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by ctdonath 4605 days ago
Coffee snob here. Optimal brewing occurs at 195-205 degrees F, and is consumed soon after. Good coffee is served HOT, and people in general know this - yet continue to demand it at the drive-thru, and continue to do stupid things with it. Heck, the very existence of the drive-thru is a much bigger problem: dwarfing the 700 complaints of coffee burns, eating while driving reportedly contributes to some 80% of all automotive accidents, more dangerous than the much-maligned texting while driving - yet there is no call to eliminate drive-thrus for obvious on-the-run consumption.

Yes, people get severe burns by placing properly brewed coffee between their legs while driving. This is well-known, and there is little to stop it short of people not doing stupid things.

2 comments

"eating while driving reportedly contributes to some 80% of all automotive accidents, more dangerous than the much-maligned texting while driving"

Source?

Google is your friend. (I looked for the authoritative documentation you'd demand, but came a point I've got other things to do than preemptively do research for the skeptical. Suffice to say it's widely referenced, if a bit hard to pin down.)

ETA: I'd prefer research to snide retorts. I researched it to my satisfaction, you research it to yours; comparing the results would be much more enlightening than a put-down.

Lots of things that are widely referenced aren't actually backed by truth.
> Good coffee is served HOT

It's McDonalds coffee, not cat poop coffee served by servants in tuxedos. I suspect purchasers of drive-through coffee would accept sub-par coffee at a temperature that doesn't cause severe burns.

Actually McDonald's has about the best fast-serve coffee available; this fact translates into very large profits from happy customers. That quality suffers fast if brewed under 195F and served under 180F; why opt for sub-par when being nigh unto ideal is easy? Some things that make life better are harmful if you do stupid things with them...don't put hot coffee between your legs.