text: STARBUCKS (Part I)\n\nBeing a quasi-Starbucks junkie pretty much gives me an irrevocable consumer right and reasonable amount of credibility to throw in my $50 worth of opinion.  Why $50? because that's how much my automatic SB gold card reload is worth every month.  \n\nI grew up in the PNW, mostly in the Seattle area where Starbucks was born, and where locals, ironically and deliberately avoid Starbucks and patronize other local and smaller coffee shops, where my friends and I frequented Vivace Coffee on Broadway in Capitol Hill.  I didn't turn to Starbucks until after I left the US and was stationed overseas.  It was one of those things I did whenever I felt homesick and wanted to touch base with the motherland and felt the need to re-enforce my being an American. Then, it grew on me. My drink of choice:   (Summer/Spring) Venti Iced Mocha, light whip or (Fall/Winter) Extra Hot Venti Mocha, no whip.  \n\nMy all time favorite Starbucks has to be the one in Rhodes, Decadence, Greece (my review will be forthcoming).  My least favorite has to be this 24/7 Starbucks with drive Thur.\n\nStarbucks is Starbucks wherever you go. You'll get the very same mediocre pricey coffee drink they're famous for, but the only way one sets apart from the other is the degree of customer service, the ambience and the way the general interior areas conducive to enjoying a cup of joe.  As expected in any Starbucks, you will get the customary greetings albeit superficial.  The staff is trained and programmed to say and do that accompanied by their banal smiles and trite perkiness.  Once your order is rung,  you're nothing but a tall, grande or a venti cup of coffee :).  I've spent numerous hours here almost on a daily basis.  I've  come to know some of the regulars and have become oblivious to everything not so good about this place. I have to admit, however,  that sometimes it does get under my skin.  It's like going to a reputable Chinese restaurant where you know and what you only care about is the excellent food, and will keep on coming back despite the fact (and you being fully aware) that \"good customer service\" is something that is not and will never be on the menu.  The only difference is that I come here not for their excellent drinks but because  of its proximity to where I live (accessibility) and it being open 24/7 (convenience).\n\nThis Starbucks is, most often than not, packed with students during school seasons btwn noon and midnight (especially towards the evening) who are studying (?) hours on end.  Some with just an order of one drink and multiple free refills of iced water, some bringing with them lunch bags, dinner boxes, veggies in Ziploc bags, bottles of soda pop, munchies and snacks in small plastic containers, or food ordered from nearby restaurants (pizza, rice bowls, wraps), and thermos bottles.  I've seen some bring their blankets, extra sweatshirts, and some even show up in their PJ's.   The campers are pretty much the same faces and same group of students just about every day!. Good luck if you're thinking about coming here during midterms or final exams. This Starbucks is the unofficial library/group study room of the various Las Vegas academes.  \n\nBusier than your typical Starbucks, this location's staff (or understaff) gets so busy(overworked), to the point of being overwhelmed, that their bathrooms are hardly checked and cleaned.  And since there are always cramming students camping in, the actual lounge is hardly kept cleaned and kept in order.  More often than not, you'll have to ask and remind the staff that they're out of  tissue paper in the bathroom, or out of napkins, milk or sugar.  I can only assume that they do all their organizing and cleaning up when the flow of customers slows down (during wee hours).  I also noticed how fast their staff turnover is.  It seems like they have new baristas/staff every other month or so (unless they rotate their shifts).  Their wi-fi connection's reliability is mediocre at best. There was even a time when it was literally down for over a month.  The staff knew about it but there were no signs saying that they were having wifi issues, and if you asked the staff,  their response was : \"Yeah, we know!\".  (it was during those times when I didn't see any campers, and the tables and chairs were for the taking).    \n\nDon't get me wrong.  You'll get your drink alright but you have to pay special attention (or literally stand by the pick up counter) or you will never know that your name/order has been called and your drink has been sitting on the counter!  Had they ever gotten my drink wrong?  Yes, on more than one occasion.  Sometimes it didn't bother me and didn't ask for a replacement and sometimes I did (contingent upon my mood, or how busy the barista was).  Besides, the staff can be genuinely friendly and chatty, when not busy.  \n\nThis may be my least favorite Starbucks and yet it's the one place I always choose to go to and go back to.......over and over again.