Whither the Tully's crowd?

Since the closing of the neighborhood Tully's in early October, many of the coffee shop's onetime aficionados are feeling bereft.  We understand, though we have not seen this with our own eyes, that a few regulars can now been seen gracing spots at the neighborhood Starbucks, perhaps with some discomfort.  Others are turning up for their fix at Madison Park Bakery or other existing local coffee purveyors.

But knowing the Tully's crowd as we do, It seems unlikely that many of them are now driving, biking, or bussing to some far-off Tully's location in order to enjoy their brew (the nearest Tully's is almost two miles away, at 746 19th Avenue E. on Capitol Hill). Instead, they are hoping for another neighborhood alternative to take up the slack, perhaps on the very site of the previous Tully's location.

That hope may be in vain, however, since Tully's already was the most significant neighborhood alternative to Starbucks--and in the end the economics of that strategy (and coffee niche) just didn't work here.  We've been told by several area merchants who've looked into the matter that the landlord is expecting a level of monthly rent equal to or even higher than what Tully's had been paying.  A coffee shop is therefore not a likely outcome unless it is coupled with some other economically viable enterprise (no, not a bookstore).

But don't think that there still might not be viable alternatives here for the former patrons of Tully's.  As we noted in our posting on Madison Kitchen, the soon-to-arrive replacement for Park Place Deli, one aim of the new operator is to provide a combination of high-end coffee, good seating, and a strong vibe that may attract some of the neighborhood coffee-house crowd, Tully's or otherwise.

We also received a tip that Madison Park Bakery is looking into stepping up the competition on the local coffee scene. Owner Karen Hofman confirmed the story, saying she and her husband are considering expanding the seating area of the bakery to enhance the ambiance and encourage more of the sit-down trade, including coffee drinkers.  She cautioned however that the planning is in the early stages--and something she definitely does not want to do is reduce the size of the back-of-house kitchen, which is already small enough.

So hold on, Tully's fans.  All is not lost. There may soon be a couple of new Starbuck's alternatives for you to check out.

As for the old Tully's space, is Madison Park ready for a head shop and marijuana provisioner?  That might just be a more economically viable option than what came before.

Read More

Our neighborhood Starbucks gets a nod from the New York Times (no less)

Starbucks achieved some great free "product placement" yesterday when the New York Times published a profile of the company's Madison Park store in a article headlined, "There's One on Every Corner, But None Like This."  The editorial motivation for the piece is the fact that our locally-based, global Mega Coffee Purveyor is experimenting in Madison Park with something new: wine and beer.

What we already knew, the world now knows.

Describing our neighborhood as "lovely," writer William Yardley notes that Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz lives in Madison Park and often "pops in" to the store on his way to "brand building."  Yardley speculates on whether this fact was having any impact on the employees' behavior while the reporter was on the premises:

"Were the baristas looking for their boss, who lives in a ton of house nearby? Were they anxious? Were they freaking out? Is it true that they undergo special scrutiny before they can work there? Do they sometimes wish they worked in one of those apathy-oozing independent coffee shops in an edgier part of town? Surely they have a tattoo or two beneath those buttoned black sleeves, right?"

It may be shocking to some to discover that Madison Park is apparently not considered "edgy."  This Yardley is not some fly-in from New York who might not know better, either.  He is, we believe, the paper's local stringer, or at minimum a regular reporter for the NYT who is based here. So when it comes to Seattle, he probably knows "edgy" from "not edgy."  We'll just have to live with our perceived lack of edginess.

By the way, if you're thinking that the New York Times' piece was prompted by Starbucks' desire to have national media attention for its local experiment, you're almost certainly wrong.  Yardley has a tough time getting answers to questions like the ones he poses in the excerpt above.  Some answers were eventually forthcoming from Starbucks' media relations team (aka Corporate), and you can read all about it by clicking on the link above.

Read More

Starbucks revamp complete

It's taken a bit longer than expected, and its roll-out will not prove much of a surprise to those patrons who've been watching the progress of construction over the past few months, but Starbucks officially unveils the new Madison Park store today. 



More importantly for some, the transformed Starbucks will now be serving wine and beer each weekday beginning at 2 pm (noon on the weekends).  We're told that some new menu items will be making their debut in conjunction with the alcohol service.

The new space has polished concrete floors, lots of wood and tile, and more, though seemingly less cushy, seating.  The meeting area has been reconfigured, and there's also a new bar.  The space appears to be more effectively organized, and the feel is definitely brighter than it was.  The fireplace remains intact.

While the physical transformation of the Madison Park Starbucks is certainly a done deal, the menu changes now underway are still theoretically experimental.  As we reported before construction began in March, corporate headquarters is trying to determine whether the introduction of wine and beer in a neighborhood like Madison Park will be as successful as it has proven to be on Capitol Hill.  So in some slight sense, perhaps, Starbucks patrons here who decide to imbibe (or not) can consider themselves guinea pigs sacrificing themselves for a higher cause.

[Starbucks is located at 4000 E. Madison Street.]

Read More

Starbucks to experiment with wine and beer

When we reported last summer that our biggest neighborhood coffee purveyor was soon to be renovated, we said patrons should expect no significant changes to the menu as a result of the revamp.  We noted that although Starbucks had recently been experimenting with evening wine and beer sales at one of its Capitol Hill locations, the company had no intention of extending the experiment to Madison Park.  We had that on pretty good authority.

Within 24 hours, however, Corporate Headquarters took note of our story, and we were asked to take our posting down.  Which we did.  Starbucks later requested that before we reposted the story we remove all mention of alcoholic beverages.  We suspected that we had not heard the last of the issue--and we were right.  Starbucks now confirms that wine and beer will be on the menu once the Madison Park store has been revamped.

Moreover, what was originally thought to be just a minor re-do of the existing space is actually going to be quite a transformation.  Starbucks spokesperson Stacey Krum admits that it's now a more ambitious project than first envisioned.  The new store will, in fact, be similar in design to Starbucks' Capitol Hill location on Olive Way--including "green elements," lots of wood, and new furniture and fixtures.

What happened?  According to Krum, the Corporation has learned some things at Olive Way and wants to expand the experiment begun there by trying it out in the very different environment of Madison Park.  She tells us that the wine-and-beer thing has gone over very well at Olive Way, and Starbucks is pleased with the way people have responded to the new options and to the completely revamped space.

The remodeling of the Madison Park store will take place over the next two months, with construction scheduled to begin as early as late February, according to Krum.  The store will be open during the remodeling, so patrons will get to watch the progress.  There is almost no structural work involved, says Krum, who adds that some of the construction will be done at night.  However, as it looks now, the Community Room will probably have to be closed during all or part of the construction period.

Starbucks has set up an easel in the store showing some design concepts and finishes, for those interested.  There will also be a formal presentation of the remodeling plans for the new store and a chance to ask questions of the Starbucks design team on Wednesday, February 16 at 5:30 pm.  New store manager Andrew Nix, who begins his assignment this week, will be present.  Those who plan to attend are requested to RSVP to pguy@starbucks.com.

Read More

Starbucks manager moves on

After eight years with Starbucks, four of them as manager of the Madison Park store, Iaan Hughes hung up his green apron yesterday afternoon for the last time and bid at least a temporary goodbye to all of the many friends he's made during his tenure here. Although Iaan says he's not sure what the next thing is going to be, we understand he is not hurting for potential employment opportunities.

Why is he leaving? "It was time," he told us, noting that he'd been thinking about doing it for several months. The job has been great, he said, and he has enjoyed the relationships he's formed with Starbucks' patrons and others here in the Park. But he'd like to try something new, and now he has the time to figure out exactly what that'll be.

Meanwhile, he's keeping his two other jobs: disc jockey for radio station KBCS-FM 91.3--where he spins bluegrass, country, and rockabilly--and blogger (http://www.iaanhughes.com/). If you missed your chance to say goodbye to Iaan, his email address is iaanhughes@gmail.com.

.

Iaan's replacement, Andrew Nix, was on the job today but had made a strategic exit from the premises by the time we swung by this evening to check him out. More on him later...

[Thanks to Barbie Hull for letting us (without her knowledge) steal this photo of Iaan from her blog.]

Read More

Starbucks Madison Park to get revamp

Our neighborhood Starbucks will be undergoing a makeover sometime in the next six months, but don’t expect the end result to be anything like what’s recently transpired at certain other Starbucks locations in our fair town. Madison Park Starbucks Manager Iaan Hughes calls the upcoming changes simply “a refresh.” He notes that the store has been in its present form for eight years, and he thinks it’s time for a bit of updating. The changes anticipated for Madison Park will be a lot less ambitious, he says, than the transmogrifications Starbucks undertook in the University Village and in a more recent example closer to home.

There’s been a lot of press coverage of the just completed overhaul of one of Starbucks’ prime Capitol Hill locations, the store at 1600 E. Olive Way—known affectionately to some locals as Gaybucks. Not only was the space completely revamped, but the whole concept of the store was transformed from urban coffee house to something best described as “Coffee Theatre.” A sort of coffee-warehouse effect was one of the goals, another of which was to be green. Many of the materials used in construction were recycled, and the finished space is being touted as environmentally friendly (in fact it’s “LEED® registered or certified.”).

Nothing quite so dramatic as a “Capitol Hill East” Starbucks is planned for our staid Madison Park locale, however. Just as the Capitol Hill store was supposedly remade in the image of its community, the Madison Park store will stay true to what Starbucks thinks we want here in the Park. “It's not going to be hammered copper” or anything out of line with the neighborhood, Hughes says. “My vision for the store is that we have a lot of high profile customers and we need to keep the existing neighborhood feel.”

Speaking of high profile, Howard Schultz just happens to live three blocks from the Madison Park Starbucks and is often seen in the store. But if Hughes is in any way intimidated by his role managing the Chairman’s own-neighborhood Starbucks, it certainly doesn’t show. He’s been doing the job successfully for four years, and he feels he has a pretty good sense of the community in which his store sits.

“We had the potential to be obnoxious,” he says, referring to Starbucks' entry into the neighborhood in 2002. The local (but big) corporation replaced a couple of well regarded neighborhood restaurants that had successively occupied that space; and not everyone down here was happy about the changeover to Starbucks when it was first announced. But after the opening, the Starbucks store was “resoundingly supported by the neighborhood,” says Hughes; and it quickly became a neighborhood fixture. What Madison Park really wanted, in Hughes’ opinion, is what Starbucks delivered: “good coffee and good service.” The store was designed to fit into the Park and be part of the neighborhood—and the new store is not going to deviate from that course. “It’s not going to be cool,” says Hughes.

What this means in practice, he tells us, is an updating of the space and some new furnishings, although “the refresh” may go a little deeper than that. His goal is something “comfortable, timeless, classic—a fit for the neighborhood.” What he doesn’t want to see is anything too dark: “No museum pieces.”

Remodeling suggestions from patrons will certainly be welcomed, says Hughes. And as Amy Peterson, the store’s assistant manager, notes, once the story gets out about the upcoming revamp, suggestions will be offered whether the staff requests them or not. “Madison Parkers are not shy about sharing their input,” she says, adding, “How many times have I had someone say ‘When you see Howard next time be sure and tell him..…’?”

A lot of times, apparently.

[Photos: We challenged Manager (and "Coffee Master") Iaan Hughes and Assistant Manager Amy Peterson to prove for the camera that they can still work the bar at Starbucks. They performed admirably, showing the rest of the staff how it's done.]

Read More