"Special Chai" from Dunkin' Donuts - Diary of a Refugee from Ukraine

Winter arrived already which meant time to indulge myself in several cups of coffee every single day. I am aware of the effects of having caffeine in my body. Even though I am not allowed to drink coffee due to specific medications, I just cannot help or control myself. I even tried drinking tea but at one point, I don't feel like drinking tea anymore. It's an old addiction so finding an alternative is tough against coffee.

I used to be fancy in terms of having coffee but not anymore. I am more of a latte and cappuccino person so they are available almost everywhere. Before when I was in Ukraine, I used to drink 3-4 cups of coffee per day but now every day I am having only a cup of coffee, sometimes 2 cups if it is cold. The place where I am currently staying, around me there are a lot of coffee shops. I tried coffee from some coffee shops near me but my experience was not so satisfactory. Obviously, they are better than Starbucks coffee but compared to the price, I have discovered that it's better to have coffee at home rather than spending money on outside coffee. It's not about the price only, it's about the quality of the coffee and unfortunately, I didn't find much difference between coffee from the outside and home.

Many of you might already be familiar with Dunkin' Donuts which is currently known as Dunkin'. It's an American multinational coffee and donut company. Well, at first I thought it was a donut shop because when it comes to buying donuts, people always talk about Dunkin' Donuts. I know they have coffee and other beverages section but people always prefer to Starbucks than Dunkin' I guess.

Just before Halloween, I thought to buy some donuts for myself. I was craving for sweets and I thought it would be a good idea to have some donuts for myself. So, my first thought was to go to Dunkin to buy donuts and come back. The shop of Dunkin is not far from my place, it only takes 10 minutes to walk so it's very convenient. So, while ordering donuts, I thought to check their hot beverage menu as well. While looking at the menu, I discovered something nice and it was "Special Chai". Seeing that on the menu made me curious and I decided to check the ingredients and what makes that Chai special. For those who don't know what is Chai, it is another name for Tea. Many people from different countries name tea Chai; even in Ukraine people call Tea "Chai".

Anyway, after seeing the ingredients, I realized that Special Chai has some specific flavors. This special Chai is also known as Masala Tea/ Chai in India and in the Arab world, they call it only Chai. This Chai is made with thick milk and tea, and cardamom. Some people use cinnamon sometimes for extra flavor. In my country, we call this tea Cardamom Chai. Normally you will find this Chai mostly in Indian shops so seeing this Chai at Dunkin' made me so curious and I wanted to try the Chai at that moment with my donut.

Not every person can make Masala Chai easily because the ratio of milk and tea has to be perfect otherwise flavors won't be there. Too much thick milk can be the reason for losing the flavor of Tea and also the flavor of cardamom is very intense so you have to be very careful about the amount of cardamom. I am not good at making Masala tea because most of the time either my tea becomes bitter or too much thick milk.

My expectation was not that high from Dunkin' as I have tasted Masala Chai in different Indian shops/cafes and to be honest, I didn't enjoy any of the Chai. For the commercial reason, nobody uses the right amount of milk in Masala Chai.

While waiting for my Chai order, I decided to look at the donuts that were displayed. Pretty cool decorations and topping on the donuts because of Halloween and I assumed why kids love these donuts so much, especially on Halloween month. Actually, they looked adorable and appealing with different toppings and decorations, kinda spooky vibes, from a business perspective it's a brilliant idea for donuts I would say.

So like a child, I ordered some donuts depending on the decorations and flavours. I personally prefer Banana and vanilla filling always so it was a must.

Just look at all the cute donuts...

Finally, my Special Chai arrived. I was neutral before taking a sip of Chai. It was good, really good. It was a little bit sweet but the flavor was really good. I have chosen semi-skimmed milk because I was skeptical about this Chai because it's from a franchise. The flavor of the cardamom was there, not intense and the flavor of the tea was relaxing, a perfect drink for the winter. It was really nice enjoying that coffee while sitting outside in the central area of Almere, Netherlands.

Later I also tried this Chai with full cream milk but I prefer semi-skimmed milk. The cost of a medium-sized cup of this tea is 3 euros. I don't know if it's expensive or not but compared to Starbucks coffee, this Chai is way better.

I finally found a place for myself to sit and drink something nice. I try to go there at least once a week just to have that Chai. Donuts are optional, I am not a fan of donuts.

Considering my mental health condition, it is pleasant to go out to have a cup of Chai and spend some time outside sitting just to enjoy the atmosphere and people.

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Love

Priyan...

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^{I am @priyanarc.... An architect, a dreamer, and a passionate writer who loves to write about life. I try to present my own perspective and experiences. Please leave your feedback and criticism because it's the only way I can know and reach your mind and thoughts easily...}

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All images used are captured by the author...