Ottawa Foodies

i should know better than to trust starbucks to present me a decent pastry and okay coffee on a monday morning. but, i forgot.

and now, here i sit with a mediocre americano and the remnants of one of their breakfast sandwiches. the sandwich wasn't just not hot, it was downright cold.

if you give me something 'to go' and it's packaging feels too hot to handle, chances are i'm going to assume the item is hot.

in short: it's monday morning and thanks to starbucks, it's off to a less than fabulous start.

I noticed this today, too!

Starbucks in the Marriott charges 20 cents more for a Grande coffee than the Starbucks at Kent & Albert. I just chalked it up to the difference between a regular franchise and hotel-run franchise.

Just thought I would mentioned that Starbucks is currently experimenting in the Ottawa market (among others) with varying prices between stores. They aren't advertising this, but be aware of it if you go to more than one Starbucks. The difference isn't more than 10 cents on one item and if you mention it, they will discount it.

But I thought it worth mentioning; my husband has been going to a few different ones depending on his job site and was always thrown for a loop that the hot chocolate came to a different total.

LWB - I am not sure where I got the info , but I'd guess that I asked the barista the first time I ordered it (I usually ask what's in a new drink before I order it) :)

RDMSgirl where did you get the information that Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate has Toffee Nut in it? I know a number of Starbucks employees, and from what I understand, all the specialty hot chocolates have a pre-mixed base, and nothing added to the base (ie. no syrups). I'll be interested to see what other baristas in my area say when I mention it.

Otherwise, if you're worried about sweetness, you could also ask for them to make it with 1/4 milk or so, to make it less sweet.

I came to the conclusion that, aside from the salt, the reason why I love the Salted Caramel Hot Choc from Starbucks is due to the Toffee Nut syrup that also goes into it. I went and bought my own bottle Toffee Nut syrup from Starbucks and now I can make my own version at home that's a lot less sweet :)

RDMSgirl - I too am a fan of the Starbucks salted caramel hot chocolate. In fact... I'm a fan of all things salted-caramel *drool*

As for their traditional hot chocolate (not the new Signature Hot Chocolates), I find it way too sweet, but my SO feel that they are the best that you can find--he had a serious chocolate tooth, much more than I do.

My experience has been, because of the salt topping, and the salt-flavour in the mix the salted-caramel hot chocolate taste more bitter than their regular hot chocolate. It has, from time to time, come across as tasting coffee-like as a result.

As an aside, the "Signature Hot Chocolates" are made with a mix similar to the "Chantico" that used to be offered about five or six years ago, which is mostly melted down chocolate, rather than the cocoa-based mocha syrup used in the traditional hot chocolate. What this means is, they cannot make it with soy/lactaid/other milks (they might do half and half if you ask). This also means that a tall, without whipped cream is 400 calories (a grande is 510, a venti is 650).

I tried one of the salted caramel hot chocolates today and mine tasted like coffee. I took it back thinking they might have given me a mocha by mistake, but they said there wasn't any coffee or espresso in it... does anyone else find it tastes like coffee, or was mine a fluke?

They offered to make me a new one, but I went for the peppermint one instead, so I'm still not sure if mine was ok.

Also - they gave me a coupon for a free beverage of my choice since I didn't like the one I got first. Very good customer service.

Oh my, I tried the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate from Starbucks on the weekend - I am in LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i tried my first starbucks cupcake today and hated it. i bought the red velvet. the colour was terrifying and the cake was bland. it wasn't dry, but it was flavourless. the icing wasn't awful, but it wasn't special.

this will be my first and last cupcake from starbucks.

Those red velvet cupcakes are the most expensive cupcakes I've ever purchased - they're DELICIOUS and ADDICTIVE - last year I ate one every day and had to buy new trousers as a result. Thanks Starbucks. I'm staying away from them this year ;)

Cupcakes are a seasonal thing for Starbucks--arriving in January and leaving in March or so. Usually found in three flavours and for the last few years these have been vanilla, chocolate and red velvet.

If I were to do a taste test of the vanilla bean cupcake with that of 3 Bakers and a Bike and 3 Tarts and a few other bakeries, I would find that Starbucks holds its own against these bakeries, IMO. The cupcakes are fresh, moist and cakey. The icing is a shortening base, but doesn't have that oily feeling in the mouth afterwards.

And yet, I do not *want* to like them, simply because they are not from a small bakery.

Iced coffee from Starbucks is double brewed house blend that is chilled in the fridge and served over ice. It is typically sweetened with simple syrup upon order, so be aware of that and order unsweetened if that is to your taste.

Lady Who Brunches - LOL, explanation is correct.

What I didn't know (and probably some others don't either) is all the variations for the word Macchiato (and numerous beverage concoctions for each)... which is why I included the info in the description that I found on Wikipedia.

As I stated I am not a BIG Coffee fan, for me it is all about the Steamed Milk (as much as possible... ala Latte). Based on my research, I could never see myself drinking a Caffe Macchiato or a Long Macchiato... too much "buzz" for me. LOL

If I can be a huge coffee snob for a moment....

Latte: Espresso with milk
Latte Macchiato: Milk with espresso "marking" the milk.
Carmel Macchiato, Mocha Macchiato: Several pumps of sugary syrup, followed by milk, followed by espresso to mark the milk, and more syrup to top it off.

Don't get me wrong, I think that Carmel Macchiatos are very tasty treats. I also don't want Food & Think or anyone else to go to Starbucks, order a latte macchiato and be disappointed by the lack of sweet.

Had a Caramel Macchiato (hot) from Starbucks today while I was browsing the bookstore. Not being a big coffee drinker, this is one of the most enjoyable ways for me to enjoy coffee without the strong aftertaste... yum, yum... also good for dunking cookies.
:-)

The downside is the cost however... a Grande (Medium) was over $ 4.