Costa Coffee and Caffe Nero - grubby?

[JoanThursday1972]

Does anyone else think this? I just don't feel clean in these places. Stained seats and a scruffy feeling.

Every single Costa and Nero feels grubby and sticky and badly laid out. They've been like this for years really.

I’m in Yorkshire but maybe it’s just a thing ?

We have a brand new out of town Costa and at the moment it’s lovely - nice and bright and clean with friendly staff. You never have to queue and it’s always well-stocked. I’ve been in some town centre ones that were just dire though. It’s a shame because the premise is good and with a bit of care and attention they can be nice enough places to go.

That would be tricky since I don’t have any.
It’s a type, possibly even a stereotype - maybe they aren’t gay, maybe I should have described them as “waspish effeminate men”.
I know plenty of Gay men who aren’t like this so it’s quite specific

I'm in south Yorkshire

Not quite, so maybe it IS a thing
Or maybe we are just both homophobic 🙄

I used to like Nero but agree their cafes look a bit run down and grubby.
Several Costas near us have closed but one appears to be kept in business by drug dealers according to Nextdoor which wouldn't surprise me.

Cakes in chain coffee shops are usually disappointing. The noteable exceptions being Coffee 1's Portugese tarts and their old (before they ruined my life and changed brands) shortbread. Other cakes are always too sweet and artificial tasting.

Independently owned coffee shops are usually much better. We have some great ones where we live, with much better coffee and food.

Tragically cakes are in the past for me now. 😢

I'm in one right now. A disabled woman has just used her own tissues and hand sanitizer to wipe down a dirty table. All the empty tables are cluttered with rubbish. It's understaffing. The cafe itself is clean and well kept.

But Starbucks coffee is rank dishwater. Proved recently by comparisons of the caffeine in coffee shop coffees. I think Starbucks was the worst.

Coffee No1 Welsh cakes are nice.

Hate all the chains.

Just when I thought I'd read it all on here.

Always!!!

Sticky tables unclean
Hate them

Some Costas are franchised, but not all. Similar to the McDonald's model. That's why some of the branches lowered their prices recently with the tax relief thing after lockdown and others didn't. The main costas all did honour it.

Our local was lovely until recently, but they've really struggled for staff and it shows in both the cleaning and the drinks. They also find it difficult to keep up with the online/uber eats orders and that impacts service.

If we ever had a Pret near enough I'd abandon Costa and locals in an instant: coffee subscription and dog friendly. All other places would be dead to me. I'm really sad I'm not near a Pret.

Disgustingly dirty, haven't been renovated in over 10 years in our town. Won't go in them now as there are some lovely independents to go to.

Support your local cafés, not the soulless corporate £4 for a slice of cake establishments.

Absolutely! Gone grim. Burberry effect. Now we WON'T see the oh-so-busy people running around with a starbucks/nero/Costa cup permanently in their hand because it's lost its rep.

Agree Costas, Starbucks and Neros pretty much all dire. I try to avoid at all cost, and choose independent instead, except when no other choice e.g. at airport.

UK high streets look very much the same these days, and it's not a good look. Everywhere full of the same boring shit chains.

Two of the big Tesco superstores local-ish to me have in store Costa cafes. One is disgusting and looks like an afterthought. The other is clean, tidy and well planned. Interestingly, the disgusting one is tucked away in a corner of the store, whereas the clean one is much more visible. I wonder if that makes a difference. Both were refurbished with the new branding at the same time, so it’s a not a case of one being shabbier due to age related wear and tear.

Starbucks coffee is a great laxative!
(As is the Costa "Instant" granules, in a can; tried once - never again!)
Anyone else had that experience?

And I am a regular (machine/take-away Costa drinker, although trying to give up.)

I don’t often use Costa but the Nero’s we go to are clean. The staff clear and wipe the tables between each occupants. If they are short of staff and it’s busy they revert to take away cups.

I’m in Somerset so maybe they are less busy. Definitely less busy than London coffee shops.

Our local Costa isn't too bad. Sometimes the tables need a wipe down. But this can't be totally blamed on the staff because some of the customers leave the chairs, tables and sometimes floors in right state. Looks like they've had a food fight.

Gave up on both of these places about a decade ago, way too expensive as well.

Started using small local independent cafes and coffee places and not only are they much cheaper, coffee is nicer and choice of food is much better.

Near me is a cafe that's run by Turkish people. Always packed, staff are really nice and the place is spotless. Tables cleared and cleaned the minute it's vacated, floor being swept constantly and all the coffee equipment is wiped with a cloth in between uses.

Best place in town.