To mix it up a bit last Friday, Scott and I spent the afternoon at Cusco Coffee in downtown Arequipa. Scott was able to work on their free wi-fi, and I took a few books to read. It was a nice break from moping around the apartment grieving my laptop, which is what I’d pretty much been doing all week.
Cusco Coffee is set up to be exactly like a Starbucks. The beverage options are identical. The fonts on their menu and signage are the same. And they have a very similar round logo, the only difference being that the mermaid is replaced with a coffee mug overlaid with a shot of Machu Picchu. Their staff also relentlessly speaks to you in English.
I remember rolling my eyes when I first saw Cusco Coffee as I was flying by in a taxi cab. Our Spanish teacher Ericka had recommended it though, so I gave it a chance a few weeks later.
Now I find their copycat-ness totally endearing. There aren’t any actual Starbucks’ here in Arequipa. The owners are obviously catering to their main clientele (tourists). You can’t blame them for doing what works…
And they really do “Starbucks” right, as compared to the other copycats I have seen. Yes, there’s another cafe up the street with a similar logo. Although their interior and menu items are very different. Way less charming.
