is about 2,900 yen for 10 cups. So, the Coffee Traveler has gone up in price, and there are cheaper options out there. I mean, just by choosing delivery, you’re already paying more compared to buying at the store…”

Mr. Sato: “Yuuichiro… I just wanted to let everyone drink some coffee. Everyone is working hard today, and I just wanted to give them some coffee. I don’t want to know how much money I’m losing. Yuuichiro… communication is not something you can determine by losses and gains.”

Yuuichiro: “If this was about communication, then why didn’t you wait until everyone was here? There are 12 cups, and if only the few of us drink it, the others can only read about it in the article and… well… I’m sorry. The coffee is really good.”

And so a subtle sense of distance settled between Mr. Sato and Yuuichiro. Nothing brings an office together quite like a cup of coffee…

Putting that interlude aside, if you don’t mind returning the pot, it’d be better to go with the cheaper Coffee Pot Service. If you’re fine with picking it up but not with returning it, call the store or use mobile order. And, if you’re like Mr. Sato, who feels both picking it up and returning it is a pain: use delivery. The more effort you put in yourself, the cheaper it gets.

Related: Starbucks Coffee Traveler, Starbucks Coffee Pot Service
Screenshots: Wolt
Top and insert photos: ©SoraNews24
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