I was never much of a coffee drinker until I became a theatre major. Not that those don't correlate with one another, that is just my first memory of actually enjoying coffee. I had tried it many times before to no avail. I was always the one at Starbucks to order a Vanilla Bean Frappuccino (virtually the only frappe without coffee) or a tea of any variety. But, the second I took a sip of Dunkin' Donuts coffee, the game changed.

Here's the thing about Dunkin' Donuts that I think sets it apart from the rest of the game (AKA Starbucks). I'm going to say this, and it's going to sound weird, but it's more authentic. When you order an iced coffee with cream and sugar at Starbucks, you're going to get pumps of sweetener instead of the real deal. But, when you order the same thing at Dunkin', if you're not tasting little gritty sugar particles within the first sip, you didn't order it correctly. Because I don't like the bitter taste of coffee, I have to be distracted by the fact that I'm drinking coffee to drink coffee, hence why I always order tea. I think that's why I prefer Dunkin' coffee over Starbucks coffee, but we can all agree to disagree, right?

Another thing is that Dunkin' offers fun, seasonal flavors that keep people coming back for more. Starbucks has its big reveal with the Pumpkin Spice Latte every September (or is it August now?), but Dunkin' has new flavor reveals year-round. For example, during the summer months, they always seem to have some sort of ice cream flavor iced coffee. Trust me on this, if you're a hazelnut lover, you'll swoon over the butter pecan flavored coffee. There's also the occasional test flavors, like this season, where they are doing vanilla cupcake, or those times other than Christmas when they bring back the sugar cookie flavor. Of course, during the fall, they have pumpkin spice and salted caramel (Dunkin' Hack: getting them both together is a dream), but you don't see Starbucks with different flavored syrups year-round. The thing that Dunkin' and Starbucks have in common is that when something new is unveiled, it's only there for a limited time. So, if you've ever wondered what it's like to drink a cupcake through a straw, you better get to Dunkin' quick.

Both coffee chains have their advantages and disadvantages over each other, but one thing remains true. No matter what you crave, both chains will deliver. Just because I don't get iced coffee at Starbucks doesn't mean I've sworn off Starbucks forever because they actually have some pretty great menu items. But, if you're looking to save a few bucks or try something new, Dunkin' Donuts is your best bet because they will never let you down.