New Dutch Bros. offers free drinks, big backups

Dutch Bros. Coffee opened its seventh Tri-City location Wednesday.

The new 24-hour drive through is causing backups on Clearwater Avenue, even though there’s another edition just a few blocks away.

Dutch Bros., based in Grants Pass, Ore., constructed the newest drive-through at 3918 W. Clearwater Ave., about four blocks from the existing Dutch Bros at 4305 W. Clearwater. Jake Daniels is operator of Dutch Bros Kennewick.

The new Dutch Bros boasts a leisurely loop for drivers, but opening day specials overwhelmed the site and led to backups on Clearwater as far away as North Morain Street. The new shop is offering free 16-ounce drinks until 5 a.m. Thursday.

The company and its franchisees operate more than 260 shops in seven states with system-wide sales of about $350 million.

This story was originally published November 29, 2017 at 3:10 PM with the headline "New Dutch Bros. offers free drinks, big backups."