Starbucks Paris

[Louisa Chu]

Gifted Gourmet, chocolates way bad for dogs - theobromine.

edm, just got home from Robuchon with my dog - her 4th time there. And I wasn't assuming anything - I was joking - chill out. Fine dining - I'm taking her to Gagnaire - and his dog's usually there too. It's more than just the food here - it's the whole dining experience. And maybe it's just me, but I need people to explain my home countries to me - I appreciate the different perspectives.

Laurie - Columbus Cafe?

[edm]

you guys are too good for me !

I'll stick to the BC forum...

[marlena spieler]

........if dogs in restaurants were a hygiene issue, the 60 million people in France would all be suffering from serious maladies, not to mention that their life expectancy is about 7 years longer than the average American (sans dogs!!).

Perhaps eating with doggies in cafes and restaurants, instead of red wine etc etc, is the answer to the French Paradox?!

Maybe the doggy thing is the missing piece of the puzzle. Personally, I think everything is that little bit tastier with a poodle sitting next to me........

[RandyB]

That and here in Paris we have HOT sandwiches - do they do hot foods in the States now? I know that was a big no-no back there - too slow. Here we have these open-faced fougasse-y based sandwiches.

I've seen hot sandwiches in a couple of Seattle Starbucks stores. They are of the McMuffin variety at breakfast and more filled at lunch, but in either case they are heated in a microwave. So if you like your hot sandwiches on steamed bread, Star$s is your place.

As for the comments on the ability of the servers to "pull" a good expresso, that's not an issue when the machines are all automated. Everyone presses the same button and gets the same "pull", for better or worse.

Long ago S$ said the reason for the automated machines was the physical health of their servers. (I hate S$'s made up name "barista".) Carpel tunnel and other hand/wrist problems caused by the large volume of "pulls" each day.

[ludja]

One of my favorite vacation snapshots is a shot I took inside Galeries Lafayette of an escalator with a giant Samoyed sitting patiently waiting for the moving stairs to reach the top!!  Vivent les chiens de France!!

I took a great photo in France of a very elegantly-dressed gentleman sitting next to us in an outdoor cafe. Two matching dogs were seated on chairs right next to him on either side and he was feeding them pomme frites. They were very well-behaved, waited patiently for him to feed them!

Edited January 26, 2004 by ludja (log)

[menton1]

Dog-doo everywhere however, is not one of the more endearing aspects of Paris.  It's a little hard to stroll les grands boulevards, gazing at the architecture, when you really know your eyes should be focused on the pavement directly in front of you.....

This past September, I noticed a dramatic decrease in dog poop on the sidewalks of Paris; are the Parisians finally doing as they do in New York, picking up after?

Also, the "Green Men" do a fantastic job, they clean and hose down the streets EVERY day!!

[Louisa Chu]

Marlena, sorry, but p-p-poodles? Insupportable. French paradox - no paradox - no constant snacking, junk food/fast food, being willing to walk from my neighborhood to Opera for a big fat drink and a big fat muffin - but it does help to have a decent walk along the way - anyone ever walk Wilshire in LA?

Randy, interesting - are the hot sandwiches test marketed there? I had a friend who worked at Starfucks - you can say it, come on - in Chicago and said they don't do the microwave thing - ditto Beverly Hills/LA. Or am I so out of touch with life in Amerika? Because I didn't know about the automated machines either - she had to go to Coffee Academy - or something like that.

menton, people pick up more but not all the time. I had a guy dare tell me il faut ramasser - it's necessary to pick up - on a street I call the poo rue. It really depends on the neighborhood.

How did this go from a Starbucks in Paris thread - to dogs - and dog poo?

Though I have to say that it's raining AND snowing here in Paris - sure would be nice to hang out all day in Starbucks - if they allowed smoking - for my friend Grace - and dogs.

[menton1]

menton, people pick up more but not all the time. I had a guy dare tell me il faut ramasser - it's necessary to pick up - on a street I call the poo rue. It really depends on the neighborhood.

.

Maybe M. Delanoë, after establishing the popular "Paris-Plages" and the new traffic patterns on the boulevards, could institute a ground-breaking regulation about pooper scooping!!

[Schneier]

There was a Starbucks around the corner of my Paresian hotel last week, on Blvd. L'Opera in the 4th. It was crowded whenever I walted by.

B

[hjshorter]

Long ago S$ said the reason for the automated machines was the physical health of their servers. (I hate S$'s made up name "barista".)

My husband worked in a coffee shop (not Starbucks) in Philadelphia during grad school. If anyone asked he told them he was a "Coffee Jerk."

And are dogs really allowed everywhere in Paris? I am severly allergic, but hope to get to Paris one of these days. Hate to think I'll have hay fever the whole time.

[Louisa Chu]

menton, there is a huge fine for not picking up - about 400 Euros I think - but I've never heard of anyone getting that fine. I have known people to get a lesser ticket.

Bruce, that's the only one in town so far - the second one in La Defense. And dude, that's Avenue de l'Opera - in the 2nd.

Heather, dogs are pretty much allowed everywhere - except in grocery stores - but you will sometimes see little old ladies walking their little Yorkies, etc. down the aisles sometimes. But you really don't see dogs in every single place - but don't worry - the smoke should mask any dog allergens.

[hollywood]

And are dogs really allowed everywhere in Paris?

I've been on planes in France with natives holding dogs on their laps, usually in little baskets or purses. I've seen maitre d's feed treats to little dogs in restaurants--one stars anyway.

[oldschooltie]

this has to be the closest thing since the Florida election result. The big question

Which is worse - crapping French dogs or crappy American "coffee"?

Our Prime Minister would never agree, but for me it has to be the coffee.

[Pan]

The first time I was in Paris, in 1991, there was dogshit all over the place. I haven't found that to be the case in my trips since then (1994, 2002). I seem to remember that there was a crackdown in the interim. Watching where you walk is still advisable, but it's not like every square meter of street and sidewalk has dogshit on it.

Louisa, you should scoop even on streets locals think are for dogshit. You wouldn't have known only a short few months ago.

[Louisa Chu]

Louisa, you should scoop even on streets locals think are for dogshit. You wouldn't have known only a short few months ago.

Again, sorry this has turned into a dog poo thread.

Pan, I DID pick up on the poo rue. I forgot to finish the story - this jerkoff starts talking to me - WHILE I whip out the baggie.

But just a few years ago, when I did pick up, it freaked the Parisians out. They had no idea what I was doing - they were like - what the hell you doing there? Once while I was picking up, a woman actually clutched at her daughter - away from me - she must have thought I was some kind of fetishist.

[RandyB]

The enforcement of the dog poop laws in Paris is a long and humorous story. I don't remember much of it, but it started with a national law that could only be enforced by the national police, who wouldn't stoop to enforcing it.

More recently a new Paris mayor or deputy mayor took this on as a worthy political issue. I don't remember how the enforcement changed, but there definitely has been some improvement.

[Bux]

But just a few years ago, when I did pick up, it freaked the Parisians out. They had no idea what I was doing - they were like - what the hell you doing there? Once while I was picking up, a woman actually clutched at her daughter - away from me - she must have thought I was some kind of fetishist.

I suspect that was the only rational assumption she could have made at the time. The act of collecting one's dog's droppings has got to seem like either the most peculiar and disgusting thing in the world, or the most considerate and civil minded action, but there's no middle ground without some cross cultural understanding. Of course this supports my position as a relativist.

My friends in the Languedoc pick up after their scottie even when on rural lanes outside their tiny town. They know their neighbors think they are peculiar, but they do get invited to dinner at their neighbor's homes.

[tighe]

How did this go from a Starbucks in Paris thread - to dogs - and dog poo?

Sorry, I think I started it.....

When I was in Paris in September I stayed in a residential area and did notice new looking signs exhorting residents to "take care of their neighborhood and pick up after their dogs." I don't want to get into estimating actualy poo-density per square foot of sidewalk, but I know it seemed heavier in that part of town than in other areas of the city. And with that choice little post.....dinner anyone?

[goyatofu]

There's another Starbucks outside of the Montparnasse-Bienvenue Metro (beside the Hippo). It's not open yet, but it looks like it will open any day now.

I have to jump into the doggie poo issue...poo I have seen in North America, but THIS poo in Paris is something else. My friend who has a dog tells me the dog food they sell in the states has "special ingredients" to make the poo...er...scooper-friendly. So even if you encounter poo in North America, it is not so...er...spreadable. (I'm sorry but it's true). It really is a shame because Paris is such a beautiful city, and I would rather walk with my head up looking at the buildings than checking my footing every other step.

[Pan]

Louisa, you should scoop even on streets locals think are for dogshit. You wouldn't have known only a short few months ago. 

Again, sorry this has turned into a dog poo thread.

Pan, I DID pick up on the poo rue. I forgot to finish the story - this jerkoff starts talking to me - WHILE I whip out the baggie.

What an ass!

Oh well, sorry for continuing the tangent.

[marlena spieler]

Marlena, sorry, but p-p-poodles?

French paradox - no paradox - no constant snacking, junk food/fast food, being willing to walk from my neighborhood to Opera for a big fat drink and a big fat muffin - but it does help to have a decent walk along the way - anyone ever walk Wilshire in LA?

yes yes yes, i'm brave enough to stand up and say: Let's hear it for the poodles! Poodles of the world, Stand up for yourselves (and they do stand up very fetchingly).

As for French Paradox, sorry: I should have made some indication that my tongue was in my cheek when i mentioned the whole paradox thing. I'm sure eating lots of vegetables helps the whole diet thing too, along with the walking and general energeticness of life. the whole variety thing, and not eating butter on their bread for dinner.....

[chengb02]

Starbucks is bound to be successful anywhere it opens and I'm sure it won't be too long before they start opening up everywhere in Paris. It seems odd nowadays to be in a major city and not see Starbucks everywhere. In a city like Paris, the cafe options are so numerous that unless I was on the go, I probably would choose somewhere else, but in some places in the US, Starbucks basically serves as the cafe culture. Starbucks seems to have 2 models of store, one which is meant as nothing more than a grab your cuppa and go place and the other offering more of a cafe environment, and wi-fi...Perhaps I'm too corporate, but I appreciate Starbucks because I know that I can get the same cuppa wherever I am in the world (basically)...

[Bux]

Perhaps I'm too corporate, but I appreciate Starbucks because I know that I can get the same cuppa wherever I am in the world (basically)...

We all have different needs. My problem with chains, and particularly with international chains, is that the world looks and feels the same all over. It's not that I mind the appearance of the chain shops, but I fear they force out the places with local color. Travel gets easier all the time, but it gets a little less interesting. For someone who travels on business, I suppose that's not a problem.

[menton1]

I was speaking to a French friend, and (of course) he is doubtful of the success of Starbucks in France. He did mention, to my surprise, that McDonald's had their worst year in 2003 since their inception in France. They also closed several locations. Very interesting....

[oldschooltie]

I was speaking to a French friend, and (of course) he is doubtful of the success of Starbucks in France.  He did mention, to my surprise, that McDonald's had their worst year in 2003 since their inception in France.  They also closed several locations.  Very interesting....

so there is a God