Forget sugar, steamed milk and other traditional add-ons, half of these beverages resemble cake more than the stuff normally made in a percolator. Yet, despite my utter loathing for the concept, something about being inside a Starbucks makes me drink things like egg nog lattes and vanilla mint cappuccinos. Grande means medium, tall means small, and a request for a large just brings a blank stare. Perhaps it's this state of coffee confusion that has led to Starbucks' rapid rise. This giant, charmless chain gets my business for the same reason I buy pants at the Gap.
Every store has the same stuff kept in the same place, for roughly the same price.
A mocha Frappuccino in one location tastes exactly like a mocha Frappuccino in another, which makes you forget that you have no real interest in drinking one.