slate.com — Here's a little secret that Starbucks doesn't want you to know: They will serve you a better, stronger cappuccino if you want one, and they will charge you less for it. Ask for it in any Starbucks and the barista will comply without batting an eye. The puzzle is to work out why.
Jul 9, 2007 View in Crawl 4
Closed AccountJul 9, 2007
Texas is for tequila, not espresso.
geocarJul 10, 2007
Uh, what do you think comes out of the frothing wand? That's *steam*, at above 212 degrees, so if you heat it too much, yes it will burn. Are starbucks baristas, on top of not being educated on how to make a cup of coffee, *stupid* as well?Starbucks started as a roasting house, not as a drink bar, and it shows. Their beans are fine (adequate anyway), it's the barista that 9 times out of 10 is screwing it up. I object to you laying that blame on the customer: If any part of it is the *customers* fault its their fault for believing you that you're making them a good cup of coffee and that *they're* the one screwing you up. Your coffee tastes like camel ass and it's your fault because Starbucks *does* employ experienced roasters.Starbuck's goal is to make money, period. Its easier to make that money if their customers expect low quality service, and right now most Americans don't know good coffee. They trust *you* to be their expert, because making a good cup of coffee is *really* complicated. There are a lot of excellent, high quality coffee shops in America, but Starbucks isn't one of them.
geocarJul 10, 2007
I wonder that too. Why did OP have to blame the customers when he s**ts in their brew?
tentwentyfourJul 10, 2007
So basically what the latter half of that article was saying is that most of Starbucks' customers are rich trend followers that want to spend lots of money on coffee because it's a social statement, and so they charge more for their coffee and try not to advertise anything cheap?Sounds about right.
frogpeltJul 10, 2007
You can't get it where I live. I ordered for about a year after they took it off the menu but they finally quit making it.
frogpeltJul 10, 2007
Cheesy Gordita Crunch! That was the best thing Taco Bell ever had. For the love of all that is good, why did they get rid of it?
andrewdevlinJul 10, 2007
The BLT soft-taco. I still remember it's cool, crunchy texture. *Fap fap fap*
ottoJul 11, 2007
Damn digg comment system... dupe, bury
rklinger85Nov 25, 2008
I've worked for Starbucks for 7 1/2 years, and I also worked at a Mom n Pop shop for a while in college. I'm sorry, but after working on several different kinds of machines (manual and automatic, my foam can still kick anyone's indie coffeehouse ass. It has nothing to do with the brand and everything to do with how people choose to do their job. If they take the time and care that a cappuccino requires, you'd never know the difference. Get off your anti-corporate high horse, and face the truth- Starbucks is putting Mom n Pops out of business for a reason. We have good product and amazing marketing.And as for being known for 20 ounces of dry foam, any barista who cares about their drink and their job can do that and do it well. Starbucks isn't ripping art from anyone. It's bringing the appreciation for coffee and specialty drinks to the mainstream. Now hippies, artsy folk, and college kids cramming for finals aren't the only ones in coffeehouses. We're meeting places for the community, just like local coffeehouses. And the machines have nothing to do with it. Give me a break.
blix797Feb 13, 2009
You want to talk about gaming the system, how about these soccer moms who get away with ordering a large iced tea, no ice, and then a large cup of ice.... just want to throw it at them, the dumb bitches.