Starbucks Coffee CompanyWritten by Gary Gresham
Starbucks Coffee Company was founded in 1971 by three businessmen in Seattle, Washington who had a love for coffee and tea. It was important to them that city of Seattle to have access their coffee. The Starbucks Coffee Company grew slowly but by 1981 had 4 retail stores and a roasting plant that sold whole bean coffee in Seattle only. By 1983 marketing manager had a vision of re-creating magic and romance behind Italian coffee bar and wanted to test out concept of selling espresso by cup. When Starbucks Coffee opened its 6th store in downtown Seattle, idea had become a hit. Within 2 months new store was serving over 700 customers a day and it was selling 3 times more than whole bean locations. In 1987, owners of Starbucks Coffee Company decided to sell their coffee business along with name to a group of local investors for $3.7 million. The new investors were told that they would open 125 Starbucks coffee stores in next five years. Starting from a base of 17 stores in 1987, company expanded rapidly to Vancouver, Portland and Chicago. By 1991 Starbucks had expanded into mail-order catalogue business, licensed airport stores and expanded further into state of California.
| | May's Featured Holidays and RecipesWritten by Lara Velez
There are three great days in month of May that I would like to talk about...Cinco de Mayo, Mother's Day, and Memorial Day. I will share a brief history and include a couple of delectable recipes. Happy May!---------------------------------------- Cinco de Mayo - May 5, 2005 - Cinco de Mayo means "The 5th of May." Many people believe that it is Mexico's Independence Day. This is not true. Independence Day in Mexico is September 16. The history of Cinco de Mayo dates back to mid 1800's. Mexico was in substantial debt with France, Spain, and England. France decided to use this to their advantage and invade Mexico. The first invasion attempt was on May 5, 1862. It is known as The Battle of Pueblain. The Mexican army was out numbered and out matched, yet, they defeated French army and kept control of their country. Unfortunately, they lost a battle that took place about a year later and French gained control from 1864 - 1867. Although Mexico lost out to French in end...they still celebrate bravery shown at first battle. I have included two delicious recipes to fit any Mexican celebration. Make 'em Smile Guacamole (read entire recipe before starting) 1 very small onion, finely chopped 1 medium-large tomato, cored and very finely chopped 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and very finely chopped 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped 3 ripe, medium avocados, peeled, seeded, roughly mashed 1/4 cup of finely chopped leaf lettuce 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste) pepper to taste Juice of one small lime In a medium bowl, mix onion, tomato, garlic and cilantro. About 1/2 hour before serving, add avocado with rest of ingredients. Your goal is to create a thick mass of yum. Set aside for 10-15 minutes to let flavors blend. Serve with your favorite tortilla chips or Mexican dish. Pinto Beans 4 cups water 2 cups dried pinto beans 1 medium onion, chopped 1/4 cup olive oil 2 cloves garlic 2 thick slices of bacon 1 teaspoon cumin Mix water, beans and onion in 4-quart Dutch oven. Cover and heat to boiling; boil about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 1 hour. Add just enough water to cover beans. Stir in remaining ingredients. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and boil gently, stirring occasionally, until beans are very tender, approximately 2 hours. (Add water during cooking if necessary.) Drain, cover, and refrigerate beans. Use within one week.
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