Starbucks is offering beer and wine.
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One of the biggest challenges for Starbucks over the years has been finding a way to maintain a steady rate of customers even after the breakfast and lunch day parts end-the chain has tackled this in many ways, including its recurring Treat Receipt promotion that entices morning customers to return after 2:30PM for a discounted drink.
The new Starbucks Evenings concept is being rolled out at locations across the country.
Starbucks has been relatively slow to roll out its “Evenings” menu, introducing it in just over 70 locations in the past five years. The chicken was so rubbery and unpalatable, there was no doubt in my mind they were frozen and reheated – which a barista later confirmed.
Like many coffee snobs, I often find the chain’s java to be unpalatable – over-roasted to the point that it can only be saved by adding lots of milk and sugar (or maybe that is the point?).
I hopped on the train to Williamsburg to see for myself if Starbucks has what it takes to be a nightly social hub. The brand new menu may additionally blur the model id.
Have you ever been to a Starbucks at night time? “Most of them have been published, written about in the New York Times”. Starbucks is trying to be more about being a place to hang out.
With the introduction of the evening menu, Starbucks is aiming to appeal to a demographic other than its loyal morning crowd.
The drinks are served alongside dishes that are not the usual Starbucks fare. This program is called, the “evening program” and it has been under testing stages since 2010. Sales tend to drop in the evening hours, but this revamp to Starbucks’ profile just might change that.
But here’s the thing: I don’t come to Starbucks for excitement.
The Williamsburg, Brooklyn location will debut the “evening menu”, options August 19, according to a Huffington Post report. A petition was signed by 500 people who anxious it would take away revenue from small, local businesses.
Antalek had a hunch that the evening menu might be a hit for women who are hoping to dodge the wilder, more aggressive nightlife scenes. Dalto said she was upset Starbucks would serve alcohol in a venue used by teenagers looking to study and adults catching up on work.
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“I think it will be an interesting venture for you to head down”, she said.
