The Secret of Drip

On one of the side streets that branch off from Omotesando Boulevard in the Harajuku neighbourhood of Tokyo, Japan - summertime shoppers enjoyed iced coffee at a new coffeehouse, called The Secret of Drip.

Unlike most coffee places in Tokyo, drinks at The Secret of Drip were unusually cheap, just 80 yen (US$0.58 or ZAR10.00).

With no cashiers, no baristas, delightful décor and (even by Japanese standards) an unusual way of ordering - customers started to suspect that something was up with the new place.

According to Casey Baseel:

The reason why the cafe says it has no barista, and also why its prices are so low, is because the coffee they serve is actually prepared using Japanese coffee company UCC’s Drip Bot coffee-making machine and its compatible drink capsules, with the price of the drinks based on the price of the capsules.
At the very bottom of a letter that accompanied the coffee was a post script, saying “Please knock on the door at the back of the cafe that has a question mark on it.”

Yes - the whole Secret of Drip cafe was in fact an elaborate pop-up experiential promotional campaign for Drip Pod (a Japanese-equivalent of the Nespresso system).

The cafe was only open for a week or so, but clearly made enough of an impression with the right kind of clientele to warrant the effort.


More:

Tokyo’s newest ultra-cheap, no-barista cafe has a secret【Taste test】
After learning The Secret of Drip, we think we need to have an important conversation with our boss.
ひみつのドリップ|バリスタのいないアイスコーヒー専門店
コーヒーひと筋で事業を展開し、今年90周年を迎えるUCCが、この夏、期間限定で送るアイスコーヒーの専門店。産地によって様々なフレーバーを持つ個性豊かなコーヒーを14種類もラインアップ。56種類の多彩な楽しみ方をご提案します。1人でも多くの方に、新たなコーヒーとの出会いを楽しんでいただきたいと考えています。※専門店ですがバリスタはおりません。
DRIP POD
UCC ドリップポッド(DRIP POD)公式ストア。厳選したコーヒーをプロのハンドドリップの味わいでたのしめる「ドリップポッド(DRIP POD)」はこちらから。限定品のスペシャルティコーヒーから、鑑定士のブレンドまで、約20種類から1杯ずつ選べます。本物のコーヒーの香りと味わいを堪能できます。