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AJC.com > Metro > View from the cop > Archives > 2006 > April > 18 > Entry
Coffee and the ‘O’ word
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Hi, welcome. What can we get for you?”
“Small decaf, please.”
“Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha ….”
(The line is getting longer behind me.)
“Just a cup of decaf?”
Silence from all while the coffee technician, hooked up with microphones and things on their belts, stared at me like I had three heads. These guys looked like they were in a Madonna video.
“What kind of coffee sir?”
“What kind do you have?” (Note to self: never ask this again.)
“Well, we have Lattes, Mochas, Mucho-Mochas, Macchiatos, Espressos, Frappuccinos, Cappuccinos, other Chinos, Ciders, various blends with several different and very trendy names as well as fabulously displayed coffee cakes, scones, muffins and other assorted things with cutting-edge names.
He pointed to several chalk boards with multi-colored words that I couldn’t understand.
I’m out of my league in Latte Land.
When I worked the police morning watch (11 p.m.-7 a.m.) I made a stop for the 2 a.m. coffee at the local diners or coffee houses. It went like this:
“Hi, What would you like?”
“Coffee.”
“OK”
Boom! That’s it! I got coffee!
Fancy-coffee places were invented by groups of rocket scientists who had a slow night just after French class. On the scale of coffee prices, it’s a bit on the upscale side. Normally, there are two coffee employees at the counter. The one on the right is the loan officer.
Fancy-coffee places compete with one another for the most words that end in “o” I’m perfectly happy with coffee that I can pronounce but I found that I do like to sit around the table and listen to other people pronounce words that end in “o.” Experienced fancy coffee-place customers know the lingo and have no shame in boastfully announcing their order so that the rest of us know how many syllables they can put together in one order.
In line for the first time, I was between two experienced fancy-coffee place customers. When the line gets long, the loan officer, who stands next to the coffee-technician, calls out to the customers, who in turn give their heavy-syllable orders that end in “o.”
Then they asked me.
“Decaf.” I replied.
There came a great blanket of silence over the fancy-coffee place with the exception of the notable sound of the espresso or cappuccino or some other “o” machine that sounded more like a B-52 taking off than something that you would ingest. I was a novice and what was worse I had not done my homework.
There is no tolerance for novices who do have enough respect for the fancy-coffee place to study and learn the culture. I could feel the cold stares of the experienced customers who were full of heavy-syllable words spelling caffeine relief ending in “o” and I was requiring them to dam up this river of syllables until I could babble, in layman’s garble, a pitiful attempt to order something that may not even end in “o.”
I could feel the hostile text-messaging going on around me.
I didn’t want to be here now. I now wanted to be somewhere else, maybe drinking a cup of coffee in the English language.
Finally I looked at the chalk board and slowly pronounce a few words, making sure that I ended in “o.” Apparently whatever I said they had one of. The coffee technician shook his head and reached for a cup.
I looked back at the experienced coffee customers who shook their heads and nodded in approval.
Relief was short-lived.
“What size would you like that in sir?” said the coffee technician.
“Small.”
“Tall?”
“No, small.”
“Small is tall sir.”
“Tall sounds big. Small sounds like what I want. Is tall the same size as small?”
“All I know is tall is small so small must be tall.”
I’m in a Dr. Seuss cartoon.
I learned a lot in that line. Truth is I felt confident, given this being the first time and all. I should have immediately left while they thought that I was only mildly stupid.
“Scones?” said the technician.
“Nope, just a shaving rash. Thanks for the…uh…that “o” thing.
Services »
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By Ex-Northerner
April 18, 2006 10:23 AM | Link to this
I feel for you Lt. Steve. Long ago and far away I had a similar experience when a woman, breathless and obviously late for some important date, practically shoved me aside at the counter and said, “Grande, fat-free, sugar-free, half-caf, almond latte, no whipped cream.” Never forgotten that one as it was all I could do to keep from hysterics. I left with my “tall” coffee-of-the-day feeling like I’d just unwittingly been an extra in a Steve Martin movie. Thanks for the laugh.
By Randy Bivings
April 18, 2006 10:31 AM | Link to this
you hit the nail on the head. Only an idiot would pay that much for a cup of “O”, and ATL is full of em.
By cuppajoe
April 18, 2006 11:00 AM | Link to this
Wow, I never knew my love of coffee was really an attempt to make Officer Krupke feel so plebian.
I’ve worked a lot of retail jobs that offered products to customers and every single store had an eye-scrambling amount of variety. When I sold cigars, you could never have someone come in and ask for a cigar. You had to quiz them on their tastes and spend thirty minutes getting to know them before you could sell a $4 cigar on the off-chance they’d come back to buy more. Sure, I could bilk a novice with a $12 cigar and laugh at him behind his back after he’s left. But I’d rather school someone on what they’re getting into to make sure they enjoy it more than making a few extra bucks. Same thing as when I sold wine.
Most coffeehouses I’ve been in have really nice people who are more than willing to stop their busy days (and they are busy, hence the headsets) and guide you through the maze. They want you to come back, so they’re going to make the effort. Now, if you’ve chosen to do this at 6:30 in the morning at a really busy shop, then yes, you’re going to make a lot of people behind the counter and people waiting behind you mad. That’s life. So, be a little courteous to people around you and wait until it dies down a bit.
No, I’m guessing something at the coffeehouse made you mad, and you wanted to make it sound like the people who work/frequent those places are effete, wine-sipping snobs who would turn their nose up at a chili dog, while you’re a salt-of-the-earth, aw-shucks, give the dog a scratch behind the ears kind of guy. Well, I love coffee. I also love my dog, a nice glass of wine, and cooking on the grill. I can’t be as folksy as you, which I guess must be my loss.
Now let’s just put this out there: if I walk into a gun store and say “I’d like a gun please,” would you have any sympathy for me? If you worked there, would you roll your eyes at the nitwit who doesn’t know a rifle from a plank of wood? If the people behind the counter are as sullen as the coffeehouse people you claim to have been offended by, they’d probably play 20 questions with me too. And then I’d post a blog about the smart-allecky gun store clerks who thought I was a rube because I didn’t know what type of ammo I needed. You mean there is more than one type of bullet? Gosh, I thought you just aimed and fired. What on earth is a hollow-tip and what difference does it make?
So, in case the above doesn’t make it clear let me spell it out: each and every specialty store in the country has dozens of items to cater to the every whim of the customer; this is thanks to the free market. If you don’t spend a lot of time in these stores, of course you’re going to sound out of place if you ask questions.
Don’t lash out me because I like coffeehouses and you feel shunned by them. Loosen up; pick a good coffeehouse with competent employees and make it your usual. Ask the people behind the counter to make you something decaf. Let them know you trust their professional judgment. That’s why I don’t go to stores that hire lousy staff and won’t carry good products. See the difference?
If that’s still asking too much of you, the last time I checked they still sell cheap decaf at McDonalds, Waffle House, and the gas station. Be sure to say “Hi” to Clark Howard when you see him.
By JD
April 18, 2006 11:03 AM | Link to this
Great piece. I hate these fancy-smancy, overpriced and scorched coffees sold by the chains-on-every-corner. People drink coffee for the caffeine, not the taste. Same with alcohol, be it beer, wine or liquor. You drink for the relaxing effect, certainly not the alcohol’s wonderful flavor. I realized a long time ago I wanted just caffeine. It’s a lot simpler and cheaper to pop a caffeine pill with a healthy glass of tap water!
By Laura
April 18, 2006 11:03 AM | Link to this
I can relate! Whenever my friend & I go to the “fancy coffee place”, I get him to place the order for me when we’re getting a fancy drink. I don’t get the words out in the same order they do - venti, non-fat, latte - they all come out in a different order every time I say it. I always feel on display & that they’re waiting for me to screw up (I even feel myself blush!!) . I am brave enough to order standard coffee every now & then. The only way I avoid their derision is by knowing that venti = large. Good luck Steve!
By Adam W.
April 18, 2006 11:05 AM | Link to this
I am in the boat with you. About as far as coffee needs to go in my book is some imported beans for some good variety for those who drink coffee no sugar and can tell the difference and enjoy the different brews. And say some Bailey’s some times to ease into the day smoother every now and then
By Me
April 18, 2006 11:21 AM | Link to this
Wow “cuppajoe”!! You need to start ordering the decaf yourself.
By Java is Life
April 18, 2006 11:21 AM | Link to this
Hey cupajoe…get a sense of humor why don’t you?
Anyone who has read this blog for any length of time at all understands that Det. Rose (sorry, don’t know his new, official title) is just putting a witty, humorous spin on life in the LEO lane.
By BexB
April 18, 2006 11:28 AM | Link to this
See, now, I’m a big fan of my Venti Mocha Frappucino Affogato Style with Caramel…in laymen’s terms, it’s a giant frozen chocolatey coffee thing with a shot of espresso (extra caffeine) and the whip cream is drizzled with caramel. I drink coffee for the flavor, obviously, not the trendiness, and the caffeine, of course. If Steve is wanting decaf, he just likes the taste, but doesn’t want to be wired. It shouldn’t matter why we love our coffee, and our desire to spend the extra $3 or so is our choice. Just as it’s your choice to drink $1 McDonald’s coffee or put a full-page tirade on a blog about coffee. It’s just coffee. Some of us just like it more flavorful than others. The only time I’d ever get worked up about coffee is if I forgot the word-order of my Venti Mocha Frappucino Affogato Style with Caramel. Heaven forbid I call it a Caramel Affogato Mocha Frap, Venti, please. And please is optional. They don’t expect us to be nice, just to know our fancy schmancy coffee.
By wayne
April 18, 2006 11:35 AM | Link to this
Decaf?!? why bother paying money for a cup of decaf!
By laurie g
April 18, 2006 11:38 AM | Link to this
Steve, try the coffee at The Wave on Roswell across from the Toyota dealer! They sell Kona coffee from Hawaii and it’s delicious - so much better than those “O” places! The only things they’ll ask you is what size and if you want cream/sugar. Best of all, you can get a “small” for $1.50! (and no, I don’t work for them, I’m just a frequent coffee customer)
By Sweetliz
April 18, 2006 11:50 AM | Link to this
As a tea drinker, I can certainly relate. The whole thing of ordering coffee just makes me an idiot. Although, tea is not to far behind, I fell a little more comfortable with that.
And yes cuppajoe, back away from the counter and just give coffee a break for awhile. I think you will find it is not that deep.
By Sweetliz
April 18, 2006 11:55 AM | Link to this
Oops…that should have said, I feel a little more comfortable
By td
April 18, 2006 12:02 PM | Link to this
I’m with cuppajoe on this one, and I feel for him with all the criticism he’s getting. It’s a specialty store; the selection is vast, because that’s the way the customers want it. His gun analogy is spot-on; you have to be more specific. If you don’t want “fancy” coffee, go to Dunkin’ Donuts.
That being said, I’ve read Lt. Rose’s column for a long time, and understand his humor. So don’t tell me I need to “loosen up” or “try the decaf”—I don’t drink coffee at all.
By greg
April 18, 2006 12:13 PM | Link to this
This is the south, people! Drink sweet tea and get the caffine you need, and also save a few dollars and a lot of questions!
By Hubs
April 18, 2006 12:32 PM | Link to this
I don’t know guys. There aren’t legions of stores selling firearms around the country under the label of “gun”, but you can find “decaf” just about anywhere, so I don’t necessarily agree with the gun analogy. If someone who likes “coffee” walks into a “coffee house” I would think that they should probably be able to order a black decaf coffee without harrassment. Just my opinion though…
By cuppajoe
April 18, 2006 12:33 PM | Link to this
Thanks for the backup, td.
Hey, if people think I’m on Dt. Rose’s case, it’s because I spent years serving people in the various stores/restaurants I’ve worked in. Some people were really nice, and some people were indifferent. Some were mean. I once spent 20 minutes guiding a woman through a wine store to find some wine at her request, only for her to finally pick up the cheapest bottle near her. It drives me up the wall when I go to stores where the staff are rude, untrained, or incompetent and I’m the one to suffer. That said, why should I suffer waiting in line while someone who is taking too much time because they wandered into a St*rbucks for some java when they really wanted Waffle House?
Look folks, if you think I’m wound up, it’s only because I’ve been working in service/support in various trades for over 14 years now and get very little in the way of gratitude from the very people I serve. It’s a thankless industry and since I’ve worked in a lot of store and love coffeehouses, I can’t help but take it a little personally.
By robo
April 18, 2006 12:46 PM | Link to this
To cupojoe: Your writing identifies you as just another pompous fool. Go ahead and pay for overpriced coffee like all of the other fools with more money than sense. I have drank that crap and am more than happy to drink Waffle House and Dunkin Donuts coffee…the two best coffees on the planet. Plus, the people are of a better class.
By Gil Gibson
April 18, 2006 12:51 PM | Link to this
Cuppajoe:
Yes, people who frequent those fancy coffe places are “effete, wine-sipping snobs who would turn their nose up at a chili dog,” and police officers really are “salt-of-the-earth, aw-shucks, give the dog a scratch behind the ears kind of guy(s).”
All those fancy names and descriptions (which change often) are, like wine labels, just a method to distinguish the cognoscenti from hoi polloi.
By Play_Nice_Now
April 18, 2006 1:11 PM | Link to this
Hey Cuppajoe?
Maybe the reason you don’t get much gratitude and thanks is because your condescending attitude practically screams off the page! Stop patronizing people…My husband worked in the restaurant business for years as well. If you are kind, kindness IS returned. My husband was always gracious to those he served..and in turn, was always treated with the utmost respect.
We keep this in mind, and treat whomever is helping us (retail or restaurant) well. Most people DO.
Get over it. The crazy coffee places-and the stuff they serve-is all about the hype.
By JBTeach
April 18, 2006 1:16 PM | Link to this
Cuppajoe, you ever think that the thanklessness of your work is due to the fact that you obiviously spend too much energy on little things. Rather than run through a gamut of coffees (wines or cigars), take a quick second and slow down, ask a person what it is that he/she wants. I only have a “fancy” coffee place near me, but when I walk the lady grabs a “large” whatever-you-call-it cup and fills it iwht plain old coffee. Everyday, like clockwork, I go through this routine. And when I go to a new place, like the good Det., I just order my flipping coffee. Two packets of splenda, please. Thanks.
By Jennifer
April 18, 2006 1:56 PM | Link to this
I am an “O” person. I love my venti iced caramel macchiato. Before moving to Atlanta I used to laugh at people who went to those ‘fancy coffeehouses’ but now I’m one of them. Why? To me it’s the entire experience of taking a nice walk up there, ordering, and having a nice walk (rather, by this time I’m speed walking because their coffee has 4x more caffeine than other coffeehouses) back home.
If it came down to drinking McD’s coffee or Waffle House’s coffee I would have to give it up because that stuff is crap. People who believe coffee is coffee must not have any taste buds or they are damaged in some way.
One rule I live by: Do not go to the fancy coffeehouse on Sunday mornings because all of the church people who never go to the fancy coffeehouse have no idea what they’re doing and they feel the need to ask about every single item on the menu. Then, they still have no idea what the barista told them and they still don’t know what they want. Oh, and one more thing, if you see a couple in there with their three kids you might as well go home, read a book, and come back because they will allow the kids to change their minds ten times while the line behind them grows.
By Ruger13
April 18, 2006 1:57 PM | Link to this
cuppajoe,
Water, coffee, caffeine, flavors DOES NOT equate to the brewing and aging of wine and beer or the process of mixing, rolling and aging of tobbacco to make a great cigar. Don’t read into the blog…sit back and enjoy it…like watching Scary Movie 4
By Clay
April 18, 2006 3:47 PM | Link to this
I think I know what cuppajoe is talking about. I’m not saying this person is right, or high-and-mighty or whatever. What this person was saying is that just because you do not understand something that it is crazy or bad or not needed. You would not walk into a tire store and say “Give me 4 tires.” You don’t go to a car dealership and say “I’d like a car please.” You have to specify what you want no matter where you shop—coffee houses are no different. And, no, I do not drink coffee and I have never entered a coffee house.
By Charlie
April 18, 2006 4:08 PM | Link to this
Great article. I think Denis Leary summed it up well when he said, “Doesn’t anyone sell coffee-flavored coffee anymore!”
By heath8989
April 18, 2006 4:25 PM | Link to this
I work in a coffee shop that offers drink that ends in “O” and I must say that had me laughing out loud. Come to Caribou Coffee were we speak english and serve decaf. We aren’t like those other fancy coffee places. Yes, we have a similar menu but we offer service with a smile and will get you what ever you want with out making you feel like you don’t belong. Everyone is welcome at our place. Hope to see you soon, your small decaf is hot and ready for pick up.
By Mac
April 18, 2006 4:25 PM | Link to this
My two cents… The article was very funny and to a large extent true. Cuppajoe - while a bit uptight about the service industry and a bit off about the gun analogy(see Hubs’ comments) he makes some good points about picking out wines, cigars, and yes, even coffee. Most places have good employees that will help you find what you’re looking for..a few don’t…but that’s just the way it is. To those of you who think that Mickey Ds, WHouse, and DD coffee is the same as the specialty coffee store coffee…well, your just wrong about that. Doesn’t mean that it’s not any good or that you shouldn’t drink it or can’t enjou it…but it’s just not the same. Specialty coffe stores spends lots of time, reasearch, and money on finding high quality coffee, properly training their employees on how to work the equipment, and maintaing the equipment. You’re just not going to get that kind of attention to coffee at a gas station or fast food store. That being said…I’ve always been a proponet of “Drink what you like”. Whether it be Sutter Home White Zin or a bottle of 2001 reserve Cabernet, Bud Light or Guinness, Maxwell House or Single Estate Kona. Everyone assigns their own value to things…sorry, I’m getting off the subject a bit. My point is that we don’t need to critize others for drinking (or eating) what they enjoy because everyone’s taste is different. I won’t pay $4 for an “o” drink, but I will pay $2 for a large coffee(I don’t say venti or grande or tall…I refuse to use their lingo)…or I simply make it at home and pay significantly less than that. Oh - and another thing. Sure…I drink coffee because it wakes me up and alcohol because it releaxes me but mostly it’s because I like the way they taste. I think that’s the way most people feel, too, or else there wouldn’t be specialty coffee places, or thousands of different wines, or hundreds of different scotches, etc.
By Doug
April 18, 2006 4:36 PM | Link to this
hehe…someone needs to switch to decaf… I love coffee houses, but even so, I can appreciate the humor in Det Steve’s story.
To respond to the other end of the argument though, and will even pay the outlandish price for a nice piping hot cup of something that ends with ‘o’… Does it make me an idiot? No…only a person who really likes that ‘o’ type coffee… People drive SUV’s that suck up gas like a thirsty wino…does that make them idiots? Nah…just people who like (and can afford) SUV’s. Everyone should be entitled their own enjoyments. :)
By OldSchool
April 18, 2006 4:46 PM | Link to this
I love me a good cuppa coffee (Kona please) but am also a fool for a tall glass of sweet tea. But be warned: if you are in Kansas City, Missouri and want that tall glass of sweet tea, what you’ll get (at least at Fred Ott’s) is unsweetened tea to which they will add Diet Pepsi and ice (if you ask.) The Pepsi alone is blasphemy but UNsweetened tea with no ice? Impossible!
That’s when a steaming cup of any coffee more than suffices!
By Javier Santana
April 18, 2006 4:57 PM | Link to this
Brilliant story~ I remember going throught he same thing after moving here from Miami, where a Cafe con Leche (Coffee w/ milk) is all you need to know. They hand you a cup of Turbo Espresso w/ steamed milk, and you hand them $1.25 for a HUGE-O cup. I have fallen to the gods of the $5 cups of joe, though. I think it’s just like walking into Disney and adjusting to the fact that everyone has perma-grins and is hunky-dory happy. After a while, the only “O” that gets to you is the “O” in BROKE from the $25 a week (only 5 cups) habit. :) Cheers, Bean Juicers!
By GM
April 18, 2006 5:34 PM | Link to this
Your Coffee column made me burst out with laughter today at work. I’m working hard on giving up the caffeine and have cut it to about 50 percent. I don’t think it will be as easy to give up reading your column. They just get better and better! p.s. tell cuppajoe to RELAX.
By Chris
April 18, 2006 5:35 PM | Link to this
wow, some interesting comments. I see what cuppajoe is saying, he’s got a point. When I want just a “plain” coffee it’s McDonalds or Waffle House. When I want “French Vinilla” it’s Duncin’s Dounuts and when I want a “fancy” coffee it’s Starbuck’s. Steve Rose should know that when you go into a “coffee” shop you are going to see a lot of different coffee combinations. He should have gone to Waffle House, but then he would not have any material to rant about.
By Ben
April 18, 2006 5:47 PM | Link to this
Isn’t it rewarding when you get a meaningful lecture from a Twit like cuppajoe?
By Karen
April 18, 2006 6:46 PM | Link to this
One 16-ounce Irish Creme Latte, please!
My husband and I frequent a local drive-thru espresso place and the young ladies (yes, all of them) who work there are absolutely marvelous. Great senses of humor, always outgoing and friendly. And they don’t look at you funny if you order a decaf!
By Lori
April 18, 2006 9:57 PM | Link to this
What I’m still wondering about is why in the world anyone would order an “americano” (espresso diluted with hot water)! If you want weaker coffee, just get plain old coffee!
And, frankly, I think that cuppajoe’s analogies are dead-on. We all feel uncomfortable and a little intimidated when we’re out of our respective elements, and I think that’s what this blog’s all about, isn’t it?
By Nobody
April 19, 2006 5:47 AM | Link to this
I have an easy solution for this: don’t drink coffee! Don’t start when you are young and you won’t get hooked on it, or get cranky when you don’t have it, and you absolutely will not need it in order to get going every day. You think you need it but you’re really just addicted, hooked on the drug.
By not drinking coffee, you also get to keep all the money you won’t be spending on overpriced flavored hot water and you never, ever have to set foot in snooty coffee bars (aka Addict Dens), and you don’t have to clutch a coffee mug in both hands like your life depends on it.
Adults hang on those mugs like little kids hanging on to a security blanket. Take away the mug and they cry too, just like the little kids. Sad.
By Lee
April 19, 2006 7:40 AM | Link to this
When all else fails and you find yourself next in line at one of these places, do what I do and turn to your 13 year old daughter and tell her “order something for me.”
Then you hand the technician a $20, put the few cents change in the tip jar, drink half of the concoction, throw the rest in the trash, and look for a Waffle House.
Ain’t progress wonderful….
By Last Laugh
April 19, 2006 7:58 AM | Link to this
Somewhere, there’s got to be an old man guiding a coffeebean laden donkey through a coffeebean field laughing his butt off!
By Bill Mangum
April 19, 2006 9:07 AM | Link to this
Steve: Two things. I’ve drunk coffee from one end of this country to the other, and for pure coffee pleasure, the best on the road is Waffle House, bar none. Secondly, I have a friend in another city that owned a specialty coffee house for a time, and the things he told me about the cost and markup on the fancy coffees would curdle the cream in the high priced coffees if the elitists ordering it only knew how they are being ripped off. Yeah, I do like an occasional cup of Starbuck’s Latte, but I know how much the stuff costs to produce, and that’s why I don’t drink much of it. Oh, I know that the coffee houses have a tremendous overhead, with the cost of real estate, but then so do Waffle House and Dunkin Donuts.
Oh yeah, a very funny piece.
Bill Mangum
By Betsy Schaffer
April 19, 2006 10:52 AM | Link to this
interested in contacting Lt Rose about a neighborhood watch program at our complex in Sandy Springs. Could he contact me and discuss how to begin, will be available to go to meetings and I do have the $20 for signage. Thanks
By xdrachel
April 19, 2006 4:00 PM | Link to this
Here you go, Steve! All you need to know to order a cup of coffee at Starbucks. (http://www.starbucks.co.jp/en/latte_lingo.htm)
So, now you too can order a “no whip, dry, venti, double decaf, soy latte with room” and know what the divil it is you’re asking for.
By RAS
April 21, 2006 6:03 AM | Link to this
WOW, Cuppajoe, back away from the service industries I sincerely hope you get satisfaction at a gun store because reading your entries gives expectation of the term “postal” Let’s all have a smoothO ventiO konaO nonO caramarelO decafO and try to have a good Friday.
By Stephen
April 22, 2006 6:39 AM | Link to this
Busy or not, the servers should understand that if the customer wants such and such thing and that they have it, then by god they the customer gets it.
I’ve seen the prices at those coffee shops (guess that’s why we have none of them in Chamblee) so we have to be content with either QT or the BP stuff. (Still at a Buck Seventeen the QT stuff is not all that bad.Gives a good kick in the morning…)
Hopefully next time LT they won’t appear like a gaggel of deer in someone’s spot lights.
By WFC
April 23, 2006 8:27 AM | Link to this
Detective Steve always adds to my enjoyment of the day and the “coffehouse” was no exception. I occasionally indulge my taste for gourmet coffee by ordering some Peet’s over the internet. I understand cuppajoe’s point of view but must point out that most of us are too busy to become “experts” on everything and shouldn’t have to be experts on a product to be served in a place of business. I teach advanced placement American history in a local high school. When parents have a question about their child’s lack of progress I don’t expect them to know the “ins and outs” of the Federalist Era or why Woodrow Wilson couldn’t convincxe Henry Cabot Lodge of the viability of the League of Nations. I simply help them. Consequently, I don’t want a coffehouse-employee trying to make me feel like a dumb-a* because I’m not up-to-date on esoteric coffee knowledge. When I buy a car I do the research. When I want a cup of coffee I don’t have time for it. Get some perspective. Great work Detective Steve!
By jackie
April 23, 2006 1:29 PM | Link to this
LOVE THIS ARTICLE. I AM A 60 YEAR PLAIN COFFEE DRINKER WHO HAD ALMOST THE SAME EXPERIENCE IN A Q.T. I TRY TO STAY WITH THE WAFFLE HOUSE. THEY HAVE WHAT I WANT, JUST COFFEE AT A BUCK AND CHANGE.
By jackie
April 23, 2006 1:46 PM | Link to this
I ALSO OWN A FLOOR STORE AND GET CALLS FROM PEOPLE WANTING TO KNOW HOW MUCH IS MY CARPET? THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF STYLES, BY THE WAY. BUT 95% OF THE COFFEE HOUSES BUY THEIR COFFEE FROM VIETNAM. IT IS JUST COFFEE.
By jackie
April 23, 2006 1:51 PM | Link to this
love the article. i recently had to get the staff to help me find a cup of plain coffee at a gas station. but i also own a carpet store and people actually call me up and ask, “how much is your carpet?’
By Stefan
April 24, 2006 10:31 AM | Link to this
If you think it’s bad here, try ordering coffee in Seattle; if your order doesn’t contain the name of at least one foriegn country, they look at you like you’re an alien!
By Ruth
April 24, 2006 11:23 AM | Link to this
Officer Steve, I love coffee - but I think Quik Trip has the best coffee, and you can get it 24 hours a day, and get a discount if you bring you on cup. I will sometimes go and buy my own beans and grind them - it is less expensive than going to the foo-foo coffee cafe.
Law Enforcement Officers frequent Qwik Trip for the coffee too-most likely for the P.R.I.C.E. So, I get a good cup of coffee and get to chat with some cute cops!