When You Aren’t at the Bistro
Bistro mugs won’t fit in your cup holder in the car (and you’d be a little crazy to have an open container like that in your car anyway) but there’s no shortage of cups designed specifically for the car. Say hello to travel mugs!
Travel mugs tend to all have the same basic thing going on; a long thinner base to fit in cup holder betters and then a wider upper half. They also are the mugs that come with lids, making it the only really smart pick for going on a trip. You can find a really cheap one made out of just plastic, but the best ones are built a lot like a thermos with a layer of air between the inside of the cup and the outside of the cup to keep the heat in the liquid.
These are really popular in general, and that popularity has carried over into the promotional items industry. I can see the benefits, of course. They’re imminently useful because you can literally take them anywhere, and some even come as part of a thermos set. There’s still something special about the way a ceramic bistro mug fits in my hand that makes me prefer them on a personal level, though.