 |
MANQAF, KUWAIT
Starbucks a big
success in Kuwait
By Thanassis Cambanis, Globe Staff, 3/16/2003
The Hilton has happily allowed the
military to turn the resort into a fortress
ringed with concrete jersey barriers, antitank
barriers, and armed guards. But
they were unprepared for one operational
demand: the military's unquenchable
thirst for Starbucks.
"We're running out of coffee," said
Jayesh Dsouza, 33, the manager of the
Starbucks at the Hilton.
Ever since the top brass and their accompanying
flock of military spokespeople
set up shop at the hotel in December,
Dsouza said, demand for coffee has skyrocketed
to unprecedented levels.
Starbucks opened franchises in Kuwait
several years ago, but coffee is an
acquired taste in this part of the world.
Veiled women can be seen studying a detailed
illustrated guide in English and
Arabic for ordering coffee drinks. Usually
though, they walk away with trays full
of desserts and tea. On the rare occasion
that locals do take a coffee drink, it's
usually a mocha frappuccino.
Enter the US military.
"They buy a lot of coffee—usually
the biggest size, the venti," Dsouza said.
Soldiers lucky enough to make day
trips to the Hilton from outlying camps
in the Kuwaiti desert often load up on
beans from the store.
The result: The Hilton Starbucks is
out of coffee, and awaits a shipment
from England.
Rumors are swirling that barristas
have been pulling switcheroos on unsuspecting
customers to cope with the
shortage. Surveying the customers seated
on the deck overlooking the Hilton's
private beach, Dsouza denies it. Smiling,
he turns to an American waiting in line.
"Would you perhaps like some decaf?"
he asks.
This story ran on page A21 of the Boston Globe on 3/16/2003.
hen the US
military cast
about for a
headquarters
here, the Hilton
Kuwait
Resort presented
a perfect
choice. Isolated on a private beach
far from crowded downtown Kuwait
City, the hotel made for an easy-to-protect
secure location.
© Copyright 2003 Globe Newspaper Company.
