Starbucks is a coffeehouse, not a coffee shop (ala BHS or any other diner type place). In Belfast before Starbucks there were 3 coffeehouses, tops - one was Clements (a chain), the other was something whose name I can't recall but I also think was a chain and the last was the California Coffee Co which also might be a chain. Other than that, no coffee houses. Now that Starbucks is open, there are more Starbucks and none of the other coffeehouses have gone out of business. In fact I think more Clements have opened as well.
Starbucks quality varies from venue to venue. Some are excellent, some are crap, most are inbetween. Depending on the staff the vibe and focus of the place can be very different; some encourage the student vibe, others music, others business types and so on. So no, they aren't all the same, while they are all the same. This is true of Starbucks in the states as over here. You will also get loyal followings that will frequent one Starbucks but not the other up the road, because of those differences. It all depends.
Starbucks quality has gone downhill of late and this is reflected in the problems they are having. Their commitment to quality and quirkiness and being on the leading edge of commercialised bohemianism has waned. If they can regain that - and I think they can - they will survive and get a lot better. Trimming the fat will help.
Personally, I LOVE Starbucks. Back in the states I enjoyed them but you had such a range of choice of places to go and things to do that I wasn't that fussed over them. In Belfast it was like manna from heaven for me when they opened. FINALLY I could get a frappacino! And their location as mentioned was great for people watching.
But the best part when they opened was how they were the instant cure for homesickness or an attack of nostalgia. All the complaints about how they are all the same is exactly what made is so great to walk into. As soon as you stepped inside it smelt like home. I loved it. I could get a drink I liked that wasn't a pint of beer (oh and thank god for trendy cocktail bars catching on too, don't get me started on how bad the choice was for cocktails without them!!!), it was like sitting in California as it looked the same, smelt the same, the music was the same. Loved, loved, loved it. And I also really loved sitting there watching everyone else in the place enjoy themselves, which always seemed the case. Starbucks was a treat. OH and Starbucks ALSO stayed open past 5pm which meant you could hang out in the city centre somewhere other than a pub in the evening, and it was after they opened and kept later + Sunday hours that other shops started following suit and now Belfast city centre is open late all the time. Hooray for working people who can't get somewhere during working hours, and for the start of a nightlife that isn't dependent on getting drunk!
Where I live now there isn't a Starbucks but there are some hole in the wall coffeehouses. Haven't had the chance to check the more interesting ones out but if Starbucks comes here I will be one happy woman. What we have are that French chain - La Brassier or something, and B&B as far as the chains go and they are dirty, the coffee is instant, the pastries stale and the staff couldn't care less. That is pretty much the standard for most Irish cafes. Maybe Starbucks coming will up their game a little.
And for those McDonald haters - I could never understand why lefties trash MickeyD's and not the restaurants where the rich waste their money, because McDonald's is like the ONE place where a working class family can afford to take the whole family out for a meal, that is kid friendly, and is striving to diversify its menu to be more healthy. Ok maybe not the 'one' place but it is the leading place for that sort of thing and the way I see it, when people attack McDonald's or get all snobby about it, they aren't attacking the rich bastards they are attacking the working class.
/off soapbox
