I love it when people care. Even if it's about something minor, like whether you can get a slice of lemon with a Starbucks iced tea, it's always refreshing when someone actually gives a damn. I feel like I'm generally too busy (read: lazy) to care about things, and it's good to know that someone out there is doing the caring for me. Plus, caring gets other people caring.
Take, for example, Al Lewis at the Denver Post, who cares desperately about the fact that Starbucks doesn't provide fresh lemons to squeeze in iced tea. I never noticed it before, but now that I think about it, I might really like that option. I always ask for lemon with iced tea in restaurants, but it never occurred to me that Starbucks has been denying me. So while part of me thinks Al Lewis should just invest his time in finding another establishment for purchasing out tea, more of me thinks he keeps fighting the good fight. Your thoughts?
As you may have heard, after years of growth that kept them on track for world domination, in recent months global coffee phenomenon Starbucks suddenly hit a few stumbling blocks. Back in February, they closed their stores and retrained their employees on how to make the perfect shot of espresso. Yesterday, in response to critics who say that their beans are over-roasted, they introduced a new roast called Pike Place, named after the iconic market in Seattle, the city where they first started out.
They handed out free samples of this new roast yesterday at 12 noon to passersby and have scattered free coffee cards in daily newspapers all across the country. The clip you see above is from Mahalo Daily and in it, they capture reactions to the new coffee from Starbucks.
Have you tried the new roast? If you have, what do you think?
So, I've gotta hand it to Starbucks. Its new site, My Starbucks Idea, is actually...well, a good idea. You sign up and simply type in a suggestion that you think the coffee chain should adopt, and post it to the site. You can also view others' advice, and vote on ones you think are worthwhile.
Then - and this is the kicker - someone from the corporation actually reads the ideas and even puts some of them into practice. Several of the ideas on the site are currently "under review," like the suggestions for implementing frequent buyer punch cards, or for implementing free Wifi access in every store (obviously, many city locations already have WiFi service).
I'm also surprised at the quality of the suggestions. Though I'd imagine that the site is highly monitored to eliminate the crazies (or, for that matter, Starbucks haters), many of the responses are actually decent and well thought-out. And some, on the other hand, are flat-out hilarious: one poster calls Starbucks' music "pseudo-intellectual," "over-produced" and "noisy garbage," while another requests that the music in his local store be turned down, so that when he's "making a business call, it doesn't sound like I'm calling from a public place." Um...isn't that what your home and office are for?
Hmm...so I guess suggesting "STOP EXPANDING YOUR CHAIN!" would probably get flagged, huh? Just a thought.
Eating cheap in Manhattan by buying food exclusively from 99-cent stores. Doable? Yes. Advisable? Perhaps not.
The New York Times then brings chef Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin in on the skinflint action, challenging him to cook a meal entirely of products from Jack's 99-Cent Store. See what he does with a 99-cent frozen salmon fillet .
Starbucks just can't stay out the news these days. The chain coffee shop has been told its stock is dropping, its ubiquitous presence is annoying, and its coffee sucks.
Now it's been informed that it's been ripping off its barista's as well. A judge in San Diego, CA ruled that the company had improperly distributed tip jar funds to supervisors and would need to reimburse rank and file baristas, in its California stores, tips they didn't get...with interest. The judgment could cost Starbuck's more than $100 million. That's a lot of tip jar change.
Predictably, the company is crying foul, and says it will "vigorously appeal." According to a press released cited by the Los Angeles Times: "Our shift supervisors deserve their fair share of the tips that they receive from the tip jars in our California stores...The decision today in our view represents an extreme example of an abuse of the class-action procedures in California courts."
The company also noted that the case was filed in 2004 by a single barista, and that the interests of shift supervisors (who also make coffee and work with the public), were not represented in the litigation.
Much as I dislike Starbucks, this is one case where I have to express my disdain for class-action lawyers even more. From my completely unscientific, anecdotal experience as a customer, I can't see any difference in the duties of baristas and their managers. Both work the machine during slams, both take orders, both dish up the Rice Krispy treats. Inasmuch as any clerk who's not a waiter deserves a tip, everyone behind the counter should share the wealth.
The company that introduced (and hooked) us all on the $4 cup of coffee is starting to feel the burn -- of the economy turning south, and of competitor's cheaper cuppas.
In its annual meeting today, Starbucks' newly-returned founder and CEO Howard Schultz laid out plans for staunching the chains' loss of sales. Among other ideas, the ubiquitous coffee house might introduce loyalty cards...and do away with using flavor-locked bags of pre-ground coffee in its stores.
Seems nobody likes that burned-coffee smell anymore. Instead, stores will once again start using only freshly-ground coffee, and will more carefully tailor its hot food selections to those that don't get in the way of that all-important fresh coffee aroma.
In answer to growing competition from the likes of Dunkin' Donuts and McDonald's (both of which serve a fine cup of coffee, in my humble opinion), Starbucks began testing $1 cup of house coffee in its Seattle stores earlier this year.
After reading this story at our sister site That's Fit, I may look at my local Starbuck's barista a little differently the next time I stop in for a triple venti non-fat peppermint white chocolate mocha.
Apparently a Starbuck's employee and one of her long-time regular customers had developed a friendship of sorts. If you've ever worked in the food and beverage industry, you'll know this happens often - serving the same people day in and day out, you tend to find out a lot about their lives. As much as they talked over the course of three years though, the customer, Annamarie Ausnes, hadn't revealed that she was suffering from polycystic kidney failure until it got to the point where her kidneys were only functioning at 15 percent and she would be needing a transplant.
Annamarie's husband and son weren't matches, and she was already on a very long waiting list for a donor when she happened to mention it to Sandie Anderson, her barista. Sandie immediately volunteered to be tested, and was found to be a perfect match.
Earlier this week, surgeons removed one of Sandie's kidneys and successfully transplanted it into Annamarie. Both ladies are doing well and are expected to make a full recovery. Now that is going above and beyond in the way of customer service.
Last summer there was a press release that came out with little fanfare. Starbucks and Hershey's had decided to team up, with the chocolate giant creating confections for the coffee giant. The marriage finally came to fruition this week with a new line of chocolate delights sporting a Starbucks logo.
I have a really hard time thinking of anything coming from this pairing as good, but, then, I haven't tried the chocolates. The team over at Yumsugar has, though, and they were only too happy to give us all a review. It turns out that the line of sweets isn't so bad. The line includes "six different tasting squares, four truffles, three chocolate bars and covered coffee beans." Apparently the beans were the best part, but the truffles got good reviews too. The bars were better then the tasting squares, though, which doesn't make sense to me.
I'm still having trouble getting a handle on this. Has anyone else had a chance to try the Starbucks line of chocolates? What did you think?
Do you depend on Starbucks for survival? Do you need an afternoon pick me up to make it through the rest of the day? Well, on February 26th you'll need to time your visit a little more carefully than normal.
On the 26th, the coffee giant will close all North American stores for three hours, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. The purpose of the closing is for the retraining of the barristas. The company is implementing new standards, which they hope will provide a better experience for customers. The retraining is part of the corporations plan to stimulate growth and its brand. Sales have been lagging, and they need to turn things around.
The retraining effort goes along with other measures to get the company back on track. Starbucks plans on slowing US expansion, increasing overseas expansion, and offering some free wifi. Hopefully the shut down won't disrupt your routine too much and your experience should be much better the next time you stop into your local Starbucks.
Starbucks must really be feeling the pressure from fast food chains now.
First we find out they're "testing" much much lower priced coffees in Seattle (with free refills!), and now we find out that Starbucks will be removing breakfast sandwiches from their menus starting this fall. It seems odd at first, since the breakfast sandwiches typically add $35,000 to a store's annual revenue. Chairman and CEO Howard Schultz said, "we're going to build for the long-term and get back to the roots and the core of our heritage, which is the leading roaster of specialty coffee in the world."
I don't mind. Like coffee, I prefer McDonald's (Egg McMuffin!) to Starbucks.
Looks like super mega ultra ginormous Starbucks isn't feeling so big and powerful these days.
They are testing the sales of $1 cups of coffee that also include free refills in some stores in Seattle. Though Starbucks just recently raised coffee prices across the board, it seems that this testing is a response to stiffer competition from lower-priced coffee at fast food chains. McDonald's, Dunkin Donuts, and other companies sell their coffee for just over a dollar.
That's nice of Starbucks to price-match, but even if the $1 test passes and is expanded across the entire business, I doubt I would go into Starbucks. I actually prefer McDonald's coffee.
Go ahead and add another word to your arsenal of Starbucks lingo. Along with no-whip,half-caf, and venti, say hello to skinny. In this case, "skinny" means nonfat milk and sugar-free syrup, so you're getting fewer calories and sugar than in, say, your average latte. They call it "The Skinny Platform."
But not everyone is on board. The Starbucks Gossip blog featured a letter from a barista sharing her concerns about the new drink title. Among her complaints? A new drink type will cause confusion among customers, and use of the the word "skinny" to describe a beverage is politically incorrect, and could hurt customers' or workers' self-esteem. "Should we start calling drinks with 2% or whole milk and regular syrups "Fat" or "Obese?" she stated. "In today's society, the term "skinny" often refers to a person who is considered TOO thin or unhealthy looking. People will not want to order a drink with a name that they associate with an unhealthy appearance."
The letter set off a barrage of reader comments, many of them attacking the letter writer's assumed weight or appearance, and suggesting that if she not like it, she get a new job.
What do you think? Is the new platform offensive? Would you feel embarrassed (or proud) to order a "skinny" latte? Should Starbucks be more sensitive to their customers' needs? And furthermore, should they be required to take individual workers' opinions into consideration? Or should the workers just adhere to whatever new rules are dictated to them by upper management?
Another round-up of food posts from our favorite environmental sister site, Green Daily:
I love it when people care. Even if it's about something minor, like whether you can get a slice of lemon with a 
Eating cheap in Manhattan by buying food exclusively from 
Starbucks just can't stay out the news these days. The chain coffee shop has been told its stock is dropping, its ubiquitous presence is annoying, and its coffee sucks.
The company that introduced (and hooked) us all on the $4 cup of coffee is starting to feel the burn -- of the economy turning south, and of competitor's cheaper cuppas. 
After reading 
Last summer there was a press release that came out with little fanfare. 
Do you depend on 
Looks like super mega ultra ginormous Starbucks isn't feeling so big and powerful these days.
May is National BBQ Month and National Hamburger Month
Cupcakes, not for dessert (unless beef is your idea of a treat)
Because eating French Fries in the car is so tough
