Starbucks

OoooooK. A backlash has apparently bubbled forth against Starbucks' new Pike Place Roast, a smoother blend that the coffee giant unveiled in April. The Wall Street Journal this morning reports that regular Starbucks addicts are the ones none too pleased with the blend and they're taking to the blogs!

Much of that debate is taking place on the company's customer-feedback Web site, which the chain launched in March. The site is littered with thumbs-down verdicts on the new roast. ...

A customer with the handle Westend complained in a posting on the site that the flavor of Pike Place Roast is "weak, watery and no substitute for the bold." Another, ArtM, called the coffee "a fundamental, grievous error." Beccajav derided its finish as "reminiscent of a taste from the dentist's office."

You know things are tight when the good people start to forgo their daily caffeine fix, but it appears not even Starbucks has been spared from the drop in consumer spending. With profits down 28 percent, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced the company has cut the number of U.S. branches it plans to open this year from 1,175 to 1,020 and will open fewer than 400 from 2009 through 2011, The New York Times reports today.  read more »

We dashed down to one of the Starbucks in Union Square when we heard they were doling out free samples of their new coffee blend, but a barista sporting a Flock of Seagulls hairdo told us we had missed the caffeinated hordes. Nonetheless he was kind enough to give us a splash of the Pike Place brew--the coffee is named for the first Starbucks location in Seattle, back in the good old days before the ubiquitous chain came to symbolize yuppie consumption and corporate greed in Austin Powers.

Pike Place definitely went down better than the normal houseblend at Starbucks. It was smoother and without the bitter aftertaste. Another barista informed us it is lighter than Starbucks' usual coffee.

"I think it will be more universal," he said. "I wasn't working at 12 when they were handing out the samples, but I heard there were a lot of people. That always happens when you give out free stuff in New York."

We tried to gauge customers' reaction to Pike Place, but no one we talked to this afternoon was aware that a new blend had been unveiled.  read more »

On Jan. 2, things weren't looking all that bright for Jonathan Tisch, New York Giants co-owner (and, ahem, the heir to the multi-billion-dollar Loews fortune). His team was headed into the playoffs, where they hadn't had a win since 2001.

But, according to city records filed this afternoon, Mr. Tisch closed that day on a massive apartment deal, selling his unlisted duplex at ritzy 950 Fifth Avenue to Starbucks founder and CEO Howard Schultz (and his wife Sheri) for $24.75 million. The Giants have won two massive games since then, and are a match away from the Super Bowl. Maybe Mr. Tisch's good mood was contagious?  read more »

If ever there was a chain that could belt Starbucks from its coffee-king pedestal, it's McDonald's. The Wall Street Journal reports this morning that the fast-food iconn plans to start serving cappuccinos, lattes and the like from coffee bars in its 14,000 U.S. locations.

The program attempts to replicate the Starbucks experience in many ways -- starting with borrowing the barista moniker.  read more »

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iTunes and Starbucks are teaming up to release the John Lennon video collection digitally, according to NME. The John Lennon Video Album is due out December 4, and features 21 videos including "Imagine," "Working Class Hero," and "Give Peace a Chance." Get a preview of the videos on Mr. Lennon's official site.

You'll have to buy a iTunes Digital Release Card with your next Pumpkin Spiced Latte at Starbucks, to download the album.

Full tracklisting of videos after the jump.  read more »

Junkies just don't loiter around the Jou Jou Cafe the way they used to.

“People were lying around, nodding off," as co-owner Edin Musabegovic told The New York Times.

Nowadays, the indie java joint in Washington Heights is dealing with a far more pesky brand of retail parasite -- Starbucks, which moved in two doors down this past September:

“I can’t believe they opened in our own building,” said Mr. Musabegovic, whom the Times credited with making "the neighborhood safe for coffeehouses."  read more »

The proliferation of Starbucks outlets in New York and elsewhere may have peaked, according to this morning's Wall Street Journal, halted by the sheer ubiquity of the coffee giant's outlets.

For years, Starbucks Corp.  read more »

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But new book argues it’s not all bad—coffee giant helps the little guy!  read more »

Starbucks’ domination of Manhattan continues.

The plywood has come down at 14 West 23rd Street, between Sixth and Fifth avenues, to reveal another outpost of the coffee chain.

The Flatiron District was not necessarily in need of another Starbucks store, but when has that ever stopped the caffeine giant? A quick search on the Starbucks Web site for other locations in the area revealed the following FIVE stores within a seven-block radius:  read more »

Hank Freid's Marrakech Hotel NYC has scored a Starbucks on its ground-floor at 103rd Street and Broadway. The omnipresent coffee vendor has signed a 10-year lease for 1,400 square feet, and will open by the end of August.

Mr. Freid's Marrakech has an interesting history as does the hotelier himself. Put another way, no one would've expected, only a couple of years ago, that Starbucks would choose the ground-floor of 2688 Broadway for a new spot. But it has: According to an understated release on the lease from Mr. Freid's Impulsive Group, "Starbucks is popular in this neighborhood; currently there are other locations in the area."

On the Upper West Side? Get outta here!