What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

[Kruno]

First thing I noticed was that the staff have changed. Why did they do that?

Second thing, what the hell did they do to the coffee? It tastes flat and weak. Their common venti latte is actually quite good, and beats out most cafes easily, but today, what the hell?

Maybe I have been spoiled by Stassis awesome lattes to the point that Starbucks has become crap? Although I did have a very good Starbucks cup a week ago, from another location in the city.

The prime benefit from SB for me was that you could easily taste the strong coffee from their ~1L of milk, and it had a nice hit, this is something I have only experienced from one other cafe, Stassi, and I have found that quite a few number of cafes do not make good or even okay lattes. The milk gets the better of the coffee. Then again this could be that a lot of places only use light blends, vs medium and heavy.

Please tell me there is a good "big gulp" alternative to SB?

[damienh7]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Im no expert on Starbucks, nor good Melbourne coffee haunts, but Id suggest you look through the VIC section under "Good Coffee Where" as a starting point.

P.S. I could be wrong, but my recollection is that Starbucks is not necessarily held in high regard here on CS.  Last time I had SB was long before my CS days, and obviously different sites may differ in the quality of their offerings due to different staff, level of training (and passion) etc.

Cheers,
Damien

[richard_m_h]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

seven seeds 114 Berkeley St, Carlton seems good. (though my student daughter says its not as good as it was and the waiters are up themselves) not too far away.

[Kruno]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Im no expert on Starbucks, nor good Melbourne coffee haunts, but Id suggest you look through the VIC section under "Good Coffee Where" as a starting point.

P.S. I could be wrong, but my recollection is that Starbucks is not necessarily held in high regard here on CS.  Last time I had SB was long before my CS days, and obviously different sites may differ in the quality of their offerings due to different staff, level of training (and passion) etc.

Cheers,
Damien

I have tried most of those, a lot of them really fell short. The only two on the list that really made a mark was Stassi, and BBB. Keep in mind a lot of those reviews are a few years old, and changes do take place quite frequently.

I realise SB is not held in high regard, but what I would like to know is why? They normally do not make bad lattes, I do admit anything not milk based is pretty crap, but their lattes really are decent, at least from my experience.

EDIT: I will continue to go through the remainder of the list.

[damienh7]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

I realise SB is not held in high regard, but what I would like to know is why?

I suppose it comes down to individual taste.  Two different people could drink the same coffee, and have wildly varying views on whether it is good or bad.

Or heres another example of what I mean... My wife says she likes a "wine".  In this case, this refers to girly, light sparkling examples like a Moscato etc.  My sister, on the other hand, doesnt even consider such examples as a true wine (a true wine connoisseur!).  She drinks heavier, higher alcohol wines ... you know the ones that are served at room temp, rather than chilled, and according to my wife taste like vinegar and or metho! 

That doesnt make my wifes tastes WRONG, but perhaps indicates an uneducated palate compared to my sister... from my experience, coffee is not a lot different.  Dont let anyone tell you your tastes are wrong, but at the same time, realise that you might look back in years and think "how did I ever drink that crud!".

[Kruno]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

My experience tells me that a lot of cafes in the CBD use mild blends, maybe I just prefer heavier blends? Stassi is my favourite cafe for that reason, they use a medium blend roast.

I have yet read anything about heavy blend roasts, are there any cafes in existence that deal with those in Vic.?

[damienh7]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

My experience tells me that a lot of cafes in the CBD use mild blends, maybe I just prefer heavier blends? Stassi is my favourite cafe for that reason, they use a medium blend roast.

I have yet read anything about heavy blend roasts, are there any cafes in existence that deal with those in Vic.?

Not sure on your terminology... are you referring to light > medium > dark roasts? 

Either way, perhaps you need to just ask for extra shots, particularly when it sounds like youre getting large coffees.  Not sure what standard protocol is, but if theyre doing a double shot then dumping 1l of milk into it (??? I hope you were exaggerating!) its no surprise if the milk is taking over.

[Kruno]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Yeah, I mean light roasts, sorry about my weird mix-up of terminology. SB venti is about 700ml, and they put in 1.5 shots for that. I do not add milk in my coffee at home, I just aeropress the stuff and drink as is, and so I have no complaints there.

Are double shots rule of thumb for milk based drinks?

[damienh7]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Are double shots rule of thumb for milk based drinks?

Holey moley... 700ml!  1.5 shots!

Not sure if there is a hard and fast rule or standard, but a typical, standard latte I would guess to be around 200ml... So, considering youre talking 3.5 times the overall volume, 1.5 (?) shots would probably explain why the milk is overtaking the coffee in terms of flavour. Id almost have to say it sounds more like a large coffee flavoured milkshake

[Kruno]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Correction, I asked, and they said it was three shots. My friend told me it was 1.5.

[Thundergod]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Holey moley... 700ml!  1.5 shots!

Its not that bad; 20oz is only 591mls.

At home I add 2 shots to 140mls.
So 3 shots in 600mls I doubt I would taste the coffee. :

[damienh7]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Its not that bad; 20oz is only 591mls. 

At home I add 2 shots to 140mls.
So 3 shots in 600mls I doubt I would taste the coffee.   

I agree TG - thats my exact point:  thats a large "coffee", but with not a lot of espresso in relative terms.

Like you say, some would take a double shot in a drink a third the size (or smaller, as in your case).  3 shots, as has been clarified is a little better, but isnt going to constitute a strong coffee when youre talking ~ 90ml espresso added to ~ 600ml of milk!

[damienh7]

Re: What happened to Starbucks in VIC, Swanston Street?

Its not that bad; 20oz is only 591mls. 

Sorry, I think I see your point now... only 600ml (odd), not 700ml.  Thatll make all the difference