Tour de Starbucks

A bucket list can say a lot about a person’s goals and motivations. In order to learn more about her peers, Editor Sara prompted the question, “What’s on your bucket list?” Elizabeth went with a mix of travel and drink: a tour of the world’s Starbucks!

By Elizabeth Shay

In 2019, world-famous coffeehouse chain, Starbucks, accounted for 31,256 stores worldwide (statista.com). Of those stores, a majority are located internationally rather than in the company’s home country, the United States. In addition to having unique drinks on their respective menus, Starbucks stores represent their location through architecture and decoration. Here are some of the most beautiful and unique Starbucks stores around the world–ones that I would like to visit:

• Chicago, IL, United States: Beginning with a location close to home, the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Chicago is a 35,000-square-foot showcase, featuring five distinct floors that offer a three-dimensional window into the crafting process of coffee. This is the largest of six global roasteries and features artwork from Chicago based-artists (Starbucks News Stories). The Roastery allows customers to witness the coffee roasting in front of them on the ground floor. Customers choose from one of seven brewing methods in the coffee bar on the third floor while watching coffee being transported through the building in a 56-foot cask (The Chicago Roastery).  

*Other Roastery locations include Seattle, New York, Milan, Tokyo, and Shanghai.

• Buenos Aires, Argentina: Moving on to a South American location, this Starbucks is located in Galerías Pacifico, one of the most famous malls in Argentina. The store has stunning vaulted ceilings and walls decorated with murals of sea creatures and ocean cartography (Delish). 

• Prague, Czech Republic: Across the Atlantic Ocean, this next Starbucks sits atop Prague Castle, one of the largest and oldest castles in the world. Store designers wanted to respect the castle’s history, keeping signage small and painting it directly onto the old building’s walls (Delish). Customers can enjoy their coffee while admiring the stunning view of the city. 

• Seoul, South Korea: This Asian country is known for its Instagram-worthy cafés, and this Starbucks is known as the most beautiful in Korea. Located in Famille Park, the store boasts a geometric glass dome exterior that encloses a wood-paneled interior (Klook). Described as an “urban coffee forest,” the store’s centerpiece decoration is an installation of flying birds that adds a beautiful touch of movement that highlights the atrium-like design (Klook).

• Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Finally, this Starbucks is located in Dubai’s Ibn Battuta Mall, which has over 270 stores and 50 restaurants! (Delish).  The colorful tiled dome and monumental arches are just some of the features of the extravagantly decorated mall that showcases the rich culture of the region (Klook).

These are just five examples of the many unique and gorgeous Starbucks stores around the world I look forward to exploring. Next time you travel, search up the nearest Starbucks. You might find an architectural masterpiece that happens to serve coffee! 

Bucket List Editor: Sara Habibipour

Sources:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/218366/number-of-international-and-us-starbucks-stores/#:~:text=World%2Dfamous%20coffeehouse%20chain%2C%20Starbucks,to%2015%2C041%20and%2016%2C202%2C%20respectively.

https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2019/20-starbucks-stores-to-visit-in-2020/

https://www.starbucksreserve.com/en-us/locations/chicago

https://stories.starbucks.com/press/2019/starbucks-reserve-roasteries-around-the-world/

https://www.delish.com/food-news/g3365/coolest-starbucks-locations-around-the-world/

https://www.klook.com/en-PH/blog/beautiful-starbucks-around-the-world/