Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (sometimes shortened to simply "Coffee Bean" or "The Coffee Bean") is an American coffee chain founded in 1963. It was previously owned and operated by International Coffee & Tea, LLC based in Los Angeles, California, before it was acquired in 2019 by Jollibee Group, a multinational company based in the Philippines, for $350 million. As of 2024, the chain has 1,232 stores spread across 24 countries.^[1]

History

The company was founded by Herbert Hyman (1931–2014) in September 1963, as a coffee service for offices. His wife Mona (whom he married in 1966) and he honeymooned in Sweden where they discovered quality coffee. This sparked the decision to import, roast and sell gourmet coffee in Los Angeles, opening the first Coffee Bean store in 1968 in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood.^[1]

Products

The company is known for its Original Ice Blended coffee and tea drinks, hot coffee drinks, and hot and iced tea drinks. It also sells a variety of whole bean coffees, whole leaf teas, flavored powders, and baked goods.^[1]

Coffee

The company's coffees fall into seven categories: Light & Subtle, Light & Distinctive, Medium & Smooth, Dark & Distinctive, Decaffeinated, Flavored, and Reserve. It roasts approximately seven million pounds of coffee annually. All of the beans are hand-roasted at its roasting facility in Camarillo, California.^[1]

Tea

The company's teas fall into seven categories: Green, Black, Oolong, Herbal Infusion, Decaffeinated, Flavored, and Tea Master's. All of the teas are hand-blended at its facility in Camarillo, California. The Chai Tea Latte, one of the chain's most popular drinks, was first served in 1998.^[1]

CBTL single-serve system

CBTL, a single-serve system for home use, was launched in the United States, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and the Philippines in 2010. Several types of single-serve capsules are available for the machines: espresso, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate.^[1]

Kosher and halal

All Coffee Bean coffees, teas, and the powders used to make other beverages, are certified kosher. As of June 2020, Coffee Bean ended its storewide kosher-only certification for stores and bakery items in Southern California. Storewide kosher certification was ended for Coffee Bean locations in the Las Vegas area months earlier.^[1]

Locations

As of 2024, the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf has a total of 1,232 stores in 24 countries, including Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Israel, Jordan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Kurdistan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Philippines, Qatar, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, USA, and Vietnam.^[1]

Partnerships

On 5 September 2012, Nokia announced a deal with the chain to offer wireless charging facilities in its cafés. On May 28, 2013, Hilton Worldwide announced they had signed an exclusive agreement for Coffee Bean to provide in-room coffee and tea for all Hilton hotels in North America, South America, and Central America.^[1]

Controversies

A lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in 2012 after lead plaintiff Roderick Smith discovered a peeping Tom spy camera nestled in the u-bend of the sink in an Encino, California café in October 2011. Smith said after he noticed the device inside the bathroom's unisex facilities, he immediately told management at the shop but was told the camera looked more like a flash drive, according to Smith's attorney Brian Kabateck. In a statement the company said: “We believe that our cooperation helped lead to the arrest of the suspect.^[1]