(New) Starbucks @ Ruamchok

[Trujillo]

Three stories and it appears the top floor is for Illuminati only. 

One entire room on the second floor has a single, large Viking table; another on the ground floor. Amway meetings? Pyramid schemers' soirees?

 

There is an outside balcony on the second floor with chairs having backs that cut right into your lower back, right above the lumbar region. Totally useless for sitting back, which is a real shame (night as well have stools), and also there are NO SMOKING plaques on every table. Now I've been a smoker and it seems ridiculously churlish to have a completely separate area, away from others and on the second floor, where you'd think smoking could be allowed (should be allowed), but NO, not here. Weird and stupid. 

 

And of course, you have the Americano coffee that's 105 baht compared to Wawee Coffee that has the same thing (only better coffee) for 45 baht.

Mr. Bucks must be back on his private island thinking, "Hahahah...Those dumb-ssa rubes..." Almost two-and-a-half times the price with half the flavor (unless you like to drink burnt linoleum drinks). But hey, it's STARBUCKS. Be trendy. Love America.

Make slavish obedience to corporate marketing great again!!!!

[sfokevin]

They have also opened one in Pramenada Mall...

Guess ghosts drink coffee too...

 

[Pilotman]

God  but I hate Starbucks coffee and it's corporate greed. Never go near one anymore.  I would hardly pay 105 for a <deleted> coffee when I get a better one in almost all other coffee shops around for 60 or so Baht.  

[CNXexpat]

Overpriced and not good coffee. You pay one third of the price of a coffee for the name Starbucks.

[chingmai331]

Plz you corporate haters, spare us your hate of things American.  My advice: do not go to Starbux, except in an emergency.

[elektrified]

Yep, 105 for bad coffee, same with Tom Tom or whatever that chain is called - although I think their coffee is 110 or 115 Baht - and bad too.

 

And.....both chains are usually packed with students drinking expensive coffee - but hey it's cool to be seen there.

[Swiss1960]

You don't like Starbucks? So don't go there,  but stop moaning about it,  I assume you just can't afford it...

 

I love their frappuccino (green tea, caramel etc), easy able to drink to the last drop, while others like the ones from Amazon, are just a freezing mass of ice from about 50% down... 

 

And their hot caramel macchiato is only beaten by my homemade Nespresso Lungo with Caramel taste

[elektrified]

1 minute ago, Swiss1960 said:

You don't like Starbucks? So don't go there,  but stop moaning about it,  I assume you just can't afford it...

 

I love their frappuccino (green tea, caramel etc), easy able to drink to the last drop, while others like the ones from Amazon, are just a freezing mass of ice from about 50% down... 

 

And their hot caramel macchiato is only beaten by my homemade Nespresso Lungo with Caramel taste

What is that stuff? I've never heard of any of those. I order either "espresso" or occasionally "cappuccino".

[Lacessit]

Dishwater.

[chingmai331]

Most of those fancy drinks are loaded with sugar and some fat. A morning drink at 380 calories?  Soon you might look like the average obese guy, of any nation.

 

But figure out for yourself

https://fastfoodnutrition.org/starbucks/calculator

[amexpat]

13 hours ago, Swiss1960 said:

I assume you just can't afford it...

You ASSume wrong.  

 

[bkk6060]

13 hours ago, Lacessit said:

Dishwater.

I read about a SBś in Hong Kong was caught using water from the toilet.

I go occasionally but it does taste strange sometimes.

US companies love doing business here paying employees 1 dollar an hour when a place like California is going to 15 dollars an hour all charging the same US price..

Edited November 3, 2019 by bkk6060

[cmsally]

Isn't Starbucks here owned by the same franchise as Hong Kong. Seeing as they are getting trashed in HK maybe a plan to expand more here.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-starbucks-thailand/starbucks-licenses-thai-operations-to-charoen-backed-venture-idUSKCN1ST17K

 

https://www.hongkongfp.com/2019/09/25/hong-kong-uni-students-boycott-maxims-caterer-founders-daughter-blasts-pro-democracy-protesters-un/

[JTXR]

Starbucks coffee is ok and one advantage is that it's the same anyplace in the world so you can drop in and know you what you will get.  It is just ok, though, never great, and it is overpriced.  Ten years ago there were many places where it was the only game in town.  Now, it's common to find a good coffee shop with much better coffee at a much better price (and without long lines).

[cobra]

Starbucks uniformity, AC, wi-fi and clean bathrooms are what determine is higher cost-point,

Agree, the coffee is mediocre,

It's the coffee drinking environment that makes it a success.

An added plus is it filters out Cheap Charlies, miscreants and wastrells, lol   

[canthai55]

16 minutes ago, cobra said:

It's the coffee drinking environment that makes it a success.

An added plus is it filters out Cheap Charlies, miscreants and wastrells, lol   

I don't need fancy digs to drink coffee - just a cup

And if I refuse to pay 300 baht for a cup of lackluster coffee don't mean I am cheap, means I know value.

But the Look At Me Look At ME generation just can't get it - hence the popularity

[Trujillo]

"It's the coffee drinking environment that makes it a success."

 

I'd say all chains now make an effort to have this. I like Amazon's idea of a water feature and plants at their petrol station locations. 

 

I don't mind paying a little more for coffee, but Starbucks' pricing is pure profiteering. That I can't abide. 

 

 

[clokwise]

Whatever you may think about their coffee, have you seen the ugly building? The Soviets would certainly approve.

[sharktooth]

2 hours ago, cobra said:

 

An added plus is it filters out Cheap Charlies, miscreants and wastrells, lol   

Apart from the folk that buy one coffee and sit there all day obviously.

[LomSak27]

19 hours ago, Lacessit said:

Dishwater.

Yeah, but do you drink coffee?!   

 

 

[LomSak27]

4 hours ago, Trujillo said:

I don't mind paying a little more for coffee, but Starbucks' pricing is pure profiteering. That I can't abide. 

I like coffee. If I buy a wawee or a amazon for 40-60 baht a cup, I can then get a empty grande cup of Starbucks  and proceed to pour 3  cups or more into it. Making the Wawee and the Amazon MORE EXPENSIVE that Starwanks.   Its a magic trick. but since its whinge time here in the cyberconversation pit thought somebody should bang up some FACTS.

 

What I do not like is a number of the Starbucks  have been given marching orders by their Thai,  51 per cent owner, not to bang up the filter coffee. They claim broken - not working etc. The reason. If there is a large chinese clientele/& tourists, that frequents it, then they basically go for espresso drinks and not the filtered coffee. You have to toss the filter coffee every hour if not sold so they think not making enough money on it. This owner is making a killing but he wants more ... and I thought Thai culture was not so materialistic, like Amerika. Once again I am wrong. ???? 

 

That said filtered coffee is becoming trendy at the  Nimmanahaeminda Road, soi 9, 

And I saw them doing the filter/porcelain melitta cup thing at a Mall - locals not starbucks so maybe there is hope.

 

For you no hopers BIRDY ... its everywhere you want to be

 

[ricklev]

7 hours ago, cobra said:

Starbucks uniformity, AC, wi-fi and clean bathrooms are what determine is higher cost-point,

Agree, the coffee is mediocre,

It's the coffee drinking environment that makes it a success.

An added plus is it filters out Cheap Charlies, miscreants and wastrells, lol   

Add comfortable chairs and good music played at a reasonable volume!