Posted by Emily Stone, April 23, 2008 at 10:15 AM
I've been procrastinating a lot this month. There are two things that I do when I procrastinate: eat chocolate and fixate on stuff I find online. And that's how I found myself unwrapping about a dozen five-gram chocolate squares (each one with a funky cacao-pod design indented in it along with the words STARBUCKS CHOCOLATE) while watching a PR video.
The new Starbucks Chocolate line is old chocolate news by now: Cybele at Candy Blog rated everything in the lineup on a scale from one to ten, and Chocophiliac Clay Gordon tried to untangle the complicated corporate web that is Artisan Confections (that is, the confederacy of Hershey-owned subsidiaries Scharffen Berger, Joseph Schmidt, and Dagoba) to figure out who's actually making this stuff. But I wanted to conduct an in-depth analysis myself. So I poured myself a glass of water and cut up some crusty white bread (good palate cleansers) and sat down in front of my laptop with my Starbuck's samples.
Continue reading »
Posted by Emily Koh, April 9, 2008 at 6:45 PM
A) Engraving of a twin-tailed siren (15th century); B) First Starbucks logo (1971 - 1987); C) Il Giornale logo; D) Merging of Starbucks and Il Giornale (1987 - 1992); E) Redesigned Starbucks logo (1992 - today); F) Current Starbucks logo, a revival of the original
If you stopped by Starbucks the other day to try their new Pike Place Roast brewed coffee, you may have noticed the cup looked a little different, with the siren's tails displayed more prominently. Actually, this "new" design is a throwback to the original Starbucks logo, which is in line with CEO Howard Schulz's call for the coffee empire to return to its roots.
Brand Autopsy and Brand New both examine elements of the evolution of the logo. Here we present the entirety of the logo's history, from 15th century engraving, to its initial rendering, to the logo following the merger of Starbucks and Il Giornale, and finally, to its present-day return back to the original.
Posted by Raphael, April 9, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Last week, Stephen Colbert credited Doritos for his success on winning the Peabody award for "distinguished achievement and meritorious public service" of television news: "Doritos gave me the money to produce those ground breaking shows. Doritos, I believe, also, gave me nacho-cheese lung... So Doritos have now won a Peabody." To commemorate this "landmark achievement in snacking," Colbert has created stickers that say "Peabody Award Winning!" for people to download, print, and take to their local supermarket to stick onto bags of Doritos.
Watch the video, after the jump.
Continue reading »
Posted by Erin Zimmer, April 8, 2008 at 2:45 PM
So is the new 'Bucks jolt juice as smooth as they say? We asked some coffee drinkers at the Starbucks branch in Rosslyn, Virginia, and heard a lot of mixed sentiments. Too strong. Smoother. Watery. Worse than Dunkin'. Worse than McDonald's. Free. Old-school. People, make up your minds!
- "No good. Pretty strong. I had to put a lot of cream in it to make it OK. I'd call myself a Starbucks drinker, but not this." —Sam
- "I like it. It's smoother. Normally Starbucks coffee seems to cater to the non-black-coffee drinkers. Too burnt-tasting normally. But this I could take black." —Malcolm
Continue reading »
Posted by Raphael, April 8, 2008 at 9:25 AM
The media ploy and slow-crawl retooling continues. After years of over-roasting coffee for its dark, bitter brew, Starbucks has listened to the people and will switch to what it's calling a "smooth and welcoming everyday blend." Instead of merely opening vacuum-sealed bags of preground coffee, your friendly barista will now "hand-scoop" and grind the coffee in house. Smaller batches! A maximum hold-time of 30 minutes! Ethically sourced! The press release would like you to know that this is an "historic" and "monumental" day. Most people would say it's about time.
Previously
Starbucks Buys Clover, Starts Social Networking Site
Starbucks Barista Reprogramming Successful
Starbucks Discontinues Breakfast Sandwiches
Starbucks Breakfast: Doomed from the Get Go
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 19, 2008 at 6:00 PM
Well, the Starbucks shareholder meeting has come and gone, and the two biggest pieces of news out of it are that the Seattle-based coffee giant is buying Clover Equipment, makers of the single-brew coffee machine coveted by beanheads, and that Starbucks is starting a social networking site (mystarbucksidea.com)—basically to pick your brain for further improvements.
Continue reading »
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 19, 2008 at 1:45 PM
Starbucks, whose stock is flagging as McDonald's and Dunkin' Donuts sip away at its business, is announcing today at its annual meeting that it will freshly grind beans in-store for its brewed coffee. The move is only one of several intended to lure customers back into the store (80 percent of orders at the chain are to-go). Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz says there may be a customer loyalty card, premium cups from Clover machines, and remodeling in the works.
Continue reading »
Posted by Raphael, February 29, 2008 at 6:45 PM
Stephen Colbert handled the three-hour caffeine crisis with great aplomb. Video after the jump.
Continue reading »
The Starbucks media ploy, or the "Great Starbucks Shutdown of '08", imparted the baristas with very important knowledge: make the customer happy, and make the coffee taste good.
Fair warning, coffee addicts: Your local Starbucks will be closed when you go for that late-afternoon cuppa joe. Don't freak. All 7,100 of the chain's U.S. stores will be go dark from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. for employee retraining—all 135,000 baristas. And Dunkin' Donuts knows an opportunity when it sees one; it'll be offering small lattes, cappuccinos, and espressos for 99¢ from 1 to 10 p.m. today.
We're all used to Starbucks expanding, so it's news when the coffee giant resorts to layoffs to bolster the bottom line. None of the eliminated positions were in retail stores.
Previously: Starbucks Discontinues Breakfast Sandwiches
Soon you'll be able to buy doughnuts from Seattle-based doughnut chain Top Pot at a Starbucks near you. These doughnuts are currently available in a few Starbucks locations outside Washington, but by April 8th Starbucks locations in all 50 states are expected to sell Top Pot doughnuts.
Posted by Erin Zimmer, January 31, 2008 at 5:00 PM
Or, 'It's the Espresso, Stupid!
Whether you loved or hated the Starbucksian take on the McMuffin, it will officially be yanked, according to today's New York Times. After making some calls to Washington, D.C., locations, it appears that Monday is the national D-Day, which leaves just three days of devouring the pre-assembled shrink-wrapped sandwiches.
A Brief Starbucks History
Pre-Breakfast Sandwiches
In 1971, they sell just roasted beans and brewing equipment.
In 1982, they add live-made coffee and espresso drinks, all the while fearing that a foray into the beverage world will distract them from bean-roasting.
Along came pastries and banana breads... some ambiguous time in between...
Post-Breakfast Sandwiches
In 2006, they have jealousy issues with McDonald's and create six warm breakfast sandwiches: sausage; peppered bacon; sun-dried tomato with ham; reduced-fat turkey bacon; and eggs Florentine with spinach (all of which include egg and cheese).
On January 30, 2008, that dream dies. With a pending economic recession, Starbucks embraces a turn-around plan, focusing on its original plan: coffee.
Continue reading »
Posted by Ed Levine, January 14, 2008 at 7:00 AM
Starbuck's stock is plunging. The company's visionary Howard Schultz is coming back to the CEO's job. Is Starbucks worth saving? If it is, how can it be done? That's the question, Serious Eaters. I think it is worth saving. The coffee's a little burnt, and the breakfast sandwiches suck, but Starbucks is still a comfortable place for freelancers to work and meet, and there's still a decent vibe in most of them. So I think it's worth saving. But how?
Continue reading »
McDonald's has announced its entrance into the coffee specialty drinks wars. According to the Wall Street Journal, "McDonald's is setting out to poach Starbucks customers with the biggest addition to its menu in 30 years. Starting this year, the company's nearly 14,000 U.S. locations will install coffee bars with "baristas" serving cappuccinos, lattes, mochas and the Frappe, similar to Starbucks' ice-blended Frappuccino."
At least one barista at Starbucks is incensed about having to refer to drinks as "skinny," the term given to drinks made with sugar-free syrup, non-fat milk, and no whipped cream. She supports her stance by saying that the term is politically incorrect, confusing to customers, discriminating, and has a negative effect on people's self esteem. [via Gothamist]
Posted by Erin Zimmer, December 13, 2007 at 2:45 PM
Way back in 2005, my early food blogging days were spent obsessing about the Starbucks red cup phenomenon. Something about the festive tumblers said "pay attention to me." But back then, the little cups were young and naive, with only a few cutesy games online. Definitely not a philanthropic campaign. As an iconic telltale of the season, just like coats or snow, they've become so ambitious that world peace is next on the agenda!
But it's a cup! Oh, but the red cup has spearheaded a nationwide pay it forward-esque campaign called the "Cheer Chain." Basically, Starbucks leaves some buy-one get-one coupons near registers—and has since last year—hoping you'll become BFF with the stranger behind you. Use the coupon on that dude's coffee tab (hoping it's not a venti frap with soy milk, flavor shots, and Ibérico ham shavings), and they'll do the same for another dude.
Continue reading »
Posted by Erin Zimmer, September 7, 2007 at 4:00 PM
The first sightings of Starbucks' beloved Pumpkin Spice latte have been reported! Though it's barely September, the season of paying $4 for a pumpkin-spiked caffeine buzz is back. And we can't forget the drink's sidekick, a pumpkin cream cheese muffin, also available nationwide.
Just as Labor Day signals summer's farewell to some, the much-anticipated pumpkin latte means fall foliage and Halloween candy for many of us. Seeing pumpkin ale on shelves is equally heartwarming. Over at Whole Foods, they've got Sea Dog-brand and World Market has Buffalo Bill's version of the seasonal ale. Both are amber-colored, supposedly with undertones of nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves. Saranac is another popular brand floating around out there.
Doesn't all this pumpkin talk make you want to read Robert Frost's "After Apple-Picking" and rake leaves? Even if canned pumpkin is available year-round, and technically, we could probably make these drinks anytime, it's only right to slurp them down in mass quantities right now.
Photo taken at Starbucks in Washington, DC at the corner of 19th and M Streets, NW.
Posted by Lia Bulaong, April 5, 2007 at 9:31 AM
Slate's Jacob Weisberg breaks down the growing ubiquity of green tea: "In China and Japan, green tea is a hot drink usually served in a small ceramic cup. But to American commercial culture, green tea is yoga in a bottle—or in a can, candy bar, candle, lotion, soap, perfume, pill, or extract. Described as soothing and gentle, it sits paradoxically at the red-hot intersection of New Age health mania and industrial chemistry."
As an example, Weisberg points out that if you're drinking the Tazo Green Tea Frappucino at Starbucks for any other reason other than taste like, say, your health, you're delusional—the venti size has a whopping 560 calories, and that's without whipped cream. [via Amy's Robot]
Posted by Lia Bulaong, March 27, 2007 at 10:15 AM
A three-week-old McDonald's in Saratoga Springs is a prototype for a new upscale, Starbucks-like redesign for the chain that could be making its way around the globe, featuring "trendy, upholstered booths, a stone fireplace, and comfy lounge chairs. Gone are the iconic Golden Arches. Instead, there's a short, modern sign on a tuft of grass outside. Instead of a cardboard cutout of the 'Hamburglar' next to the counter, there's a bowl full of Granny Smith apples and a glass display of salads. There are warm tones of sage green and brown, not the traditional bright yellow and red."
Posted by Lia Bulaong, March 7, 2007 at 5:49 PM
Coffee drinkers, prepare to get jittery on someone else's dime—the NY Sun says you're "in for a lot of free coffee in the next couple of weeks":
The first freebie is tomorrow, when McDonald's will hand out free cups of the stuff to anyone who asks for it, at any location. It's in celebration of being named by Consumer Reports as having the best coffee for the price (compared with other fastfood chains).
Then next Thursday, Starbucks is celebrating its second annual "coffee break" by pouring free 12-ounce cups (tall, not grande or venti) of brewed coffee between 10 a.m. and noon.
And then finally, on Wednesday, March 21, Dunkin' Donuts will celebrate the first day of spring with a free 16-ounce cup of iced coffee all day long.
Our Alaina Browne called McDonald's to check if free coffee will be available at all locations tomorrow; She said, "They say since they're 85% franchise owned, it's up to the franchisees as to whether or not they are participating," so if you'll be stopping by a McDonald's for some coffee tomorrow, have a few bucks in your pocket in case your local franchisee is not feeling the free coffee love.
Posted by Nathalie Jordi, January 24, 2007 at 8:31 AM
One of the most surprising vistas in China is the Starbucks tucked into a corner of Beijing's Forbidden City, which has sold coffee to all and sundry since 2000 (at the behest of palace managers, who needed to raise money for maintenace of the villas and gardens). Apparently it may not stay there much longer.
Posted by Nathalie Jordi, January 23, 2007 at 11:00 AM
Remember our post on Starbucks getting rid of milk from cows treated with rBGH in half its stores?
Apparently, rBGH does not show up in milk--the fluid itself is rBGH free. However, cows given rBGH are at a much higher risk of mastitis, an udder infection usually treated with antibiotics, which do come through the milk.
See the NRN Food Service Blog for a fleshing out of the semantics.
Posted by Nathalie Jordi, January 17, 2007 at 3:31 PM
Yay Starbucks for ridding its milk supply of the controversial artificial growth hormone rBGH. (Apparently last month, they stopped selling pastries made with trans fats at half of their locations. Which half, we wonder? And what about the other half?)
Spokesman Brandon Borrman says the company boosted its hormone-free milk percentage from 27 to 37 percent this month and will keep going until all the milk is hormone-free. So far, they've found hormone-free milk suppliers in Northern California, New England, New Mexico, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska.
It's especially telling that Borrman mentioned that the action isn't necessary for Starbucks' overseas locations because the supplement is not allowed in "most other nations."
Taiwan and Mexico never allowed Starbucks to use rBGH milk. Why have we tolerated it for so long?
Posted by Nathalie Jordi, January 17, 2007 at 6:30 AM
We don't know that there's an answer to this puzzling question, but the best place to look would be Starbucking, an indie documentary out on April 24th that follows a man named Winter as he attempts to visit every Starbucks-owned (non-franchise) Starbucks in the world.
The company opens an average of 10 new Starbucks-owned Starbucks a week, but Winter's already hit up over 6,000 since 1997. Can anyone do the math? Will he actually make it?
"My name is Winter. Only Winter. Past articles referring to a name other than Winter reflect inaccurate/imprecise reporting because they do not tell the whole story. Since most articles do not have space to tell the whole story, simply stick to this fact: my full legal name, as decreed by a judge in Texas, is Winter. Nothing else. Just Winter."
Sounds like he's had a little too much coffee?
Posted by Ed Levine, November 28, 2006 at 12:45 PM
A few weeks ago in the New York Times Arts and Leisure section there was a great piece by Susan Dominus on the Starbucks aesthetic embodied in the CDs and DVDs it sells. That aesthetic, according to both Starbucks executives and customers quoted in the story, is built around the notions of community, inspiration, discovery, and, of course, quality. I'm not ashamed to admit that I buy into this aesthetic. I think the CDs on sale at Starbucks are usually good and interestingly chosen. And I am a music freak. In fact, I wrote about music for ten years before I started writing about food, and I have 2,000 CDs in my collection.
But can you apply these aesthetic values to the food served at Starbucks? Say, to the breakfast sandwiches it now serves at 1,100 Starbucks locations in eight markets? I'm a food guy now, so that's what I want to know.
The first thing you notice when you're waiting in line to order is the stack of breakfast sandwiches in the pastry case right next to the bagels and croissants. These sandwiches are there for display purposes only. There are five on view: sausage, egg, and cheese; pepper bacon, egg, and cheese; sun-dried tomato, ham, egg, and cheese; reduced-fat turkey bacon, egg, and cheese; and eggs Florentine, made with spinach, eggs, and cheese.
When you order one, however, your barista retrieves an already cooked and assembled shrink-wrapped sandwich from a refrigerator and heats and crisps it in a combination microwave-convection oven. Your barista then puts it into a bag and seals it with a sticker that articulates the newfound Starbucks food aesthetic: "Great coffee deserves great food."
Unfortunately there's nothing "great" about the Starbucks breakfast sandwiches. In fact, they are only marginally edible. Egg sandwiches can't even attain "pretty good" status when they're not made fresh to order like they are at hundreds of delis and coffee shops in and around New York City.
I was curious about the genesis of the Starbucks breakfast sandwich. A Starbucks spokesperson explained that the breakfast sandwiches are the product of a lengthy R&D process by a team of "certified" chefs at Starbucks headquarters. These chefs were charged with developing homey breakfast sandwiches using high-quality ingredients that could be heated and served to the customers within the tight real estate confines of a typical Starbucks store. Consistency and high quality were the cornerstones of this initiative.
The chefs knew that no cooking ever takes place in a Starbucks, so that these sandwiches would have to be cooked and assembled in a central location and delivered to each store daily. The breakfast sandwiches, unlike the coffee Starbucks built its business on (made daily before our eyes by remarkably friendly baristas), come from two distribution centers across the country.
Eggs are not made to be cooked in one spot and shipped to another to be eaten. But given the set of constraints these chefs were working within, Starbucks had no choice but to sell heat-and-serve items.
This dooms these breakfast sandwiches. Because what Starbucks ends up serving is a slightly more upscale version of the same scary things we can also buy at 7-Eleven, McDonald's, and every gas station on interstates all across America. These are convenience foods for the latte set (which includes me). Eggs cooked in one place and shipped to another to be served are doomed to slab, loaflike status. In fact, I found the best way to eat a Starbucks breakfast sandwich is to discard the egg loaf slice and eat the rest.
The breakfast sandwiches at Starbucks fly in the face of the often admirable Starbucks aesthetic. Until Starbucks decides to either forgo cooked food or puts kitchens into each store, its food initiative is doomed, no matter how much spinach or fontina cheese or pepper bacon it put in its breakfast sandwiches.
So when you get that hankering for an egg sandwich, head to your local deli, coffee shop, or any place that actually cooks the sandwiches to order. That's a basic food aesthetic all of us can get behind.
The Starbucks Aesthetic [New York Times; from TimesSelect paid archives]
Starbucks.com
