Starbucks is going to get rid of their breakfast sandwiches by the end of the year, including my favorite reduced fat turkey bacon. The smell of sandwiches apparently interferes with the smell of the coffee. Welllll...if Starbucks went back to grinding coffee in store, there would be more coffee aroma. As it is, Starbucks has barely any scent at all, which is kind of criminal for a coffee shop, don't you think?
Replacing the breakfast sandwiches will be a new line of
crap like the "Fruit Stella - Bursting with 100% whole grains plus juicy baked berries and omega-3s" and "Perfect Oatmeal - 100% whole-grain goodness finished with your choice of dried fruit, nut medley or brown sugar." These products are for people who are too lazy to go to the grocery store and pick up a box of granola bars or instant oatmeal. That's right, the "perfect" oatmeal is nothing more than the instant variety, reconstituted by the barista with a shot of the incendiarily-hot water they use to make tea. I saw a woman order it this morning. The cup was barely half full (that's it in the foreground, mounded high and topped with luxuriously plump dried fruit, provided by Starbucks' food stylist).
If that's not bad enough, the Pike Place roast seems to be the new permanent "coffee of the week." I think it's awful - burnt and acidy, which is the opposite of what it's supposed to be. I hate it so much, I've started ordering decaf Americanos, even if they cost a bit more. God, I hope they bring Christmas blend back soon.
What do you think of the food changes at Starbucks and the Pike Place roast?
Replacing the breakfast sandwiches will be a new line of 
