The genius of Starbucks is marketing.
First, they appeal to their customer's elitist inclinations (Seattle being an ideal place to start) by convincing them that the only coffee worth drinking is coffee made with very dark (actually over-roasted) beans. Then they convince them to pay for the addition of 600 calories (or more) of flavorings to make that cup of bitter coffee drinkable.
Eh, viola! A cup of good tasting black coffee that cost maybe $0.25 to produce and should be sold for no more than a dollar, can now cost $3.00 to $5.00. Brilliant.
And, if anyone complains about the underlying burnt taste or exorbitant pricing, just impugn their ancestry, education, or politics. In that case, Starbucks should be the official coffee of the Democratic Party. Certainly would fit with its place of origin.
Yeah, you’re right. My thing is that unlike most people, I’m not a conoisseur of coffee. Coffee is coffee to me.
I guess I’m like my father. He would probably be appalled at the expensive coffees being served nowadays. Dad used 8 O’Clock Coffee which years ago was sold by the old A&P Supermarkets (I think you can get it at a few other stores now). He would use and reuse the same pot over and over again without washing it out (much to my mother’s chagrin). He claimed that any residue actually made the coffee better.
I don’t know about that, but I can’t be bothered spending big bucks on a beverage that, as you said, costs so little to produce. And those bagels and what not — you can buy those anywhere for a lot less money. There is nothing at Starbucks that makes their products worth the expense.