The Good News: I like iced tea, so I was glad when Dunkin’ Donuts started brewing it and selling it. The Bad News: Sunday night it took the chain four tries to get my order (medium, black, unsweetened) right. At the DD at 6166 Post Road in North Kingstown (where I made the mistake of driving away without taste testing first) the first try tasted like iced coffee. When I drove around again, the second did, too. The young lady at the window explained: Maybe it’s because we had trouble with the tea brew basket, so we took the coffee brew basket and made tea with it. Could be…
At my next stop, in Attleboro, their first try (3rd total) had sugar in it. I learned this in time because I’ve taken to protecting myself against missed orders by doing something that I hate doing, because it’s so obnoxious – I sit at the window and take a sip before I go. I hate to admit this, but it’s becoming the only way to make certain that you find out in time if you’re getting what you paid for. “No, I didn’t order Sweet n’ Low.” On try number four, I hit paydirt.
Why is service such a challenge for some places? I had breathtakingly bad experiences at Macy’s and Sears over the weekend as well. But then, I had a great experience with AAA’s East Providence office.
You can be sure I’ll renew my membership with AAA, and recommend them to others. Meanwhile, I’ll look for ways to shop around Macy’s and Sears, and I’ll get iced tea at Starbucks whenever I can.
