Eater recently came out with a great feature about Wall Drug Store, the roadside throwback that serve\u2019s America\u2019s cheapest cup of coffee. Wall Drug is a blast from the past whose billboards blanket South Dakota\u2019s I-90 highway trumpeting 5-cent coffee, free ice water, and old-fashioned donuts. The article also uses Wall as a jumping-off point for a discussion of how far coffee has come in America.<\/p>\n
It can be hard to remember in these Starbucks-obsessed times, but there was a time when most American coffee was low-quality and flavorless. Coffee consumption was actually decreasing before successful chains like Starbucks and Peet\u2019s spread strong coffee and cafe culture throughout America.<\/p>\n
The U.S. is now in its \u2018third wave\u2019 of coffee culture, with innovative baristas and roasters expanding public knowledge about fancy coffee-brewing techniques and the ethical ramifications of coffee-sourcing. Americans certainly have many more choices when they decide to buy a cup of joe than they did 50 years ago when Wall first started selling coffee for a nickel. It\u2019s nice to have a reminder of what coffee was like in simpler times.<\/p>\n
Read the full article here: America\u2019s Cheapest Cup of Coffee<\/p>\n