Starbucks has officially died in my eyes…or whatever you call it when a previously small, intimate business sells out to corporate America.  This was apparent months, if not years ago, and manifested most recently as a widespread closing of Starbucks stores in order to retrain their baristas.  I think they realized they have a problem when they say that there were more resources being devoted to promoting Khaled Hosseini’s “Kite Runner”–a book that does not need any more promotion because it is inherently amazing–than to preparing halfway decent coffee.

I have learned to avoid Starbucks on the whole.  Their warm drinks are, more often than not, watery, if not burnt or bitter-tasting.  The caramel macchiatos I used to like in high school are nothing like what they used to be.  The only thing Starbucks seems to have going for them are their frappucinos and iced drinks.  Winter, though, makes it hard to enjoy these.  I’ll probably cave in during the summer, but not before I find other good coffee places so that I can break the Starbucks habit.

Granted, I’m not exactly a coffee aficionado, I don’t know the first thing about coffee-tasting or coffee-types, though I want to learn.  I’m still a sucker for so-called “dessert coffees.”  However, I still have my favorite coffees.

Gimme! Coffee is something I was introduced to in Cornell, while Oren’s Roast is a coffee shop I recently found near NYU.  Both have amazing quality coffee, neither lacking in flavor, or body.  Granted, the things I tend to get are drowning in sugar–even in spite of that–the flavor still comes through.  Starbucks coffee, meanwhile, is generally masked by sugar.  There are two Gimme! cafes in Manhattan and one in Brooklyn, and I’m hoping to visit one of them soon (would anyone like to come with?).  I still miss the vanilla, peppermint lattes–called “dragonfly” on their menu–from the cafe in Mann Library.

Oren’s, meanwhile, is conveniently across the street from the Silver Center, where I while my time away.  I joke with my friends that it is the only way I can get through classes, indeed the coffee is very strong but never bitter, or burnt.  They also have a wide selection of coffee beans and you can buy coffee grounds from there itself.

I’ve always joked that if I ever make any money (perhaps from my still elusive book deal?) I’d buy a house with a bar, but since I don’t drink, I’d convert it into an espresso bar.  While I do love going out for coffee, this seems like a cost-effective solution, especially if you learn how to properly make espresso drinks.  That, however, is well in the future if not completely out of my reach.  Until then, I’ll keep coffee-hunting and keep you posted on what I find!

Any suggestions for places in the New York City area?

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