Starbucks, just around the corner.

Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world,with over 16,858 stores in 50 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1000 in Canada, and over 700 in the UK. So it is normal that it is one of the most hip meeting places in modern US.

The shop sells drip brewed coffee, espresso-based hot drinks, other hot and cold drinks, coffee beans, salads, hot and cold sandwiches and panini, pastries, snacks, and items such as mugs and tumblers.
So there never occurs a problem of a lack of choice.

Through the Starbucks Entertainment division and Hear Music brand, the company also markets books, music, and film. Many of the company's products are seasonal or specific to the locality of the store. Starbucks-brand ice cream and coffee are also offered at grocery stores. One may also buy t-shirts, and other collectibles of the brand. 

The coffee-shop started out in Seattle, Washington, on March 30, 1971 by three partners: English teacher Jerry Baldwin, history teacherZev Siegl, and writer Gordon Bowker. The three were inspired by entrepreneur Alfred Peet (whom they knew personally) to sell high-quality coffee beans and equipment. The name is taken from Moby-Dick; after Pequod was rejected by one of the co-founders, the company was named for the first mate on the Pequod, Starbuck
From Starbucks' founding in later forms in Seattle as a local coffee bean roaster and retailer, the company has expanded rapidly. In the 1990s, Starbucks was opening a new store every workday, a pace that continued into the 2000s. The first store outside the United States or Canada opened in the mid-'90s, and overseas stores now constitute almost one third of Starbucks' stores. The company planned to open a net of 900 new stores outside of the United States in 2009, but has announced 900 store closures in the United States since 2008.

Starbucks has been a target of protests on issues such as fair-trade policies, labor relations, environmental impact, political views, and anti-competitive practices.

One may say, that when it comes to eating-out Starbucks is the basic choice ;)

Money, Money, Money…

So, we’ve already admitted that Americans love to eat out and have fun. 

And here is the question: what are we going to talk about next? 

The useful tip: if you don’t know the subject, it’s always connected with money. 

So, you’re right: this post will be on restaurant industry, that stands behind the whole eating out matter. Many people earn huge amounts of money in the restaurant business, it’s as simple as it can be. As long as they pay taxes and don’t break the law, let them be rich; there’s nothing wrong in it. And believe me – you can actually fulfill the dream of “from rags to riches” in the restaurant industry. 

That’s why, go to the USA and be a millionaire!



And some interesting facts about restaurant industry: (allbuisness.com)

* Restaurant-industry employment will reach 13.3 million by 2012.

* One third of all adults in the United States have worked in the restaurant industry at some time during their lives.

* The number of African-American-owned and women-owned eating-and-drinking-place firms increased at double-digit rated during the past decade.

* Eating-and-drinking places rank second, based on sales volume, among retail establishments owned by African-Americans and Hispanics.

* Eating-and-drinking places employ more minority managers than any other industry.

* More than two-thirds of supervisors in food preparation and service occupations are women, 16% are African-American and 13% are of Hispanic origin.

Waiter!!

One of the alternatives for the weekend is going to a restaurant and sit down for a bite. Spending time eating out is relaxing, beneficial and pleasurable. All you have to worry about is picking your favourit meal. But... have you ever thought about the people who prepare the food for you?..

It's probably in your best interest to treat the staff nicely. As a client the only person from the staff you will probably meet is the waiter or waitress. 

Here are some helpful tips how to treat a waiter:

1. YOUR WAITER HAS A NAME! Usually waiters come up to the table and say 'Good morning my name is John, I'm going to be your waiter tonight'. It is very respectful to remember the name and use it. Make an effort and see your waiter as a person, not someone who just walks around the restaurant with a tray. 

2. DON'T BLAME IT ALL ON A WAITER! Your waiter is the one who brings you the food to your table. The waiter is not the one who prepares it. He is not the one to be yelled at for the fact that the food is not ready yet. Usually, waiters can do nothing. Before you get your food, the meal goes from one person to another. From the one who do the meat, to the one who does the dressing etc. Your waiter cannot be blamed for all those people.

3. TIP! It is always nice to tip a waiter. Remember, that the waitres wages are not high. Extra money is always needed. ;) If you like the restaurant and you want to come back there, always remember about the tip. That will help you to upgrade to the 'good client' status. ;)

4. BE PATIENT! You are not the only guest there. Try to relax, enjoy the atmosphere and don't be too importunate. The waiter will come eventually and it will be much easier to get along with him with positive attitude.

Okay, now you are ready to go the restaurant for a Sunday dinner. And remember- Be nice! The waiter is on your side! :)

Restaurant Table Manners and Tips

Ok, ok, I know that you all have excellent table manners and there’s no need in creating such a post. But nevertheless some people tend to say that Americans don’t behave properly at the table in a restaurant, so only for the sake of repetition, here are some basic and most obvious rules which everybody should follow:

Don’t Talk Loudly 

Respect The Waiter 

Be Patient 

Don’t Chew With Your Mouth Open

Don’t Talk With Food In Your Mouth

Don’t Lick Your Fingers 

Don’t Burp or Belch Loudly 

But what to do if we find ourselves in a totally new situation? 

For example in a Chinese restaurant in where we get chops instead of fork&knife? 

Or at the formal dinner with the British Queen? 

Here are some general tips taken from the Internet site ehow.com:

For all questions involving etiquette, just use your brains..

Never do anything until the host does it first.

If you're not sure whether or not you can eat something with your fingers, just use a utensil.

If you're not sure what to do, wait and see what your neighbor does. If that offers no clue, just fake it :D

Lunch time = student's time

The importance of sharing meals is obvious. It should be practiced since early childhood, that is why in every school there are school cafeterias where students and teachers can eat together. However, those places are not prepared to be what they are meant to be - the best part of a school day. =D

Lunchtime at school is way too short. Students have no more than 10 or 15 minutes to reach the lunchroom, eat, talk and relax. Quarter of an hour is of course not enough, that is why young people eat in rush and mostly unhealthy food that doesn’t take too much time to be ready to eat ( fast food and sweet snacks).  That can lead to lifelong problems like obesity or going further; depression. 
Eating is also a time to chat, making friends in 15 minutes is impossible. No wonder kids spend their time in front of the computer as they are not used to talk face to face for more than a few minutes.
Cafeteria should be an enjoyable place:, always clean (!), with interesting posters or paintings. Tables should be round not long rectangular ones, so that none feels left aside. Also, make sure that there are enough chairs for everyone; no one likes to stand when everyone else is sitting.

All things considered, school administration should definitely extend the lunch brake ( remember that students need time to reach the place, eat, relax, socialize and go back to the classes) and eliminate “eating in silence” – the habit that is still present in Polish elementary schools, since it denies the vision of meal as a time required to socialize. 

Sharing meals? Yes, we should!

An image of a perfect family?
Everyone’s mind immediately pop out a dinner table with a tasty-looking food and happy, smiling members of a typical family: a caring mum, responsible dad, brave son and beautiful daughter. Sounds stereotypical? Perhaps yes, but you what's inside our head.

So why, in our heads are they sitting at the table? Why not playing chess or other cool game?
Because from the very beginning people associate sharing meals with good emotions.
While eating together we have time to cherish our strong relationship.
Take Barney for instance - one of the characters in sitcom
“How I Met Your Mother”, who has no problem with going to bed with random chicks but rejects eating a dinner with them. At the table we have an amazing opportunity to discuss, express our opinions or just show that person whom we are eating with is extremely important to us. Moreover sharing meal is an easy way to keep in touch not only with our family but also with our friends. So don’t hesitate any much longer and invite every person that is close to you to have a dinner together.

Cheers!   

Julie & Julia

The subject of today's post shall be the movie ''Julie & Julia''.
The film is a good example of cooking
 which leads to eating out :P
Although the main characters - Julia's, focus on
home-cooking, they still do
visit restaurants and eat with friends :)

here's the poster

Julia Child's story of her start in the cooking profession is intertwined with blogger Julie Powell's 2002 challenge to cook all the recipes in Child's first book.

Director & screenplay :Nora Ephron

Writter : Julie Powell (book "Julie & Julia")

Writter : Julia Child (book "My Life in France")

fun facts about the movie

critique