Coffee is a must-have for early morning and late night drives, so it would make sense that you'd be able to pick up a decent cup of joe at the same spot you buy your gas from, right?
After recently writing about the best coffees you can get at fast food chains in Canada, I realized I'd never actually tried brews at gas stations in Canada, which is odd for me given that I drive quite a bit.
I decided it would be a worthwhile experiment to test out the options at some of the most popular gas station companies in Toronto and I set my sights on Esso, Shell, Petro Canada, 7-11 and Pioneer. Unfortunately, the Esso and Shell stations I went to did not have coffee (which is kind of wild to me) so I had to exclude them from this list.
I armed myself with a stomach full of yogurt and some Pepto in case I got heartburn and set about testing the coffee from the three gas stations, all of which I initially drank without cream or sugar.
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
Petro Canada
A small coffee from Petro Canada in Toronto that costs $1.77.
Everything about getting a coffee from Petro Canada irked me. For this taste test, I plotted out an intinerary around my neighbourhood to the various gas stations I wanted to hit up, and to my surprise, the first Petro Canada I stopped at didn't sell coffee. After going to the other gas stations, I stopped at another Petro Canada with no luck, so I went out of my way to try a third.
It definitely wasn't worth the hassle. The coffee was lukewarm (and that's with me being generous) and had little to no flavour. If it was piping hot, it might be somewhat redeemable, but the barely warm brew gave me the ick. The coffee cup says "fresh brewed" on it, but I'd be very, very surprised if the coffee I drank had been made within the last hour.
As if that wasn't enough, the lid was a total disaster, even after I managed to get the flimsy plastic to properly fit, and it felt like I was constantly at risk of the lid giving away and dumping coffee on me (maybe it's a good thing the brew wasn't hot?).
Lastly, when I poured the remainder of it down my kitchen sink, there were noticeable bits of grounds clinging to the side of the cup.
I'd rather pick up a Red Bull than a coffee from Petro Canada.
Rating: 1/5
Price for a small: $1.77
Pioneer
A small coffee from Pioneer gas station in Toronto that cost $1.77.
The Pioneer coffee situation at On The Run was fancier than I expected, but it was still a letdown.
The machine itself is a digital touchscreen where you can select what kind of coffee you'd like from about ten different brews. Then, beans were dispensed into the machine and it sounded like they were being freshly ground, which gave me high hopes. It takes a minute or two for the process to finish, and I'm sad to say it wasn't worth the time.
The coffee tasted very burnt and bitter and was almost undrinkable. In fact, after I went back to my car and had a sip or two, it made me feel quite nauseous, so I went back into the store to grab some sugar.
It helped to mask the flavour of the bitterness, but the burnt taste was still very strong, so I ended up not drinking the rest of it.
The only reason I'm scoring this higher than Petro Canada is that the composition of the cup and lid felt quite sturdy, but that's the only concession for this coffee I'll be giving.
Rating: 1.5/5
Price for a small: $1.98
7-11
A small coffee from 7-11 in Toronto that cost $2.36.
It's been a really long time since I've been into a 7-11, so I'm not sure if they've changed since I was a teenager or if it was just the location I went to but it was quite fancy inside the store.
There were so many beverage options in general that it took me a moment to locate the coffee, and given that they call themselves a "coffee bar," I was disappointed to see only one type of coffee available.
It was in a carafe dispenser, like Petro Canada's coffee, but unlike them, the coffee was piping hot. I actually had to wait a few minutes before giving it a sip, and when I did, I was pleasantly surprised to find it was pretty decent.
It wasn't cold, burnt, or overly bitter, and it tasted like better than mediocre coffee, but it was quite pricey for a small coffee. If I really needed some caffeine and 7-11 was my only option, I wouldn't be mad at it, but it's not a coffee I'd go out of my way to buy again due to price and quality.
Rating: 2.7/5
Price for a small: $2.36
After finishing my taste test, I was filled with heartburn and the particular anxiety one experiences after drinking bad coffee, but I took a moment to reflect on the whole experience.
Given that Wendy's coffee and McDonald's coffee — which are two of my favourites from the chains available in Canada — are $1.79 and $1.59 respectively for a small and the small coffees at Petro Canada, Pioneer and 7-11 cost $1.77, $1.89 and $2.36, there's basically no chance I'd buy coffee from any of the three locations again.
In fact, a small coffee at Starbucks and Second Cup, which are arguably fancier than 7-11, will cost you $2.35 and $2.55 respectively, so you might as well treat yourself to something a little more luxe if the option is available.
I also recently pitted all of the blends of the coffees that Tim Hortons has against each other, and while their original and dark roast didn't do it for me, I thoroughly enjoyed their decaf.
Good luck out there, coffee drinkers — it's definitely needed!
These prices are confirmed at the time of publishing, but they can change at any time. Taxes and fees may not be included.
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