In the hallways of La Salle, it is hard to miss students walking into school with a Black Rock, Starbucks, or Dutch Bros drinks in their hand. The reason for this swarm of drinks is because in a less than two mile radius there are two Black Rocks, four Starbucks, and one Dutch Bros.
Black Rock was founded in 2008 in Portland, Oregon. The coffee boutique now has over a hundred locations that feature drinks such as teas, smoothies, coffee, fruity drinks, and their trademark energy drink, Fuel.
The closest Black Rock to La Salle is 0.7 miles away on 82nd and Boyer. “It tastes really good, and it’s very refreshing,” sophomore Nur Hannosh said. Right now her favorite drinks are their tropical drinks.
Junior Mercedes Rodriguez is another student who enjoys Black Rock. “They have different flavors, like if you compare them with Starbucks,” she said. Her favorite flavor is sour strawberry.
In 1971, Starbucks was founded in Pike’s Place Market in Seattle. It all started with two teachers and a writer who loved coffee. They named their new shop after a Seattle landmark, “Starbo,” and the first mate, Starbuck, of the ship in “Moby Dick”. Now, after 52 years, Starbucks is a global coffee giant with shops open on just about every other corner.
There are four Starbucks near La Salle, with the closest one being only 0.8 miles away. Freshman Allison Keller says that she enjoys the drinks at Starbucks more than at any other place.
Sophomore Isabella Montecucco said that since she has not visited the other two places, Starbucks is her go to coffee place. Her favorite drink to get there is a Starbucks Refresher.
Starbucks is known for their iconic holiday flavors, which started with the Eggnog Latte in 1986, but now their flagship flavor is one of their fall varieties, pumpkin spice. Some people love it and some people hate it, but it is undoubtedly an iconic flavor.
Finally, only 1.4 miles away on 82nd and Otty, there is Dutch Bros, a favorite of many La Salle students. “They have the most options that aren’t coffee,” sophomore Allison Moran said.
Two brothers of Dutch descent, the Boersmas, opened the first Dutch Bros in a pushcart by the railroad tracks in downtown Grants Pass, Oregon, in 1992 as an espresso shop. Now, they have just less than 900 shops in the United States, and 155 of them are in Oregon.
“I prefer Dutch Bros because it has so many different flavors,” sophomore Mackenzie Barrera said. Barrera prefers to scroll through the Dutch Bros app and pick something at random, knowing that it will be good, but her favorite drink is the Frost.
With three different coffee places in La Salle’s vicinity, many students have different preferences as to what coffee shop is their favorite. One thing that is certain is that La Salle will always be filled with different coffee delights.
