Starbucks To Serve Alcohol

Starbucks has plans to serve beer, wine and “premium foods” in some of its Southern California stores by year’s end, the Seattle-based coffee retailer reported Monday.

However, the company is quiet on which local stores will offer alcohol and caffeine.

“We can say the stores will be in the L.A. and San Diego region,” said a company spokesman.

When pressed as to whether any Riverside County Starbucks might see barista bartenders, the spokesman would not say.

According to a company news release, Starbucks made the decision to offer wine, beer and a greater menu selection in response to “customer feedback for more options to relax in … stores in the evenings … .”

In addition to Southern California, Starbucks will also bring the additional offerings to a handful of locations in Atlanta this year.

Five stores in the Seattle area and one in Portland, Oregon currently serve wine, beer and premium food, according to the news release. Late last year, Starbucks announced plans to bring the concept to five to seven locations in the Chicago area by the end of 2012. Atlanta and Southern California will each see four to six stores, also by the end of the year, the news release stated.

“As part of an enhanced menu, these stores will serve new premium food -- including savory snacks, small plates, and hot flatbreads -- as well as wine and beer. The wine and beer list will be hand-selected to reflect local customer tastes and preferences, and will be refined over time. In addition to providing a product assortment not traditionally found at Starbucks, these stores will incorporate flexible seating to accommodate individuals and small groups as well as larger parties that want to host community meetings or other events such as book clubs,” the news release stated.