I used to work at Starbucks when I was younger and still pop in every now and again to grab a coffee so I thought I would share my views on this company from both sides of the coin!

What do they sell?
Well for the obvious item it's a coffee shop so they sell coffee but, they also do a wide range of teas, cold drinks, hot and cold sandwiches and a variety of deserts and little snacks. They also sell a range of merchandise too ranging from mugs ands cd's through to espresso machines and other coffee makers.
What is the food and drink like?
The food they sell is in my opinion pretty nice for the coffee shop variety. The main food items they sell are Panini's, muffins and sandwiches and they are always quite filling with a lot of filling in them - the Panini's I love especially the chicken and pastrami one they do as when they heat it up all the cheese on it is melted and it taste's delicious! They do a variety of vegetarian and low fat types so it is easy to find something to suit.
As regards to the drinks what I like about Starbucks is that they use whole milk for all their drinks as standard so they are lovely and creamy but, if customers want them made with skimmed milk then they can do that too - this is what's known as a skinny latte when a customer asks for it. They can even do semi skimmed and soya milk too so are pretty flexible. The only one you pay more for is the soya milk. They do a really large range of hot and cold drinks and constantly have limited edition types or summer or winter drinks that regular customers look forward too! My favourites are the Valencia orange hot chocolate and the Gingerbread latte they bring out at Christmas time. Yummy!

Training:
The best thing I've found about Starbucks and this is the same from when I was working there as well is that the staff are all trained to a set standard and even have to do little exams before becoming a fully trained 'Barista' which is the official name for a coffee maker. They have to try all new products and have to do a drinks test to make sure they know all the drinks. All drinks are made to a set standard and the staff are taught how to 'steam' milk properly without burning it. I used to love the fact that when I worked there they were very consistent in sending me on up to date training for first aid and whenever new drinks came out the store would receive a 'how to' guide for it and the manager would always make sure everyone was shown properly before they were put on sale.
I enjoyed my time working at Starbucks as I always felt that it was one of those companies that appreciated it's staff - it sounds cheesy but, it is very true as I never had those days where I actually hated the idea of going in work so from a working aspect they are very good to with for!