Reading Roars!

New Tory transport plans include mention of the town’s waterways (”Vision for transport includes river power“):

Reading is blessed by having two major rivers running through it. The Thames and the Kennet (Kennet and Avon Canal) are under-used resources for transporting both people and goods and could provide an enjoyable alternative to driving.

I considered this opportunity on my blog last September (”Thames Valley Park boat gets my vote“) and still think that it would be a fab thing to have (river transport, that is). I don’t think it will ever happen, but it’s a nice thought.

The Picnic people aren’t bothered about Starbucks opening next door (I had to ask). Thinking about it, I reckon that Costa have more to worry about. I’d say that Picnic is a “purple cow” (defined by marketing guru Seth Godin as a product or service that is remarkable), and that Costa and Starbucks (more like a green octopus than a purple cow) are thoroughly (and increasingly) unremarkable.

While Starbucks is green, Costa is a deep red. Both are corporate monsters, opening outlets left, right and centre. Both have introduced loyalty card schemes. Both rip off customers.

As I’ve written before, Picnic is unique (there really is just one Picnic). Its personality (it has one, unlike the aforementioned superbrands) is friendly and warm, local and trustworthy. I believe it will continue to do well.

Further to my previous post about the opening of (yet) another Starbucks outlet, we apparently do want more coffee in our town centres (and airports, hospitals, theme parks, workplaces…). According to recent research, the UK coffee shop market is predicted to nearly double in size over the next 10 years. That’s an awful lot of coffee.

The image below shows the part in central Reading where Broad St meets King St. and the assorted coffee shops located there. I left out out Japanese restaurant Wa (where coffee can also be purchased), the LV Lounge and Nino’s, as I was unable to pinpoint them precisely.

I’m gobsmacked. No really, I am.

Am I right in thinking that Starbucks is to open yet another outlet in Reading town centre - in the most ambitious location imaginable?

Am I right in thinking that Starbucks will be muscling in next door to Picnic, directly opposite Costa Coffee (itself adjacent to another coffee shop) and diagonally opposite Coffee Republic (adjacent to Pret)?

Tell me it isn’t true. I know Starbucks have a pretty aggressive location policy… but this takes the biscuit (or blueberry muffin).

Congratulations all those who took part in last Sunday’s Asics Reading Half Marathon.  Shamefully, I was still in bed when you were pounding the streets.  Yeah, I will do it next year. 

Matt C: Well done, mate.

The Reading Evening Post has a new website. It looks very similar to the Reading Chronicle effort, unveiled weeks earlier (see images below). The new site has all the usual Web 2.0 features.  By signing up for an “S&B Media Passport” (not another passport - groan), you will be able to post comments on articles, receive newsletters (but which and when?) and enter competitions.

I was looking very hard for my blog feed, previously located under Community Blogs, and… I’m still looking. All other local blogs written by everyday folk (not Evening Post journos) have similarly disappeared from the Blogs channel. It’s an odd decision and no one warned me about it. I do hope that these feeds are brought back.

This week, Starbucks, the McDonald’s of the 21st century, did something extraordinary. On Tuesday, its US outlets were closed for 3 hours so that all 135,000 baristas could be retrained. Staff were advised on how to make the perfect espresso, cappuccino and latte.

Customers now entering one of its 7,000+ stores will see the notice “Your drink should be perfect, every time. If not, let us know and we’ll make it right.”

Will they?  I don’t think they can.  Like McDonald’s with their burgers, they can strive for perfection all they like.  Their products range from passable to good, but never great and certainly not “perfect”.

In Starbucks’ world, convenience is king. Starbucks outlets are fast food outlets, quickly producing and selling drinks for impatient customers. A perfectly produced coffee requires the eyes and hands of an artist who can give it attention, time and care.

In addition, I more readily associate Starbucks with overpriced syrupy lattes (with or without ice), not coffee. They don’t simply don’t specialise in the black stuff. The last I checked, Vanilla Latte, so sweet you can hear your teeth fizzle, was listed first in the menu. It wasn’t always thus. A former sales and marketing director at Starbucks explains in The Times (”Foodie at large: The dark art of coffee making“):

“Quality shot up in the Nineties, but the American market has commercialised it,” he says. “It would be difficult to sell a small 6oz cappuccino, the traditional Italian size, for much more money, so to make a viable business out of it, they started to make the drinks bigger. And how do you do that without overdosing everyone on caffeine? You add more and more milk.”

So, no, Starbucks isn’t about the coffee.

If you want “perfect” or near-perfect coffee where small really is small (rather than tall), you will have to look elsewhere (and I don’t mean Costa Coffee, Caffe Nero and other American-style chains).

Monmouth Coffee House, opposite Borough Market in London, is my favourite place for coffee in the country. Their coffee is simply stunning and they even offer free samples (why can’t other places do that?). I also strongly recommend Algerian Coffee Stores, again in London (Old Compton St), a shop that sells a huge variety of coffee beans from around the world.

And closer to home? This afternoon I was in rampant west Reading. The need for caffeine drew me to Workhouse Coffee, a place I have mentioned before.

Owner Greg Costello loves coffee. You can see it in his eyes. He takes his time, gently pouring a cortado like a painter dabbing paint on canvas. Today, he poured me a rich Guatemalan. Intoxicatingly strong and silky smooth, it was a treat. The Brazilian that followed, though less strong, was equally polished. Two other options that I didn’t try this afternoon were Colombian and Ethiopian.

The music playing in the background was a melody of chillout tracks (I believe it was the DAB station Chill), a refreshing change from the usual jazz you get in popular cafes (literally - what is it with coffee shops and jazz?).

Greg was understandably concerned about the opening of the new Tesco store. My suggestion would be to customers of the supermarket: give the in-store Costa a miss - superior coffee can found just across the road!