And in a somewhat related note, from the Starbucks Gossip blog mentioned above, here's the complete list of Starubucks store closings, in case you were wondering.

The only Knoxville area store on the list is:

#11942 STRAWBERRY PLAINS & I-40 7228 REGION LANE KNOXVILLE TN

i was eerily fascinated by the way the story stor,ed across the web, but i admit i felt some hackles rising once i encountered that "ghetto latte" concept.

maybe there is a whole new consumer market on the horizon where one can order Redneck Risotto or sample the wisdom of a Grits Sous-Chef or a Lime Green Jello Mold with Marshmellows Sommelier

I mean, a post about latte on a progressive politics board? If you did that on purpose for the humor's sake, my hat's completely off to you. I'm still chuckling over this.

Then what do you think about this? More chuckles?

That was my main coffee joint back in the day. It really does have superb coffee, the people who work there are actually perfectly nice and attitude-free, and the owner seems likes a decent enough guy,too. He just, for whatever reason, thinks that attempting to cultivate this mystique of awesomely-mysterious coffee is great marketing, instead of making him look like a pretentious doofus.

My favorite Murky story:
They've got this drink called "The Five Dollar Hot Chocolate", which is exactly what it sounds like, a five-dollar cup of hot chocolate. Less than a week after they first opened, this lady comes in and orders the Five Dollar Hot Chocolate with whipped cream. So the counter guy makes it, puts whipped cream on top, and right after the lady pays, the owner walks up, grabs a spoon, picks up the cup, scoops the whip cream off into the sink, and, without even looking at the customer, tells counter guy "You can't put whipped cream on The Five Dollar Hot Chocolate".

Counter guy and the woman both look at each other, exchange little 'uhhh...um...uhhh' noises, then, as the owner starts walking away, the woman finally gets out "But. But. I wanted whipped cream." Still walking away, the owner firmly says "Sorry. We don't put whipped cream on The Five Dollar Hot Chocolate". "But...why..?" "Sorry. I'll give you your money back. But no whipped cream on The Five Dollar Hot Chocolate."

So the lady stands there for a couple of seconds, again making little "uhhh...um...uhhh" noises, then finally says "Fuck you. Keep your money" and storms out. After a very short pause, the owner turns to the counter guy, and says "No matter what they say. No whipped cream on The Five Dollar Hot Chocolate. Ever.", then walks back to the kitchen.

So a latte is just coffee with half and half? I figured for those prices they must be sprinkling in pixie dust or something. Some one figured out they were paying an extra $2 for 30c worth of cream and it's a disaster. What's next -- someone might wonder why they are paying and extra $40 for a label on a tee-shirt. This will kill america's economy.

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"Whoever corrects a mocker invites insult; whoever rebukes a wicked man incurs abuse."

But a Freeper thread warning its readers about counterfeit Dale Earnhardt memorabilia... that would be similarly funny.

OK. Now I follow you. This IS still East Tennessee, and that big city stuff can seem a little funny to anyone "from around here."

Prices notwithstanding, I can see a coffee place having a problem with customers making free drinks out of the milk that's provided essentially as a condiment.