- NEWS
- Murder defendant: 'Dating Game' proves point 18 minutes ago
- Report: Gay O.C. soldier returns to duty
- Rowdy storm moving into O.C. 33 minutes ago
- Planting starts at $1.4 million Great Park farm 30 minutes ago
- SPORTS
- SI exposes Winter Olympians 2 hours & 41 minutes ago
- Laker Rim Shots 2-8-10
- Sneak peek: SI swimsuit edition 2 hours & 30 minutes ago
- Angels' Shields won't be ready to start spring training
- BUSINESS
- Office romance flirts with disaster 2 hours & 29 minutes ago
- Here's why Toyota is recalling the Prius 2 hours & 49 minutes ago
- Temp work pointing to a recovery?
- $16.5M apartments sale sets record 3 hours & 46 minutes ago
- ENTERTAINMENT
- AfterWork: Hooters in Lake Forest
- Will H.B. woman be the next 'Bachelorette'? 24 minutes ago
- Ed Harris pulls us through 'Wrecks' 3 hours & 49 minutes ago
- 'Housewife' denies she has a new boyfriend
- LIFE
- Cocktail ideas for Valentine's Day 3 hours & 21 minutes ago
- Kaiser is top HMO in state ranking 36 minutes ago
- Study: Junk food ads make kids fat, not TV 47 minutes ago
- Heidi Montag surgeries hurt women, docs say
- TRAVEL
- OPINION
Starbucks blames smell for scrapping breakfast sandwiches
January 30th, 2008, 4:37 pm · 29 Comments · posted by Nancy Luna, Staff Writer
Updated: (2:30 p.m. Thursday with add from Starbucks rep.)
Battered by a downfall in the economy, Starbucks said Wednesday that it would slow store growth, review pricing strategies and eliminate serving warm breakfast sandwiches in 2008. 
The latter was an experiment that expanded to Orange and Los Angeles counties last year.
On Thursday, Starbucks said cafe drinkers didn’t like the smell of the sandwiches, which resembled Egg McMuffins. Here’s a statement from spokeswoman Bridget Baker:
“We have heard from our customers that the aroma of the sandwiches was interfering in their enjoyment of the coffeehouse experience. Customers will continue to enjoy warmed baked goods as our food team continues to add to our breakfast assortment. The highest priority for our food team is to develop the right offerings to complement our superior coffee and espresso beverages.”
The sandwiches will be out of stores by the end of the year. It’s unclear when they will be phased out in Orange Cou
nty, and Southern California, she added.
Starbucks also cut its forecast for new U.S. store openings to 1,175 for fiscal 2008, from 1,600. Chief executive Howard Schultz also said the company is looking closely at how Starbucks can appeal to budget-conscious consumers.
“The fact is the consumer is in a recession,” Schultz said in a Wall Street Journal article.
Last week, the chain said it was testing a $1 drips in Seattle, as well as free refills. The company said there are no plans to expand that strategy to Southern California.
To read more about Starbucks’ financial earnings, click here.
Tell us: What should Starbucks do to increase foot traffic?
Also, are you disappointed that the warm breakfast sandwiches are going away?
Related stories:
Reader Comments
Comments are encouraged, but you must follow our User Agreement.- Keep it civil and stay on topic.
- No profanity, vulgarity, racial slurs or personal attacks.
- People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked.
29 Comments
Leave a Reply
-
ADVERTISEMENT
-
Restaurants Out of Business
The recession is forcing many Orange County restaurants to shutter, and we're trying to track them all for you. Check out our O.C. Restaurant Closure List for the latest updates. -
-
-
Report: Restaurants on Twitter
Special report: Restaurants are jumping on the Social Media bandwagon. But is Eating and Tweeting luring diners? READ FULL STORY
- How Twitter-savvy are chains? CLICK HERE to see how the Fast Food Maven rates local and national chains on Twitter.
-
Preview: Seasons 52 and Capital Grille
Slide show exclusive: Preview South Coast Plaza's two new sister restaurants -- Seasons 52 and Capital Grille. Both Darden-owned chains will replace later this year the space once occupied by The Clubhouse. -
-
O.C. Frozen Yogurt Shops
-
Contact the Fast Food Maven
Follow the Fast Food Maven on Twitter or 'Friend Me' on Facebook.
Send tips reviews, gripes to nluna@ocregister.com
Nancy Luna, the Fast Food Maven
The Orange County Register
625 N. Grand Ave.
Santa Ana, CA 92711-1626
-
-
-
-
-
16th annual People's Choice
From your favorite restaurants and shops to the best day spa in town, here are your choices for the number one places to eat, shop and play in O.C.
Browse the 2009 Best of Orange County winners -
ADVERTISEMENT
Those breakfast sandwiches caused a horrible sour smell, which overpowered the wonderful smell of morning coffee that was once the norm. I am pleased to see them gone. In order to increase traffic, the stores might try to increase efficiency.
I’m not sad the breakfast sandwiches are going away. I tried them twice from the Katella store, and they were gross the first time, and grosser the second time. They need to leave McMuffins to McDonalds. Starbucks needs to focus on just making good coffee and stop being so slick and corporate.
The sandwiches at Starbucks are very expensive, and taste like cardboard. If I want breakfast I’m going to McDonalds. Wait, they are about to spend a third of a million dollars per store to get into the coffee business. I don’t know if Starbucks has lost it’s way, or McDonalds is back to it’s roots with the “McPizza” (remember that disaster?) but one of these ideas isn’t going to pan out.
Starbucks has some of the worst breakfast food around. I’d go to a bunch of other places before getting a Starbucks breakfast sandwhich. Is it really a slowdown in the consumer economy, or that the sandwichs are just gross? I just eat somewhere else. I tried 3 times the sandwichs/breakfast wraps. No loss here. Maybe they should just admit no one is going to spend $4 on bland stuff. PS> the muffins aren’t that good either.
Star Bucks and McDonalds would do better if they worked together. Why not open up joint Star Bucks/McDonalds restaurants?
Hopefully they’ll NOT lose the breakfast yogurts…those are great!
I refuse to pay nearly $4 for a previously-frozen, microwaved breakfast sandwich!!! This was a dumb idea to begin with — not to mention it slows down their service!
I’m not sorry to see the sandwiches go. They did smell & they didn’t taste very good. I think they could increase foot traffic by reducing the price of their coffee drinks. The Nordstrom Espresso Bar has good tasting coffee drinks & they are significantly cheaper.
I’d also like to see better pastries & not have them be sold out by 9:30-10:00am!
Noooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What smell? I ONLY went in there for their breakfast Spinach Feta Wraps because they were sooooo good! Now they’re going to be gone because so bitches are complaining about a nonexistent “smell”
$2.95 is expensive? Those sandwiches were great, all you fat a$$es can go back to Mcdonalds.
Bout time - those things smelled like a$$. Also time to drop the beverage prices back to what most people consider “reasonable”, and that does not mean $4 for a cup of coffee or $7 for that half-caf-no-fat-decaf-triple-shot-caramel-macchiato.
Good riddens! those sandwiches made the place smell like foot and a$$! I felt like I was in a persian restaurant! The only difference was the lack of BO in the starbucks!
I’ve tried the sandwiches twice. They were okay in a pinch, but they slowed down the morning rush something awful. Taking a barista away from making coffee to heat up sandwiches was not easy to deal with before my morning dose!
I am a Starbucks addict, but I will admit to being a bit pissed with their too often price hikes on coffee! It is offensive. I buy at least once per day…gauging me is a huge turn off! I liked the breakfast sandwiches. The muffins now suck and have decreased in size, by a lot! Sometimes they are even hard and stale!
The sandwiches smelled and held up the line anyway. If Starbucks focused on better bakery goods, and had ample inventory to last the day, sales would improve. It also puzzles me that at least twice a week when I visit different stores they are out of coffee and need to make another pot while I “wait”, or will give me an Americana. I don’t want to wait and I don’t like the taste of the Americana or would have ordered one in the first place. Is no one taught to watch the coffee level in the pot and have another made up and ready to switch over to? It’s a coffee shop! Keep coffee available at all times! Also, get someone out from shootin’ the breeze with their fellow workers to clean up and restock the ammenities counters. They’re always dirty and either the milk/creamers are empty or they’re out of sugars. Starbucks needs to train their employees at Peet’s.
What a bummer that Starbucks is getting rid of the breakfast sandwiches - I think they are far superior to the competition’s sandwiches. Thanks for the heads-up about this Nancy - I’ll have to go and enjoy one before they go away forever.
This wouldn’t exactly increase their foot traffic, but if they were to put in more drive-throughs, I think that would help their business immensely. Has anyone ever noticed the crowds at the drive-through Starbucks on Marguerite in Mission Viejo, just south of Saddleback College, around 9:00 or so on Saturdays? Let’s face it, people like to stay in their cars, even for coffee.
More drive-throughs = more business.
I actually only liked their eggs floretine which was replaced by the wraps. When they had the eggs floretine I would much rather buy that then Micky D’s. But since thats gone, I really don’t care what they do with the rest. With their pastries, I hate it when I go to a different Starbucks than my usualy spot and they don’t have the pastries I usually get. A little humor: My husband, ironically, goes to Starbucks, not for the coffee or pastries, or breakfast, but to buy freakin CD’s!! He practically has every CD that Starbucks has put on their shelf. And my daughter, well she’s happy and satisfied with the kids hot chocolate. Although, a few months ago we stopped at another coffee place and they had hot carmel, which she thought was better than the hot chocolate.
I don’t think it was the smell of the sandwiches as much as it was the smell that was given off from the products used to clean the ovens after they were done cooking them later in the morning. One employee told me that was what the smell was. I actually thought the sandwiches were pretty good. My 6 year old son started crying in the line one day because of the smell. No kidding. If that smell came directly from the sandwiches I’m surprised people didn’t die from them.
$2.95 is expensive? Those sandwiches were great, all you fat a$$es can go back to Mcdonalds.
EXACTLY.
Those sandwiches had a decent nutrition profile, and tasted good. Where else can I get my turkey bacon whole wheat breakfast sandwich. DAMN.
The employees are too talkative to one another.
I’m a barista at an orange county store.In my opinion if the company wants to increase adult traffic get rid of the KIDS !!
Why have internet and coffee for adults when there are a half a dozen children running around the store opening and throwing sugar packets at each other while idiot parents standby as if it’s normal !!
If the smell of the breakfast sandwiches hid the burnt coffee smell, it wouldn’t be a bad thing.
I visit Starbucks stores in No. O.C. almost every day. I know some people don’t go in the stores because they’re freezing inside. The temps outside at night are in the 40’s and it’s about the same inside. You could hang meat in there.
I really only go to Starbucks in the summer for the frozen drinks anyway, so it doesn’t really matter to me.
Why go to Starbucks. Get real folks, drink REAL coffee for 1/5 of Starbucks price - go to McDonalds! The confections they serve in Starbucks are sick!
The barrista at a Starbucks in Anaheim told me yesterday that they were going to stop selling the sandwiches in March.
I will miss them. True, the spinach feta wrap is a way to expensive, glorified hot pocket. But they’re a way better breakfast-in-the-car option than any other fast food chain is offering. Hopefully some other drive thru place will start selling them, instead.
im glad the sandwhiches were awful !! frozen food yuck!! go to mcdonalds they are made fresh and have been for years !!! and cheaper also
I didn’t ever try the sandwiches, but I did “register” my starbucks card because I was told at one of the local SB’s I go to there was a special “add any milk” or “syrup choice” for free when I used my card…She even gave me a little foldout from starbucks describing all this! So I proceeded to register the card and even reload it online….. So far, I’ve been to 3 different SB shops and NONE of them honored it. STILL full price… so I don’t know why I bothered or why the big hype???
On another note, maybe a few years back, Starbucks offered the dial-up your coffee and it would be auto-debited off your card and then you just picked up your coffee… it was the slickest thing and very efficient… you walked up, your coffee was there and had your name on it! I missed that… I think it was a trial in Seattle and here in Denver… that was TRUE efficiency at it’s finest and was sad to see that go.