Starbucks - Evil or Eviller? And why?

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Starbucks has a bitter plan. Not only that, they have bitter coffee too, but I forestall. So Starbucks is to close 600 stores in the US. Now what about the rest of the world? Is that good or bad? I think the answer depends on how evil you rate Starbucks.

I have sympathy for the workers there, so the closing will be a clear minus in that regard. And Starbucks has those comfy chairs and nice interior. Competition with Starbucks that has forced other chains and restaurants to pretty up theirs (great effect). But that's about it.

It has always irked me to see Starbucks spread like the flu. In Cologne one could barely walk a mile in the city center without stumbling over three to five Starbucks stores. Not even the evil McDonalds (which I occasionally frequent) is as prevalent. I guess it was Starbucks that has brought to Germany the coffee-to-go culture, which in itself is ok.

As for Starbuck's coffee itself, it sucks. Bad. They ruin their coffee beans and the resulting noxious brew is not for me. That is why I think Starbucks is very evil. This silly coffee-ciato-with-extra-flavour-whatever nonsense annoys me - try order a normal cup of coffee there - they look at you like you're from Mars (I insist, I am not). I want coffee flavoured coffee, thank you.

 

Missing option: "Since when is closing 600 stores deemed evil?" I've never seen a Starbucks coffeeshop, but I have heard that there was only one in the Netherlands, at Schiphol in the tax-free zone. So they're not that prevalent.

 

No Starbucks in Serbia at all, as far as I know.

As such, I have no idea what to vote on this...
"No experience with Starbucks"? as an option maybe?

 

Why does having bad coffee make Starbucks evil? If you don't like their coffee, don't buy it. If you like coffee flavored coffee, I'm sure Germany is just like the US in that there are tons of other coffee shops that serve regular coffee. I don't frequently go to Starbucks, although I have tried it. I don't think their coffee is bad, I just don't think it's so good that it justifies the high price charged for it. My wife and I generally look at it this way: Why should we spend $5 for a cup of flavored coffee at Starbucks, when you can go to any doughnut shop, get any type of flavored or unflavored coffee you want - plus a doughnut or a bagel to boot - for about $3? If you just want a large coffee it's only $2.

The other thing I don't like about Starbucks is you have to go inside and get your coffee - they don't have drive-throughs. The only time I stop for coffee is when I'm taking a trip somewhere in the morning. I don't want to sit around in a coffee shop - no matter how comfy their chairs are - sipping my drink and wasting time. I want to get back on the road. So a place like Dunkin' Donuts that charges less than half the price as Starbucks (and DD has good coffee IMO) and doesn't even make me get out of my car is definitely for me.

I guess I just don't see why you think Starbucks are evil. Yeah, they're all over the place, but it's not like they're the only people selling coffee. It's capitalism at work - if you don't like their coffee, buy someone else's coffee. The only problem I have with SB is that's it's so overpriced. $5 for a large coffee is outrageous.

 

Oh yes, overpriced, how could I forget that?! It would have been a marvellous 5th poll option! Selling bad coffee for a high price apparently deludes some people into thinking it is actually good. That's immoral, but I guess that's my moralist/missionary streak on coffee.

And in fact, I don't buy Starbucks coffee. Last time I went there it was because of the comfy seats; I had a coffee that, as I fully expected, was miserable, but it was way better than standing in the rain.

Besides, and I freely admit I only know that second hand - but from passionate coffee lovers I trust - coffee in America is something *cough* different *cough* than here. That applies to Britain too. I can testify to the latter from my own experience. French coffee is way better. Coffee in Germany and Austria is in comparison better, too. Reportedly the Swiss are the odd one out in that regard, it is apparently hard to get garden variety German coffee there. Italian coffee again is good.

The lack of dive-through's in Starbucks actually is a good thing about them. Oh, and they have a nice logo.

 

Now that is odd. I'm not all that surprised that there may be slight variations on coffee from one place to another (and once you go with flavored coffee the variations are limitless), but just regular coffee made from hot water and coffee beans should be pretty much the same no matter where you drink it. That American coffee is marketly different from European coffee is just ... odd. Coffee only grows in tropical climates so it's not like Europe is growing their own. Germans are (presumably) buying their coffee beans from the same places that the US buys theirs - which is primarily Central and South America.

Having never been to Germany, I must admit that I have no idea how Germans drink their coffee. However, I do not think there is a typical American style coffee - and even if I'm wrong and there is traditional American coffee, Starbucks certainly is not it. The strength of the coffee varies somewhat depending on the type of bean you use, and the quantity of ground bean you use. The darker the bean and more ground bean you use generally results in stronger coffee. But that's really the only variety in regular coffee. I like strong coffee with some sugar, no cream.

So I guess now, I'm still confused as to what you don't like about American coffee. When you said you didn't like Starbucks flavored coffee, I thought your problem with it was that it wasn't regular coffee - not that it was American coffee. Not liking flavored coffee isn't unusual - I know quite a few people who won't drink flavored coffee, and just like traditional coffee. I'm interested to hear what your impression of American coffee is, and how it supposedly differs from European coffee.

 

Different regulations could easily mean different chemicals are used in different coffee bean... farms? That and different variations of the plant will have different flavours different ways of preparing the beans, different water, cream/milk, some places traditionally use certain types of sugar. Apparently water temperature changes the flavour as well

As to the company being 'evil' it looks like the redirection of cutting back is neccessary due to the inappropriate nature of the previous designs on expansion. They were pretty much a novelty that spread in the UK and Europe and stuck. Can you blame them for expanding? It was a profitable venture and until recently was stable in a growing economy.

 

I think there's not a single Starbucks in Finland.

We drink poison named as 'coffee' here and I think it might be aganist company regulations for Starbucks to start serving such swill anywhere.

Honestly. Foreigners congratulate our coffee's commendable laxative abilities. Starbucks can't compete with that.

 

Aldeth,
according to the horrific stories I heard the average office/diner coffee is of tea-like consistency (that is no joke btw), which says everything. Coffee that one can look through is here known under various names, like Mucke**** (no relation to the US four letter word) or Schlöres, none of which are flattering. Under that premise I have a splendid explanation for the otherwise inexplicable popularity of Starbucks: If you don't know anything better, then of course Starbucks must be like ... good.

A friend of mine told me that in Chile and Peru and probably throughout South-America, the peasants drink 'coffee', which is some thinned syrup made from coffee beans (it is said to be quite crappy).

In coffee there are many factors that can account for differences: The sort of beans (arabica [=expensive, mild] vs. robusta [=cheaper, sour] or a mix of both) you take and the way (temperature, duration, intervals) you roast them (German roasting is different than French or Italian roasting), how fine (espresso machines) or rough (push-staff-sifter-type) you grind the coffee beans and finally how you then brew the ground coffee (how much coffee you take; 'soft' or 'hard' water), whether you use filter papers and whether you put them into quick flux filters with three to four (fast = milder) holes vs. slow flux filters with one (slow = bitter) hole vs. machines vs. Italian screw-type espresso machines vs. those high-tech-toys vs. push-staff-sifter-type coffee cans vs. no tools at all* - and a litany of other factors. And then, of course, there is Turkish Mocca which is once again different.

*Romanian/Turkish style - larg-ish spoon of coffee into a large glass, hot water, stir, let the coffee rest - voila. Good variant.

 

While overexpansion no doubt has contributed to SB's current problems, also remember that the economy in the US just sucks. With the price of necessary items like gas and food skyrocketing in the past year, I imagine part of their problem is that spending $5 per cup of coffee isn't in many people's budget.

If you buy a cup of Starbucks every day going to work, you will spend over $100 per month. I can buy about a week's worth of groceries for my family with that money. (Actually, with the recent increase in food prices, I'm spending more than $100 per week on groceries - it's more like $130 per week.) The point being that a lot of people are feeling the squeeze on their wallets as high gas prices have increased the cost of nearly everything. Cutting back on something that can only be characterized as a luxury purchase is an easy way for people to save money.

 

Many Starbucks in France.
I hate having to give my name and having to spell it so they can write it on a paper cup.

Do you guys (and gals) use aliases?

The big problem is actually remembering them when they call out to hand you your cup of black mud.

 

Aldeth, on my last line

I should have elaborated, I blame the cat for harrassing me , I am aware of the economy situation of the US lately, it has also greatly affected the situation in the UK.

I believe there is another topic relating to the price of petrol, around here it's up to £1.20, food shopping once a week again is costing over £100 in most shops.

I also said, as you quoted me, that they were a novelty around here, and to expand so grossly on luxury isn't generally a wise business decision in most markets without providing more basic options or alternatives, or even investing in similar markets to tide over when their luxury market is in decline.

 

I agree 8 people.

I just saw Ragusa's reply now. See-through coffee with tea like consistency? Where did your friend get coffee? That sounds terrible and not indicative of what most Americans want coffee to be! I'm no coffee expert, but even my home coffeemaker can do much better than that, and anything that's served in a restaurant is usually much better. I really question your friend on diner coffee. From my experience late night places like diners and doughnut shops cater to truckers and other people who take coffee breaks for the caffeine to keep them going on overnight drives. From my experience with them, diners have some of the darkest, strongest coffee that you'll find. I'm talking like put hair on your chest strong - not see through at all.

 

I have to admit I like Starbucks. I was thrilled when one opened down my road. The only thing that annoys me is that they don't carry raspberry syrup in the UK stores, so I can't have my iced skinny grande raspberry latte unless I go all the way to America. Boo.

 

Aldeth,
apparently the intricacies of the American coffeescape warrant further research. I want my coffee black as a nightmare, and drink it with some milk so it's dark brown. Which incidentally reads like a splendid idea ....

That doesn't excuse Starbucks coffee, and I'll stick with my theorem unless proven otherwise.

 

Starbuck's coffee is OK, if not over priced. I certainly would not claim that they are "evil." Also, the quality of coffee seems to vary from one Starbucks to another, so maybe they just don't know how to make coffee in Deutschland.

I don't know if they are indepentently owned, or if they are mostly corporate stores, which could account for some differences. Also, most of the shops that I've seen have drive-throughs, except the ones inside the malls, of course.

 

Starbucks in Germany is a franchise, which means everything is standardised.

 

Never been and don't plan on it. It's all about Coffee Nation.

 

In theory. But generally corporate stores are more standardized....