Starbucks finally gets a clue — they start selling decent coffee!
When Starbucks recently introduced its new smoother coffee “Pike Place Roast“, I have to say that I was very skeptical. Let’s face it, Starbucks was more famous for it’s specialty coffee drinks than for its coffee. Dunkin’ Donuts, McDonalds and a slew of other coffee hucksters have beaten Starbucks in blind taste tests. McDonalds is knee deep in the coffee game and is certainly having an effect on Starbuck’s market share.

With that said, I have to say that I was very surprised. The coffee was delicious and every bit as good as the marketing campaign that accompanied it. The main issue that I have had with drinking Starbucks coffee in the past is how incredibly bitter it was. Not the case with “Pike Place.” It’s bold, smooth and very tasty. Ahh, the return to the days of old — when Starbucks was known for it’s coffee. There is also a throwback with the original siren logo that appears on the coffee cups. Kudos to Starbucks for pulling a winning clue out of the cluebag.

Also see:
Starbucks finally switches to free Wi-Fi!
Starbucks Sleeve
Jackhole goes to Starbucks
Do Starbucks corporate employees get free coffee?
Akeelah and the Bee and the Starbucks employee

Starbucks ditches the overpriced T-mobile Wi-Fi service for free AT&T service and I couldn’t be happier. A smart decision no doubt made by once again CEO Howard Schultz. More from this Associated Press article:

SEATTLE (AP) — Starbucks Corp. and AT&T Inc. will start offering a mix of free and paid wireless Internet service in most of the global coffee retailer’s U.S. shops, beginning this spring.

The move announced Monday ends a six-year Starbucks partnership with T-Mobile, which did not include free Wi-Fi and charged higher fees than AT&T will.

Starbucks said it will give customers who use a Starbucks purchase card two hours of free wireless access per day. More time than that will cost $3.99 for a two-hour session. Monthly memberships will cost $19.99 and include access to any of AT&T’s 70,000 hot spots worldwide.

Nearly all of AT&T’s broadband Internet customers, about 12 million, will automatically have unlimited free Wi-Fi access at Starbucks, the companies said.

The deal boosts the number of AT&T hotspots in the U.S. to 17,000 — the most in the nation.

Two hours free per day. Now that’s fair. It makes sense to charge more to patrons who wish to call Starbucks their office. Freeloaders!

This is a huge blow to T-mobile. But moreover, what was Starbucks thinking? Most modern food retailers offer free Wi-Fi to entice customers into their restaurant. Starbucks was exploiting their customers. Cheers to Howie. Glad to see you back at the helm!

Also see:
Starbucks Sleeve
Jackhole goes to Starbucks
Do Starbucks corporate employees get free coffee?
Akeelah and the Bee and the Starbucks employee

I think it’s great that Starbucks is committed to the environment. Shouldn’t every organization be concerned about it? Of course they should. Okay, sounds great so far. What about this:

Starbucks is committed to reducing our environmental impact through increased use of post-consumer recycled materials. Help us help the planet.

WHAT? Talk about buzzword central. Here’s what they’re really saying “We love the planet. That’s why this sleeve is made of recycled material. We wanted you to know. We want you to know that we’re thinking about the environment, okay?”

Wouldn’t it be easier if they just said “Recycled sleeve” or “We’re smart enough to recycle, you should too.”

Here’s where it gets confusing for me:

First-ever 10% post-consumer fiber cup
60% post-consumer fiber sleeve

HUH? What is that supposed to mean? It’s the first ever post-consumer cup and it’s only 10%? Shouldn’t it at least be 50%. I’m not sure what post-consumer fiber is but I’m not that impressed that it’s only 10%.

This is an interesting line:

Intended for single use only.

Hmmm. I hope they don’t mean use it once then toss it? That wouldn’t be very cool.

Also see:
Jackhole goes to Starbucks
Do Starbucks corporate employees get free coffee?
Akeelah and the Bee and the Starbucks employee

I stopped by my local Starbucks for a Venti Chai Latte today. Upon entering the Starbucks I couldn’t help but notice ALL the ads for the movie “Akeelah and the Bee“. First I noticed all the signs on the windows. Each sign depicted a different winning spelling bee word from various years. They all had bright green backgrounds with large words reversed out like “shalloon” - winning word from the 1971 spelling bee. They had a travel edition of Scrabble that had “akeelah and the bee” spelled out on playing board. A very crafty ploy but perhaps a bit over the top. Okay, I get it. Starbucks is now shoveling movies down my throat. I guess it wasn’t it enough that I frequent the store to buy an overpriced tea or coffee. Now they need to make more money by putting advertising all over the place.

As I sauntered up to the counter to place my order, a lovely young girl asked if she could get a drink ready for me. I asked for a Venti Chai Latte. She asked my name so she could write it on the cup. I replied “Akeelah” She said “REALLY?” I said “No”. “With all the advertising about “Akeelah and the Bee, I thought it was only fitting to have a hand written advertisement.” So she says “great!” and proceeds to write my so-called-name on the cup.

When the barrista finished preparing my drink she announced “Akeelah?” “Akeelah?” I picked up my drink and noticed that the girl who had originally written the name on the cup actually SPELLED IT WRONG. Interestingly enough the movie is about a spelling bee. The wrapper that’s on the cup has the movie name on it. Funny enough, there are signs all over the store. How ironic that a movie about a spelling bee and that has signs and tons of advertising should be spelled wrong by a Starbucks employee! Nice attention to detail.

A more interesting movie may be Akeelah and the Bee and a Starbucks employee. Yeah, that’s a movie I would go to see.

Does Starbucks corporate have a kitchen where employees deposit their lunches inside the community refrigerator? Do they have the regular coffee office brew stations with Starbucks coffee? Or, do they have a Starbucks store inside corporate headquarters. If they have a corporate store… is the coffee FREE? I mean do employees pay for coffee at the corporate headquarters? If they get the coffee FREE, how many cups are they rationed to per day?

In Cuba, its well known in most cigar factories employees can smoke as many cigars as they wish during the course of a day. They are also allowed to take home three cigars per day. So we know that nicotine is an addictive substance. Consequently, the employees who smoke are hooked. Not a bad thing, just an observation.

If coffee contains caffeine, another addictive substance, how many Starbucks employees drink the coffee? I once worked for a General Motors subsidiary at the Tech Center in Detroit. One of the persons in my department drove a Honda. She was not looked upon very favorably for obvious reasons. This brings me to my next question. What if some of the Starbucks corporate employees do not drink the coffee. Better yet, what if there’s a rebel running around Starbucks corporate drinking Dunkin Donuts coffee? That can’t be good. Or does that person disguise the fact by drinking from a thermos?

After finishing a healthy lunch today, I had a craving for a Starbucks Venti Chai Latte. Driving up to Starbucks, I noticed an unusual excess of cars in the parking lot. So I began circling the Starbucks. Patiently I searched for a spot. Driving around, and around, and around the building. So many times that I started counting. Twelve, thirteen, fourteen… ah ha… a spot. Should I be concerned that it’s about three blocks away from the building? Hell, no, I need my Venti Chai Latte.

I walk right up to the counter and the nice girl behind the register greets me. She asks me what I want and I reply “I’ll take a Venti Chai Latte please”. Of course I’m still fuming over my parking lot escapade. I’m thinking to myself “What kind of Jackhole circles the building fourteen times for a stinking cup of tea”? Oh, that would be me. So the nice little girl behind the counter asks me my name. (Starbucks likes to write your name on the cup so they can call you by name when your drink is ready.) The girl asks me my name again and I reply “JACKHOLE”! She asks me if Jackhole is my real name. I said “It is today”. “I drove around looking for a spot fourteen times”. Another girl looks at me and says “Was that you in the green truck”?. “Yeah”, I replied. “That was me”… the JACKHOLE”.

My attention get diverted for a second while another girl holding a sampler assortment of coffee offers me one. I grab one and think about it for a second and say “Did you say this was coffee”? She replies “Yes”. Not wanting coffee, I put it back on the tray. She grabs it and turns around to throw it in the garbage. I said “Oh, that’s the PC thing to do”. “Toss it out”. “You wouldn’t want to offend anybody now would you”. The register girl shouts “No way JACKHOLE!” I think that’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard in a Starbucks or any other coffee shop for that matter.

When my Venti Chai Latte is finally ready. The kid yells out “Hey JACKHOLE !” “Your VENTI CHAI LATTE is ready JACKHOLE !”. The other Starbuckers behind the counter say “BYE JACKHOLE!”. “See you tomorrow, JACKHOLE !”