Today, starting at 5:30 p.m. (local time), your neighborhood Starbucks is closing. Yes, yours -- and yours, too. (If you live in the U.S., that is.) CEO Howard Schultz has ordered this emergency intensive remedial training, hopefully giving baristas valuable skills they should have learned in the ordinary 40-hour new "partner" training. One of the skills -- which, according to one New York Starbucks manager involved in the test training program, was a "revelation" to some of her workers -- is a milk steaming technique that will allow baristas to "free pour" (without holding foam back with a spoon) the milk no matter how the customer orders the drink. Partners will also be instructed to wipe the steamer wands and rinse the pitchers and shot glasses every time -- not a new idea, but according to anecdotal evidence, also not commonly done. A new procedure will be instituted for the espresso machines; baristas will always pull a double shot, instead of occasionally pulling only one when only one shot is needed. This, apparently, will assure a better-tasting espresso.
I know I'm not the only one who's complained that Starbucks baristas don't know how to make a decent latte any more. Far from its roots as the reliable place to get coffee made exactly right, the chain has lately become famous for its automatic machines and the hit-or-miss quality of its products.
Closing Bell: The Bears Get a Win (APPA, NLST, AET, PALM, IDT)
Can Crocs Continue Its Quest for New Highs?
Twitter May Chirp Its Commercial Accounts Next Month
