7-11. Multiple flavors brewed fresh all morning, flavored/regular creamers, sweetners, extra flavoring shots, and hot chocolate and other stuff out of a machine. About $1.50 for a 24 ounce.

In general I have never been a big fan of Starbucks although I would likely go there if I didn't know of any other place in the area and Starbucks was close by.

To some degree, Tokyo is an exception. I like a lot of the small old school coffee shops in Tokyo and even Pronto or Dotour do a decent espresso but it's often the thick haze of cigarette smoke from the entrenched salarymen that spurn me on to a "staa-baa" when there. Plus it's interesting to see how the Japanese put their spin on such an American franchise.

In the San Francisco area, I'll seek out Philz or Peet's over Starbucks. In SF proper there are lots of great small places like the aforementioned Blue Bottle.

In SEA I'd take Starbucks over Gloria Jean's as GJ coffee just seems too watered down for my tastes. In fact the search for a decent cup made me take some detours to visit some unique and interesting places like Coffee Lane in Penang or Typica Cafe in Kuala Lumpur.

In Melbourne I avoided Starbucks altogether and tried several of the small shops such as Brother Baba Budan, Switchboard Cafe, etc.

99% of the time, I just want a plain old black coffee - if I see something local, I'll try there first, but will be fine with Starbucks in a pinch.

What is often shocking to me, though, is how expensive all the fancy drinks are at Starbucks AND how many people are ordering them!

Hard pressed to find a 7-Eleven and a coffee shop in the same mall..

Most of their leases carry exclusivity clauses that prevent local coffee shops setting up.. This is to protect their coffee sales..

I'm not picky. Any strong cup of coffee will do. Starbucks, Peet's - they're all the same.

Sorry, Dunky's, 7-11, McD's, Tim H's: weak, bitter, over-extracted coffee is nasty.

Agree with the comments about Starbucks Japan. Not sure if it was just the novelty of it, but I found the quality really good, particularly the milk used (which made the milky drinks better than Doutor et al). They were also always (as you'd expect for Japan) absolutely spotless, as much a reflection on the customers as the staff.

I've also, out of curiosity, looked in on a Starbucks in Paris. Must be a real moneyspinner - I would guess about 80-90% of people in there were drinking the lardier forms of Frappucino, and the basic ones started at €5 a pop!

I have not had Starbucks in Japan, but did have brewed coffee a few times in China (not by my choice) and found it tasted odd. May be the water, or more likely just the taste of Starbucks coffee is not my taste.

I once out of desperation had to enter a Starbucks in Germany and found many confused people. The coffee culture doesn't adapt well to the grab and go aspect of Starbucks. (Coffee to go is still somewhat rare, perhaps due to the environmental aspect, perhaps due to the already existing culture around coffee shops and 'stand cafes') People were looking for seating, or standing tables, and seemed overwhelmed by the choices.

I did find a different taste in Japan as well - these are countries very used to the flavour of green tea (in just about everything in the case of Japan) and the coffee does have a flavour with it that I would describe as 'compatible' if not completely reminiscent.

Similarly, in the UK, you'll find a much darker roast used for espresso-based drinks than in the US. Not nearly as dark as the likes of Pret and Caffe Nero, mind.

I noticed that the Starbucks I passed in Frankfurt were pretty much configured as 'stand cafes'. Certainly, most of the branches I know in the UK are at least as much set up for drinking in as taking away. And you'd get all sorts of grumbling if you attempted to serve someone drinking in with a paper cup!

Personally, I don't think they're terrible. I don't think they're outstanding either, but there are many places where "not terrible" is the best option you can get!

This is pretty much my exact opinion. Starbucks is not fantastic, nor even very good. But it's certainly not bad. I'd say that it's on the good side of mediocre. But the advantage is that it's pretty much universally on the good side of mediocre, no matter where you are. So that's a pretty strong selling point when you've got limited time and no experience with local chains.

I agree - I'll take Starbucks over Tim Horton's for instance any day. If my choice however is Tim Horton's or no coffee, it would be 'no coffee'.

McCafe is starting to appear on some Autobahn reststops. I ended up at one on the way to Holland a few weeks ago and it was surprisingly good (the only other one I have been to is near the McDonald's campus in the US) And it was served in a china cup with a Bahlsen cookie on the site.

How much has the concept of charging more for 'to go' caught on in the US (if at all?) It is common in western Europe, and the Bean Around the World microchain in St Hellier and Canada also charges this way.

McCafe just started appearing in Canada this year IIRC..

Tim Horton's is popular, because the coffee is quite affordable.. just around a couple bucks cdn for an extra large coffee.. To alot of Canadians, its quite good..

Glad to hear Starbucks is a bit different depending on the region.. Gives it a bit of novelty..

I'm from the UK. When I'm travelling within the UK I'll go to Starbucks / Costa / Cafe Nero or Madisons depending on whatever happens to be nearby. Madisons is my favourite but the local branches shut down a few months ago, sadly.

If I'm at home, I don't bother with chain coffee shops too much - I'll usually nip in to JD Wetherspoon (a chain pub) and have a filter coffee there. It's half the price of a similar coffee at a proper coffee shop, and they use the same brand of beans that I do at home, so I know I'll like it :)

When I'm abroad, I'll do a Starbucks on the first day (too tired to try to navigate anything unfamiliar), but for the rest of the time I'll look for independant places that look like they get a lot of local traffic. I've found some nice places by doing that, but had a few bad experiences too.

Surely ... you jest! Peet's isn't anything like Starsucks :rolleyes:

To answer your request for NYC spots, here's just a few:

Abraco http://abraconyc.com/#home

The Roasting Plant (where the beans travel through pneumatic tubes & then are roasted for each cup) http://www.roastingplant.com/

Joe http://www.joetheartofcoffee.com/

Cafe Grumpy http://www.cafegrumpy.com/

Ninth Street Espresso http://www.ninthstreetespresso.com/N...Locations.html

and for those that like other city's favorite shops NYC also has:

Blue Bottle (Brooklyn & http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net/loca...r-in-new-york/)

Stumptown http://www.stumptowncoffee.com/locations/nyc-ace

Aroma https://aroma.us/locations.php


and my fave which is actually in Tucson AZ.... Raging Sage http://www.ragingsage.com/

Are you saying Peet's is more like McDonalds or 7-Eleven coffee?