Starbucks — Restaurant in San Bruno

It's worth noting that I am a frequent traveler and am a Starbucks regular at dozens of stores all over the country. I am also a shareholder.

I've visited this store on roughly a half-dozen occasions at different times of day over a two year span and while my experiences were never great -- certainly not worthy of the four star rating I generously gave this location about a year ago -- I excused the broken equipment, poor appearance and surley customer service on the fact that the store was open 24/7. While poorly run, the store was marginally better than the late-night alternatives near SFO.

As a customer willing (until now) to lower my expectations of this location because it is one of a handful of 24/7 stores owned and operated by a company I admire, I have to accept some responsibility because I never held them to the higher standards every other Starbucks is expected to maintain. That said, Starbucks operates two 24/7 stores in the Seattle area without compromising their standards or employee expectations.

My most recent (and absolutely LAST) experience at this store occurred earlier this week (early December 2018) and was so horrific I feel compelled to rescind my previous review.

I will address my specific complaints, observations and safety concerns directly with corporate before posting anything here, but I will no longer tolerate the poor appearance (dirty floors, counters and tables, filthy bathroom, questionable food preparation areas) of this store or the unapologetically slow service from surley Baristas.

Previous (overly-generous) Four-Star Review

One of the downsides to any 24 hour operation is that there's no downtime for basic maintenance and repairs.

I frequent Seattle and I'm not sure I've ever been in a Starbucks that is open 24/7. That said, they were pretty busy at 9pm, but only had one register open and the credit card reader wasn't working properly, so it held up the line (I was the next customer) for quite a while.

Nevertheless, the place has a great vibe and makes a pretty...

I visited Starbucks this morning and ordered a sandwich and coffee through their mobile app. When I arrived to pick it up, my coffee was ready, but I was left waiting for my sandwich. I noticed that customers who had ordered after me were getting their sandwiches, while mine was still missing.

I approached one of the employees to check on my order, and she spoke to a woman in a grey shirt who seemed to be in charge of heating the sandwiches. I thought the woman in grey shit would help, but she completely ignored my order, leaving me waiting even longer. After a significant delay, the employee finally went back to heat my sandwich. To my surprise, the woman in the grey shirt even tried to put the to-go bag on the head of the employee! It became clear that the woman in grey shirt was avoiding helping me, which was incredibly frustrating. The entire situation was poorly managed and unprofessional.

To make matters worse, the woman in the grey shirt was incompetent and unprofessional. While heating sandwiches, she was talking loudly without wearing a mask, which felt both unhygienic and inappropriate in a food service environment.

In the past, my experiences at this Starbucks have been positive, with friendly and helpful service. Unfortunately, it seems like the woman in the grey t-shirt needs more training in customer service and hygiene standards. This visit was a major disappointment, and I left...

Disappointing Experience at Starbucks Towne Center

My recent visit to the Starbucks at Towne Center left me deeply disappointed. Despite its convenient location at 1212 El Camino Real, San Bruno, CA 94066, the service and management were sorely lacking.

Upon arrival on a Saturday, I was informed by an employee that the wait time for a simple drink would exceed 15 minutes. This unacceptable delay reflects poor staffing and management decisions. While the location itself is promising, it’s clear that operational improvements are desperately needed.

Unfortunately, I won’t be returning to this Starbucks until significant changes are made. It’s a shame to see such potential wasted due to mismanagement. I hope the management takes this feedback seriously and implements necessary improvements to provide a better experience for customers...