On October 24, 2011, I wrote a decidedly unkind blog about Starbucks and those that go there. I sniped at the baristas (silly term), the monikers for size (“venti”? even sillier) and, especially, the customers. I called them “Starbucks Zombies” and suggested that all concerned had low intelligence and no taste whatsoever. I find, almost a year later, that I’m having to eat those words--like a zombie eating a brain.
My beloved independent coffee shop, Savor the Flavor, has closed (see my July 1 blog), and my friends and I have been set adrift in search of a new morning coffee stop. The choices? Starbucks at Sheffield and Diversey, Starbucks at Wrightwood and Racine, Starbucks at Racine and Fullerton, and Starbucks at Wrightwood and Clark. There are a few independents around, but they are not convenient and involve walking long distances. We tried Heritage General Store, which has a nice patio area, compliments of the city, but at $3.29 for a cup of coffee and $3.29 for a refill, that’s not much of an option for me; it’s a long walk, too, and once winter returns and the outside areas close, there is hardly any room inside, perhaps because it is also a custom bike shop. A what? My thought exactly. The only other independent coffee shops are simply too far away to walk to conveniently, at least for an old man with bad knees.
So I’m left with Starbucks. I actually rather like the one at Wrightwood and Racine. They are friendly, which is rare for Starbucks, and it’s a neighborhood shop away from a busy intersection. Unfortunately, it’s very small, and once the patio closes this winter, there will be little room for me and my friends to congregate. And one good friend, Gary J., drives to coffee and has to be concerned with parking, not always easy in this neighborhood.
The one at Diversey and Sheffield is close--half a block--but is always jammed packed and there are always lines, sometimes out the door. They’ve remodeled recently, especially the patio, and that’s very nice, but again, once winter comes, all those yuppies are going to be jammed inside. Parking for Gary J. is good, though. Maybe if they speed up their service . . .
Parking is not good at the location on Wrightwood and Clark, although Jen likes it there as it’s quite large (I haven’t been yet). I also haven’t tried the one at Fullerton and Racine, which is close to being too far to walk.
So, every few days we try a different location, including sometimes the The Patio, which is making a very half-hearted effort at a coffee shop where Savor the Flavor used to be. Good coffee and friendly service, but hardly anything else, and it was always going to be temporary as the space is being converted into a bar at the end of August--or so the rumor goes.
So, like little lost children we wander the neighborhood in search of a decent place to have a good cup of coffee in comfort and in ease. And it appears that Starbucks will be the winner. And I’ll be just another Starbucks zombie. “Well, they are consistent,” says Gary J. Yes, there is that, but not much else.
My beloved independent coffee shop, Savor the Flavor, has closed (see my July 1 blog), and my friends and I have been set adrift in search of a new morning coffee stop. The choices? Starbucks at Sheffield and Diversey, Starbucks at Wrightwood and Racine, Starbucks at Racine and Fullerton, and Starbucks at Wrightwood and Clark. There are a few independents around, but they are not convenient and involve walking long distances. We tried Heritage General Store, which has a nice patio area, compliments of the city, but at $3.29 for a cup of coffee and $3.29 for a refill, that’s not much of an option for me; it’s a long walk, too, and once winter returns and the outside areas close, there is hardly any room inside, perhaps because it is also a custom bike shop. A what? My thought exactly. The only other independent coffee shops are simply too far away to walk to conveniently, at least for an old man with bad knees.
So I’m left with Starbucks. I actually rather like the one at Wrightwood and Racine. They are friendly, which is rare for Starbucks, and it’s a neighborhood shop away from a busy intersection. Unfortunately, it’s very small, and once the patio closes this winter, there will be little room for me and my friends to congregate. And one good friend, Gary J., drives to coffee and has to be concerned with parking, not always easy in this neighborhood.
The one at Diversey and Sheffield is close--half a block--but is always jammed packed and there are always lines, sometimes out the door. They’ve remodeled recently, especially the patio, and that’s very nice, but again, once winter comes, all those yuppies are going to be jammed inside. Parking for Gary J. is good, though. Maybe if they speed up their service . . .
Parking is not good at the location on Wrightwood and Clark, although Jen likes it there as it’s quite large (I haven’t been yet). I also haven’t tried the one at Fullerton and Racine, which is close to being too far to walk.
So, every few days we try a different location, including sometimes the The Patio, which is making a very half-hearted effort at a coffee shop where Savor the Flavor used to be. Good coffee and friendly service, but hardly anything else, and it was always going to be temporary as the space is being converted into a bar at the end of August--or so the rumor goes.
So, like little lost children we wander the neighborhood in search of a decent place to have a good cup of coffee in comfort and in ease. And it appears that Starbucks will be the winner. And I’ll be just another Starbucks zombie. “Well, they are consistent,” says Gary J. Yes, there is that, but not much else.
Hmmm, I think you need to bribe Geri into opening up another coffee place. And then once established sell it to someone who has her vision! Okay, Geri??! Yep, Starbucks' zombies. Not you--perhaps the presence of your friends and you will start the movement to have a zombie-free Starbucks. One can always hope. love, me.
ReplyDeleteI've been to many a Starbucks that drowned out superior local coffee houses and churned out vastly inferior java for almost double the price. It's not the fact that Starbucks is simply the most prolific chain of coffee houses, it has captured a spot in the consumerist American mindset that this is exactly how coffee shops are supposed to be. Kids go to college and dive out to a Starbucks and open their mac books and veg out on you tube. There are no chessboards at Starbucks, there is no one playing trivial pursuit. If you are lucky enough to find one that has a newspaper or magazine rack you may be allowed to read something while you're there. Any set of free indulgences at a Starbucks are washed away by the overwhelming amount of shelf and storage space occupied by overpriced consumer good ready for mass consumption. Cups, whole or ground beans, accessories, etc.
ReplyDeleteThe management would prefer you get your coffee and go away but that's not exactly what one would call good customer service.
Perhaps they have gotten the best of you despite your words to the contrary, but always remember this...
Zombies eat brains, not words.