Merlo Coffee Founder Dean Merlo on realising his drive-thru ambitions and blending speed with quality and authenticity.
It’s thought the first drive-thru restaurant opened in 1947 on the United States (US)’ famous Route 66. The convenience of the grab-and-go concept gradually took the world by storm, inspiring large swathes of the restaurant industry to focus on speed and efficiency. Over the years, the concept expanded to every corner of the food and beverage sector – including coffee.
Seeing first-hand the success of drive-thru venues in the US, Merlo Coffee Founder Dean Merlo was keen to recreate the concept back home in Queensland. His idea was to combine the food of his Italian roots with the speed of the drive-thru experience.
“Before I started Merlo Coffee, I experienced fantastic cafés in the US. I thought it would be wonderful to have a café with American speed and efficiency, but serving good Italian fare,” says Dean.
“In the 1990s in Australia, especially in Brisbane, very few cafés were aimed at catering for the business community, so I decided to set up one in the centre of the city. That was almost 32 years ago now and we’ve never looked back.”
Following the success of the first venue and the opening of a second, in 1996 Dean decided to fully immerse himself in the world of coffee by adding a roastery to the business.
“We opened a second store after three years and realised we weren’t happy with the coffee we were using. From there I decided to dabble in roasting. I found an expert to come in to help us roast and things just took off,” he says.
With the roasting side of the business established and growing steadily, Dean and the team began to look for other ways to expand. In 2021, he realised his ambition of opening an American-style drive-thru when he took over a trio of venues in Toowoomba, a bustling regional town 100 kilometres outside of Brisbane.
“We had a customer in Toowoomba who was very keen to offload their three outlets and that included a drive-thru. We wanted to get into that area of the market, so we bought the stores and gave them a complete refurbishment.”
At the drive-thru, Dean was keen to keep an American style system in terms of speed, but wanted to introduce a slice of his Italian heritage. He knew serving food quickly was important, but so was quality and the experience of having a home-cooked meal.
“Nowadays, with the pace at which people live their lives, it can be hard to make time to prepare yourself a good home-cooked meal. Our main aim is still to cater for the business sector and to serve our coffee quickly, but to also do this with our food,” he says.
“We took a leap of faith and invested in the rebrand of all three stores including the drive-thru menu.”
To deliver this, the Merlo team focused on reducing the number of items on their menu to prioritise quality over quantity.
“Drive-thrus normally serve fast-food such as burgers, drinks, and hot chips. At Merlo we do jaffles, homemade toasted paninis, and, of course, coffee. Most of our drive-thru customers are there for coffee, but now also have the option of a wonderful breakfast or lunch,” says Dean.
“It’s difficult to produce quality food fast, so we’ve installed the latest technology and imported good produce. We have special cookers and heating equipment that can deliver food with speed while also cooking them well.
“We also wanted to focus on healthy food. For example, our smashed avocado is made from real avocado and not a spread, and our feta is Persian and fresh from the market. Our burgers are made with Angus beef and are never frozen or deep fried. It’s very exciting and people are giving us tremendously good feedback,” says Dean.
Although the rebrand has come at a price, Dean says the investment was worth it, especially in providing a regional area with more premium coffee and food options.
“The Toowoomba locals drink a lot of coffee, so it’s great to be able to offer them fresh beans from our roastery and to give them a real coffee experience,” he says.
For Dean, coffee has always been the star of the show. To give those who visit the Toowoomba dine-in venue in Russel Street an immersive experience, he’s installed a roaster on the café floor.
“When customers come in and have their coffee they can see the beans being roasted. It gives them a chance to have a more in-depth understanding of the process while enjoying their morning cup. Coffee is about retailing and retail is about theatre, so you’ve got to put on a performance and be engaging.”
According to the Merlo team, great coffee goes beyond good taste and is an opportunity to build community.
“For most people who live in rural areas, community means a great deal to them. We like to learn our customers’ names and form genuine relationships,” he says.
“Every time we craft a takeaway coffee, we make sure to get the customer’s first name and try to memorise it. We write their name on the lids of the cups. I think it’s small things like this that create a lasting impact.
“If I go into a café and they say ‘Hi Dean, here’s your flat white,’ it means a lot. For the people who live in the local area, we’ve recognised it’s important because they are more isolated compared to those who live in cities. We want to make the coffee experience as personal as possible and really emphasise community engagement. We are also getting involved beyond the cafés and are participating in The Carnival of Flowers, which is one of Toowoomba’s biggest events.”
Dean and the Merlo team are very proud of the community they’ve already created in Toowoomba and are looking forward to building more relationships with the customers that visit.
“We have put a lot of effort into the refurbishment and I’m delighted with how it has turned out. My family has even come to visit. If you can please an Italian family, you know the food and coffee has got to be good,” he says.
For more information, visit merlo.com.au
