I was out and about today, enjoying 70 degree weather with the top down for the first time this year, when I decided an espresso would be good. The closest place happened to be Starbucks, so I stopped in there for an espresso compana and a blueberry muffin (I figured that was the least-bad thing they had to eat!)
My thoughts on Starbucks… They’re ok. That’s about it. I like them just fine, but there is much better coffee to be had out there. In Cincinnati, I really like the Coffee Emporium. They roast their own coffee on Central Parkway, and they have great lunch sandwiches, too. It’s not as fancy as Starbucks, but that’s not a bad thing.
I really have nothing against Starbucks, but I like supporting locals that do as good or better job. However, I do find myself going back now and then. Why is that? I really haven’t figured it out.
Take my blueberry muffin. It looks great, but was it? It was ok, but nothing great. The one thing they had that I loved is no longer there, a caramel chocolate brownie that was really good. Now, the pastries seem to look better than they turn out to be.
Even the espresso… I don’t drink a lot of coffee, but I love good coffee. The espresso I had to do was fine, but a bit over extracted. I like a bit of a bite to my espresso, but not a sourness to it. Stauf’s in Columbus makes a great espresso roast (I think it’s their Italian roast); bold flavor with no bite to it. Bitter without being BITTER!
Maybe I’m just un-please-able today, but I expected more. I did like the seating, though. I sat on a leather-ish couch with good wifi access, and enjoyed the sunshine.
I’ll be back, when I want some coffee and don’t see anything else closer. Fortunately, though, with phone access to the internet and a bookmark set to the Delocator.net site, I can find local shops all over.
I noticed this blog post on Foodgawker and being a barista for the past 4 years of my life drew me in. I’m all for supporting local coffee shops but, like you, find myself drawn back to Starbucks from time to time despite some sub-par products. I’m not a coffee drinker [I can't stand the taste of regular coffee and I can't handle the caffeine content of espresso], so I always opt for tea and Starbucks does have a good assortment of those.
Anyway, my point is that if there’s a local coffee shop I will 9 times out of 10 opt for them over Starbucks. I work at a local shop in Vermilion, OH over the summer and those have been some of the best summers of my life. It’s personal and cozy, and we have a higher quality product. While I’m at school, I work at a local shop in Delaware, OH and frequent Stauf’s whenever I visit Grandview for some Jeni’s Ice Cream [yum!].
I will now step down from my soapbox. Sorry for the long comment
There really aren’t very many local coffee shops near where I live/work/go to school. My school’s “coffee shop” is pretty good and I go there if I’m penny-pinching because it’s cheap and I get a student discount.
I much prefer Starbucks to Dunkin Donuts – those are the two basic options in my area.
But now that you mention it, maybe I should drive slower to find that small coffee shack, hidden behind the grocery store, with the awesome coffee.
Erin, no problem with the long comment… feel free to leave long comments any time!
I love Jeni’s ice cream; have you had the coffee ice cream? It’s the best coffee ice cream, and goes great with the salted caramel.
Christina,
With those choices, Starbucks does seem an easy pick! But some of the best coffee shops are the local college shops, I think.
While I find each time that Starbucks is only average, it is incredibly consistent. Sometimes knowing that I will get the exact same medicore beverage and pastry each time can be comforting, and it is the comfort more than anything else that makes me go back.
Kim,
Are you saying that Starbucks is the McDonald’s of the coffee world?
Just kidding, but that is part of the draw to McDonald’s… consistency.
There are some good things to say about Starbucks. One is that they kind of led the 90′s push for accessibility to good coffee all over. They also do some things pretty decently, and they generally provide a nice environment, decent pastries, and free wifi.
I love supporting local. I hit up a starbucks when I’m given a giftcard, or in a Barnes and Nobel and desperate for some coffee
But if given the choice, I’d pick local over the bucks anytime 
Stephchows,
I know what you mean. And I really think people haven’t given Starbucks credit at times. Most of the country wouldn’t be enjoying much more than a cup of regular coffee if Starbucks hadn’t pushed to be everywhere in the 90′s. I can remember back when I didn’t know what espresso even was!
Curt, you are so right! And they did start out as a local place when you think about it
They really did spread the concept of gourmet high quality coffee, so we should be grateful for that. But I do agree that their quality has gone down, but that is also subject to the person serving your coffee. I feel like whenever I get an espresso based drink it always tastes burnt, bleh.
I am with you Curt! There is something that lures me into Starbucks once in a while but just like you I am always disappointed with their coffee and their snacks. Here in Vienna there are of course millions of better coffee houses and we also have a couple of local coffee shops which are way better than Starbucks. They used to have a green tea/fruit juice mix that was really good, but they took that out of their offer. So the only thing that makes me go there now are the very comfortable chairs, the relaxing atmosphere and their usually quite good music.
But I go there once in three months, maximum!
stephchows,
I love espresso, but that burnt taste just ruins it. there’s a fine line between good espresso and junk!
Katrin,
My wife liked the green tea, too. For me, too many of their drinks are just too sweet, so I generally stick with espresso or dark roast coffees.
I live in a small town, and the best we have within 2 miles of me is McDonald’s new cafe junk!
I have tried the black coffee ice cream and it was DELICIOUS! I never thought about combining it with the salted caramel, but I may have to do that next time.
Erin,
I think I need to make a trip to the North Market just to do a write-up on Jeni’s ice cream. By far the best I’ve ever had.
I think that would make for a great blog entry! Have you been to Bubbles in the North Market? If you haven’t, you should definitely check them out, too.
I’m a barista at a small coffee shop and we actually have GOOD coffee. I can’t see why people pay those outrageous Starbucks prices to drink a cup of nasty sludge. That stuff is terrible. My daughter worked at a starbucks and nobody there would drink the coffee because it was so bitter. They all joked about it. The pastries are always dry and overpriced too. Go to a smaller, locally owned coffee joint and get GOOD coffee people!!
Colleen,
One thing I think a lot of coffee shops forget is that, without Starbucks, a lot of shops wouldn’t exist. They really pushed that type of coffee bar all over the country, where shops like that didn’t exist before. They do some things pretty well, though I prefer a good local shop. I’ve also been to local shops that are much worse than Starbucks, too.