Starbucks has announced that it is now offering a cup of coffee that costs $7. It’s a Costa Rica Finca Palmilera coffee which runs $40 for a half-pound bag of beans, made from a “rare, difficult-to-grow varietal” called Geisha.
For now, it’s only available at 46 locations in Seattle and Portland. But it seemed like a good time to compare that $7 Starbucks coffee to the Bay Area’s top coffee shops. As it turns out, a quick survey reveals that just about none of the fancy coffee shops in town even approach that Starbucks pricetag. In fact, two of San Francisco’s top restaurants –Michael Mina and four-star Benu — offer custom coffee blends for lesser or equal prices (according to their online menu); and you’re sitting in a fine dining restaurant with fine plateware and top notch servers. As opposed to a mega chain with paper cups and sticky floors.
As you can see in the gallery survey and the captions above, there was only one local coffee shop with a similar luxury offering as the Geisha: Philz Coffee has one coffee that sells for $7 for a small and $10 for a large. Most of the new wave coffee shops top out around $4, with most offerings in the $2-$3 range.
Meanwhile, the world’s most expensive cup of coffee is in Thailand. It runs $68 per serving and is apparently made from beans picked out of elephant poop.
For now, it’s only available at 46 locations in Seattle and Portland. But it seemed like a good time to compare that $7 Starbucks coffee to the Bay Area’s top coffee shops. As it turns out, a quick survey reveals that just about none of the fancy coffee shops in town even approach that Starbucks pricetag. In fact, two of San Francisco’s top restaurants –Michael Mina and four-star Benu — offer custom coffee blends for lesser or equal prices (according to their online menu); and you’re sitting in a fine dining restaurant with fine plateware and top notch servers. As opposed to a mega chain with paper cups and sticky floors.
As you can see in the gallery survey and the captions above, there was only one local coffee shop with a similar luxury offering as the Geisha: Philz Coffee has one coffee that sells for $7 for a small and $10 for a large. Most of the new wave coffee shops top out around $4, with most offerings in the $2-$3 range.
Meanwhile, the world’s most expensive cup of coffee is in Thailand. It runs $68 per serving and is apparently made from beans picked out of elephant poop.