I like coffee. Went into a SBs once. Took a look at the price list and then all the patrons wearing new ripped jeans and welded to their laptops. I left, never went back. I like the kind of coffee place full of hoary men playing chess.
The bellweather stock I will watch to see how the US and global economy is doing
- Thread starter GON
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Yes, at least in my area. The majority of local trains carry coal to a coal-fired power plant in my state. Mots of those trains are now about two-and-a-half miles long. The beginning of the trains has 3-4 locomotives. They now put 3-4 locomotives in the MIDDLE of the train and then a couple in the rear. They had to put locomotives in the middle because the trains are now so long that they were snapping couplings.
Waiting for the crossing arms to go up isn't a lot of fun.
We don't drink coffee at all. If we did I wouldn't go to Starbucks. They are far too leftist. I've heard Dunkin is better. It just doesn't have the snob appeal. And sadly far too many people require snob appeal from their coffee to validate themselves. Pretty pathetic really.
Why? I know they have expensive stuff. And whatever the coffee price is, it won't be what I paid 10 years ago. Nothing got cheaper over the last 10 years.
Just had lunch out (coworker moving on). $15 for my lunch, just a sandwich (albeit a filling one) and some baked beans (I've had better), no drink (didn't even want to know). To me, that's expensive, cheaper to brown bag it. But in the scheme of things, costs money to run a restaurant. I just go as infrequently as I can. Then I don't care what they charge, since I don't have to pay. Anyhow. $15 for a sandwich that I didn't lift a finger to make? nice place to sit and commiserate with coworkers? fair price I thought.
And technically I just had my best year ever for income.
Dunkin is blah. I used to like them--but then again, I used to like their doughnuts. Either they didn't age well or I didn't (good chance neither of us!). I avoid DD or at the least order a dark roast with half the sugar and cream, then it's ok.
At least the gas stations around here have switched to name brands, in a pinch I'll grab a coffee from there. Been a long time since I went on a road trip and had to buy coffee though.
Oy vey, I walked out of the house without my lunch today. Costco food court here I come.
Also not a lot of fun when one of these trains stops and blocks 3 or 4 crossings.
I agree with the second part.. but actual coffee at Charbucks is $3.
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
In Seattle, A large (Venti) black coffee (medium roast- Pike's Place) is $4.75 before sales tax. With Sales tax, is $5.23.
So a large black only basic coffee at Starbuck's today, right now in Seattle- out the door is $5.23.
Causation is not correlation. This is location as well as you going to SB during one of the busiest travel holiday periods.
I pulled up Castle Rock on google maps then did a search of SB. Out of 7 SB in Castle Rock, CO, 6 of them are located straight off the interstate and the seventh is located right off a state highway. Businesses can use GIS to decide where they want their next shop based off a huge criteria, like using a filter when shopping online. With Castle Rock being the first town south of Denver on I25, they know travelers and commuters will stop there first for their coffee when going into or leaving the city.
Regardless though, Castle Rock has some massive mansions and an average home value of $650k, according to Zillow. Whatever is going on in that town is not an indication of what's happening everywhere and cannot be compared to say, Gary, Indiana.
Regarding price, a regular dunkin donuts large coffee with caramel here is ~$4.50 compared to $3.50 pre-CV19. A specialty flavored one is well over $6 compared to $4.80 pre-CV19. The increase is pretty much similar to groceries at the store as well.
I pulled up Castle Rock on google maps then did a search of SB. Out of 7 SB in Castle Rock, CO, 6 of them are located straight off the interstate and the seventh is located right off a state highway. Businesses can use GIS to decide where they want their next shop based off a huge criteria, like using a filter when shopping online. With Castle Rock being the first town south of Denver on I25, they know travelers and commuters will stop there first for their coffee when going into or leaving the city.
Regardless though, Castle Rock has some massive mansions and an average home value of $650k, according to Zillow. Whatever is going on in that town is not an indication of what's happening everywhere and cannot be compared to say, Gary, Indiana.
Regarding price, a regular dunkin donuts large coffee with caramel here is ~$4.50 compared to $3.50 pre-CV19. A specialty flavored one is well over $6 compared to $4.80 pre-CV19. The increase is pretty much similar to groceries at the store as well.
Seemed cheaper in Brazil where I was recently as in two days ago. A tall Frappe at the airport was R$19, about $3.88 USD based on the current exchange rate.
That said we don't go to Starbucks out here in the country, there aren't any around! The closest one is 7.3 miles away and it's in a direction we don't typically go for other things.
I have 3 coffee machines in my kitch, a Keurig, a Nespresso, and a Dolce Gusto.
The Dolce Gusto is the best at making fancy coffees easy, it's also the least cost effective so I don't always have pods for it. A box of pods is something around $26-$34 and it only makes 12 or 13 coffees.
The Keurig is the best at making regular old coffee easy and gets the most frequent usage, also the most cost effective, I usually buy a bunch of pods when they are on sale for less than .30 per pod at Costco. Our Keurig can also make old school drip carafes, but I haven't done that in a while. It's just too much coffee even when I make a small carafe.
I have had the Nespresso at least 12 years, it was one of their first models and it still works, also came with a frother. It can make fancy coffee but it's more work as you need to use the frother. Since I have a young child that drinks whole milk it does make the frother more useful. I've found it really only works well with whole milk. We use the Nespresso most for after dinner shots when we have people over. The aluminum pods work best but they are pricey. I look for the Peet's Coffee pods to go on sale at Costco and then I stock up.
That said we don't go to Starbucks out here in the country, there aren't any around! The closest one is 7.3 miles away and it's in a direction we don't typically go for other things.
I have 3 coffee machines in my kitch, a Keurig, a Nespresso, and a Dolce Gusto.
The Dolce Gusto is the best at making fancy coffees easy, it's also the least cost effective so I don't always have pods for it. A box of pods is something around $26-$34 and it only makes 12 or 13 coffees.
The Keurig is the best at making regular old coffee easy and gets the most frequent usage, also the most cost effective, I usually buy a bunch of pods when they are on sale for less than .30 per pod at Costco. Our Keurig can also make old school drip carafes, but I haven't done that in a while. It's just too much coffee even when I make a small carafe.
I have had the Nespresso at least 12 years, it was one of their first models and it still works, also came with a frother. It can make fancy coffee but it's more work as you need to use the frother. Since I have a young child that drinks whole milk it does make the frother more useful. I've found it really only works well with whole milk. We use the Nespresso most for after dinner shots when we have people over. The aluminum pods work best but they are pricey. I look for the Peet's Coffee pods to go on sale at Costco and then I stock up.
I see what you did there
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
You nailed my theory. Gary, Indiana is full of residents on a fixed income and many likely don't have discretionary income to be a regular /daily Starbuck's customer at $6 USD per drink. Douglas County, where Castle Rock resides, is one of the wealthiest counties in the USA. If residents of Gary, IN can't buy a TSLA (on a MACRO basis), that is not going to impact TSLA profitability. If residents of Douglas county can't afford and/ or chose not to buy a TSLA becuase of finances, which they can and do right now- that is something to be aware of if one wants a pulse on the US and possibly global economy.
Owen Lucas
$100 Site Donor 2023
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No offense to the Starbucks lovers here, but SB is basically a milk shake company that also sells coffee.
At this point in life I am staying away from sugar as much as possible. I have a dozen SB gift cards and using them is the only reason I go into that store.
Anyway, to me, a coffee is black with a little cream if I am feeling daring.
At this point in life I am staying away from sugar as much as possible. I have a dozen SB gift cards and using them is the only reason I go into that store.
Anyway, to me, a coffee is black with a little cream if I am feeling daring.
The general Canadian default seems to be Tim Hortons. I'm not much of a coffee guy, so will usually have tea or hot chocolate.
The tea at Tim's is bitter, and the hot chocolate seems to be boiling water with sugar and brown powder stirred in poorly.
Starbucks does a much better job on both tea and hot chocolate, but you do pay a lot more. My wife and I ride our fat bikes over to SB a couple of times per winter, but that's about it.
The tea at Tim's is bitter, and the hot chocolate seems to be boiling water with sugar and brown powder stirred in poorly.
Starbucks does a much better job on both tea and hot chocolate, but you do pay a lot more. My wife and I ride our fat bikes over to SB a couple of times per winter, but that's about it.
I commented during a recession some years ago that I figured people would cancel their cable TV, etc.
My brilliant sociologist prof friend said the opposite happens - spending on escapist entertainment soars when times are hard.
My brilliant sociologist prof friend said the opposite happens - spending on escapist entertainment soars when times are hard.
Yep. Also, they say that fishing tackle and bait shops are a recession proof business. You might be unemployed, but you can probably scrape together enough to buy some bait, hooks, lures and a six pack.
There are fake upscale coffee chains like Starbucks and there are real ones like Cafe Berlin.
I know that if we're going to pay $$ for a cappuccino and a tea, we'll do it with proper table service and not a paper cup handed through a drive-through window.
I know that if we're going to pay $$ for a cappuccino and a tea, we'll do it with proper table service and not a paper cup handed through a drive-through window.
