More than a Hill of Beans

Yours truly is always rooting for the underdog and this time for good reason. The coffee wars are on between Tim Hortons and Dunkin Donuts, so says a recent cover story on Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood.

While working this week in Lancaster, near Buffalo, NY, I needed to find out for myself. And, while I'm no coffee drinker I do appreciate a good donut and cup of Iced Capp on occasion.

In Canada there are more Tim Hortons donut shops than there are McDonalds. And like the story said "Canadians consume more donuts per capita than any other country in the world." I believe that might also be true of Western New York.

Just across the Falls lives the Land of Wonderful Wegmans and Terrific Tim Hortons. First I ruined my appetite with an evolving line of Maple glazed crunch donuts dripping with crushed almonds minus the grease that some (not naming names) popular chains include. It was super fresh, full of flavor and far less cheaper than Starbucks.

Open since 1964, growth has pushed through a series of new products like muffins, cakes, pies, croissants, cookies, soups, sandwiches, bagels and wraps. My buddy Mike says he still prefers the rich and creamy sweetness of a cup of joe from DD but admits the burnt Arabica beans give the coffee an obsession some can't resist.