The Kenya Revenue Authority's Integrated Customs Management System (iCMS) suffered a sudden technical failure that went unrepaired for five consecutive days, severely disrupting operations at the Port of Mombasa and leaving coffee and tea worth billions of Kenyan shillings stranded at the port, unable to be exported. This is not the first time the system has encountered problems; a similar incident occurred in April 2023. As the largest port in East Africa, the Port of Mombasa serves several landlocked countries, and this failure has not only hit Kenya's own trade but also affected the export of coffee and other agricultural products from surrounding areas such as Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda. At the same time, Kenyan coffee auction prices have hit a new high for the year, demonstrating strong international demand for its high-quality coffee. [more…]

At the end of July, Luckin Coffee introduced a new closing procedure called "full scan" within its store system, requiring employees to scan and log every item with an expiration date label in the store one by one fifteen minutes before closing, and repeat the process again on the next morning shift. This move sparked a flood of complaints from frontline employees on social media—already tight staffing was further squeezed, unpaid overtime hours continued to lengthen, and the new system frequently suffered recognition failures and abnormal error reports during scanning, turning this digital initiative aimed at managing shelf-life control into what employees see as a burdensome "white elephant" feature that only adds extra work. This article is compiled from Coffee Workshop and takes you through the specific operational process and the real voices of employees behind this controversy. [more…]

Every year, global coffee production is enormous, and different regions and processing methods give coffee beans an endless variety of flavors. Rather than trying blindly, many enthusiasts choose to buy award-winning beans from competitions directly, which ensures quality and lets them experience the award-winning flavors. Coffee farmers also hope to achieve good rankings through competitions to increase the selling price and reputation of their green beans. However, a specialty coffee evaluation in Yunlin County, Taiwan, for self-produced beans was disrupted by a computer system failure that scrambled the codes linking entrants to coffee beans, causing errors in the previously announced rankings: a Grand Prize winner became a Gold Award winner, drawing attention. The organizers urgently corrected the list and promised to pay the bonus difference, but the credibility of the competition still faces a test. [more…]

A global digital accident triggered by a Microsoft 365 service outage caused devices running Windows systems to collectively display the "blue screen of death," paralyzing multiple industries including aviation, finance, and education. As a well-known brand affected, Starbucks saw its point-of-sale systems fail in a large number of stores across the United States and Canada, forcing mobile ordering and payment functions to be suspended, with some stores even closing outright or offering customers free drinks. Some Starbucks stores in China were likewise not spared, as computer failures forced staff to return to the "handwritten cup era," manually marking requests after orders were placed through Feikua. Microsoft later announced that the root problem had been fixed, but residual effects continued. This article reviews the specific impact of the incident on Starbucks and how stores responded. [more…]

This Monday, Luckin Coffee's collaboration event with the domestic AAA game Black Myth: Wukong officially launched. However, on the first day, issues such as ordering system failures, merchandise selling out instantly, and redemption anomalies pushed it onto Weibo's trending topics. Players stayed up late to wait and got up early to snap up items, only to encounter situations like "sold out," "unable to redeem," and "stores not receiving stock," with complaints flooding social media. Meanwhile, collaboration posters were being resold at high prices on second-hand platforms. Luckin officially responded later that the system had been repaired and issued a restocking notice, with an estimated production cycle of about 15 days. This article reviews the complete process of this collaboration event and consumer feedback. [more…]

There are many coffee machine brands on the market, from fully automatic to semi-automatic, each with its own positioning and features. This article systematically reviews fully automatic brands such as Delonghi, GAGGIA, Saeco, JURA, Krups, RayStar, and Solis, as well as semi-automatic brands including Rancilio, Nuova, Conti, la pavoni, la Cimbali, Reneka, sanremo, Expobar, Monroc, Wega, and Brasilia, covering each brand's main models, reference prices, core functions, and market reviews. Whether you are just starting out and looking to choose a home machine, or planning to add equipment for a coffee shop, you will find valuable references here. At the end, the article also provides a categorized summary based on recommendation level, making it easy to quickly identify the model that suits you. [more…]

A couple who explicitly chose not to leave a tip at Starbucks were charged an exorbitant $4,444.44 (about 30,264 yuan) because they didn't check the bill, maxing out their credit card and forcing them to cancel a trip to visit family in Thailand. The store initially refused a refund, then agreed to send a check that couldn't be cashed; after police intervened, Starbucks quickly reissued the check and refunded the full amount. The incident has raised concerns about point-of-sale system glitches and how businesses handle such matters. This article walks you through what happened and the findings of the investigation. [more…]

Recently, the Wuhan tea beverage brand Zhen Cha Wu drew widespread online attention after one of its franchise stores hung a red banner at its entrance, accusing the company of selling expired cheese milk caps to the store and causing it to be forced to close. The brand later responded that the expired samples were mistakenly mixed in by the supplier, had been scrapped during acceptance inspection, and never entered the market; the store was closed because it repeatedly failed audits. With both sides offering different accounts, the incident exposed management conflicts and food safety control challenges within the tea franchise system. This article sorts out the sequence of events, presents the different statements from the brand and the store, and appends the inspection and assessment rules for readers to understand the full picture. [more…]

Starbucks' "0.01 yuan for two Flat Whites" promotion sparked controversy after coupon distribution failed and orders were automatically refunded, triggering a wave of dissatisfaction and complaints from netizens, with the Shanghai Consumer Council stepping in to communicate. Starbucks China denied allegations of "order cancellation" and "zero-cost customer acquisition," stating that it had fulfilled over 10,000 orders, while more than 900,000 orders were not completed. Lawyers pointed out that once consumers pay successfully, a contract is formed, and Starbucks' unilateral cancellation may constitute a breach of contract. The incident is still unfolding, and the Consumer Council has not yet released the investigation results. [more…]

For its seventh anniversary, Chagee launched the "Good Friends Always Together" campaign, giving away 700,000 free cups over seven consecutive days, along with features like a clink-cups card-collecting game for a chance to win free drinks for a whole year. The campaign stayed high in popularity with huge participation, but it was followed by a string of technical problems: black screens when scanning the page, AI recognition failures, abnormal consumption of attempts, and more, triggering a flood of complaints. Surprisingly, netizens discovered that scanning feet, tissues, books, or even trash cans could be judged by the AI as a successful cup clink. Faced with the backlash, the official response was only that it "adds fun," while dodging questions about the loopholes. [more…]

Five years after India's tea auctions shifted to electronic platforms, they remain mired in a failure of price discovery. The Federation of All India Tea Traders Associations (FAITTA) points out that digital auctions have failed to achieve their original goal of fair pricing, and the 2020 pandemic further strained production, transportation, and exports on multiple fronts. Meanwhile, the total output of small tea growers has surpassed that of registered estates for the first time, making them a new force in the industry. This article reviews the structural challenges currently facing India's tea industry—from disputes over auction mechanisms to changes in production, and from declining exports to the need for mechanization—providing enthusiasts of fine black teas such as Darjeeling and Assam with a comprehensive overview of producing-region developments and purchasing references. [more…]

Many people fall in love with coffee starting from a latte topped with intricate latte art. When you manage to recreate that ideal pattern with your own hands, the satisfaction is irreplaceable. Nowadays, with abundant online tutorials, even complete beginners can explore latte art techniques at home as long as they have the equipment and ingredients ready. But once you actually get hands-on, you'll find that failure is the norm. This article documents the real journey of self-taught latte art—from treating the milk pitcher like a paintbrush to creating abstract masterpieces, from hearts to Ultraman and all kinds of unexpected shapes—and also summarizes practice insights on key steps like milk frothing, integration, and flow control. Failures aside, the passion remains undiminished, because every attempt brings you closer to that moment of pride. [more…]

In recent years, domestic coffee consumption has continued to heat up, and there is no shortage of enthusiasts dreaming of opening their own shops. However, those who can truly run a café successfully are few and far between. Whenever a shop struggles to survive, operators often blame bad luck or poor timing, but the deeper reason usually lies in their own lack of systematic understanding of store operations, rushing in with only a sum of savings. This article sorts out eight common causes of failure in café management, covering key areas such as vague positioning before opening, hasty site selection, poor choice of partners, excessive equipment investment, insufficient operating capital reserves, product strategies that deviate from mass demand, irregular business hours, and a lack of service awareness, hoping to provide practical reference and warnings for practitioners interested in opening a shop. [more…]

The number of coffee shops has surged dramatically, and it is no longer unusual to find a dozen or even twenty cafés clustered on the same street. Independent cafés now account for more than 70% of all coffee shops nationwide. Yet in areas crowded with chain brands such as Luckin, Starbucks, and Manner, the survival space for independent shops has been greatly squeezed. Drawing on industry data and failed case studies, this article explores strategies for independent cafés to break through in terms of interior design style, business philosophy, and customer return rate. It emphasizes building core competitiveness through warm service, personalized experiences, and distinctive products, rather than blindly following marketing trends. [more…]

When frothing milk, problems such as coarse foam, overly thick foam, and separation are situations that many coffee enthusiasts encounter. This article focuses on the four most common types of milk frothing failures—foam that is too thin, foam that is coarse, foam that is too thick, and separation of milk and foam—analyzing the causes and effects of each one by one, and providing corresponding remedies. Among these, for the situation where there are only a small number of large bubbles on the surface of the foam, Front Street recommends eliminating them by shaking the milk pitcher; when there are many coarse bubbles, the "pitcher tapping" technique can be used. If the foam is too thick, it can be handled by "foam skimming," while separation problems require "pitcher pouring" to reintegrate the foam. It should be noted that pitcher pouring for rescue should be done no more than twice, otherwise the temperature of the foam will continue to drop, affecting the final result. [more…]

Dalgona coffee (also known as 400-times coffee) continues to thrive on major social platforms thanks to its dense, cloud-like coffee foam and beautiful layered effect. However, many people find after trying it themselves that the result falls far short of the tutorials, with problems such as the foam not whipping up, a coarse texture, and rapid collapse appearing one after another. This article will break down the key points of making dalgona coffee step by step from three dimensions—ingredient selection, espresso extraction parameters, and whipping techniques—and focus on analyzing the common reasons why espresso fails to foam and the corresponding solutions, to help you make a cup of dalgona coffee with distinct layers and a rich, mellow taste. [more…]

This morning, delivery orders for Starbucks and Luckin Coffee experienced widespread disruptions, with many consumers waiting in vain for riders to pick up their orders after placing them on Ele.me and the brands' official channels. It is understood that the problem stemmed from an anomaly in the rider information service database of SF Intra-city, the delivery partner for both brands, which prevented orders from being dispatched and recipient information from being displayed. Store employees were forced to act as customer service representatives, calling customers one by one to apologize and suggesting they pick up their orders in person, while multiple store locations on the Ele.me platform temporarily showed as "closed." As of press time, none of the three parties involved had issued a formal response, and online stores had gradually resumed accepting orders. [more…]

As a globally popular beverage, coffee not only helps with alertness, but in recent years more and more studies have confirmed that moderate consumption has positive effects on health. This article systematically reviews the scientifically proven benefits of drinking coffee, including promoting metabolism, protecting the liver, and reducing the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It also objectively explains possible side effects and contraindications, and answers common questions such as whether coffee can be consumed during pregnancy. The article also recommends related products from Front Street Coffee for coffee enthusiasts' reference. [more…]

In the process of making espresso, distributing the coffee grounds is a seemingly simple yet crucial step. Whether the coffee grounds are evenly distributed within the portafilter basket directly determines whether channeling can be avoided during extraction, which in turn affects the final flavor of the coffee. Today, Front Street Coffee will take an in-depth look at the core purpose of distribution, common misconceptions, and the correct operating techniques, including details such as whether the portafilter basket needs to be tapped. By understanding the principle of water flow inertia and the potential channels at the edges of the puck, you will learn how to use gentle finger sweeps and side taps to get the coffee grounds into their proper places, thereby improving the even extraction and mouthfeel of your espresso. [more…]

Do you want to recreate a beautifully layered, rich Dirty or latte at home, but always find the result far from what you get in a café? In fact, the problem may lie in a few key details: the shape of the cup, the extraction distance, the choice of coffee beans, and even the texture of the milk. This article provides a detailed breakdown of the most common reasons for failed layering in Dirty coffee, including cup selection, pouring method, coffee concentration, and milk thickness, while offering targeted operational advice. It also recommends Front Street Classic Blend and Queen's Estate SOE, which are suitable for home brewing, helping you make a Dirty or latte with both excellent visuals and flavor at home. [more…]