Slices of Life at the Bridgehampton Starbucks

Starbucks, July 21, 2008.

Every time I walk through the back doors of the Starbucks on Main Street in Bridgehampton, I have feelings of bittersweet nostalgia.

It was my very first “summer” job—working as a barista the summer between my freshman and sophomore year at Barnard College.

And, boy, do you see all types of “slices of life” in this location.

Here’s what I witnessed on this Monday afternoon:

One woman in her 30’s was biting her nails as she sipped her iced coffee and was engrossed in an Allure magazine. Perhaps if she stopped reading garbage, her life wouldn’t be as nerve-wracking…

Another girl in her 20’s, Christina Loghin, was viciously typing away on her MacBook. “My internet’s not working at home, so I just came here to work on a project,” she said. A Manhattan resident who has been weekending at her family home for three years, Loghin seems to have found a comfortable niche at the store. “It’s upbeat—quiet enough to work, but still lively,” she said. “They need to update their playlist, though.”

Another middle-aged woman, Joanna—she refused to give her last name--was wearing dark glasses and was avidly reading the NY Times, waiting for her friend Bruce to join her. Shortly after arriving, Bruce pulled out a series of photographs taken on his recent trip to New Mexico, where he’s looking to buy a lot.

A semi-regular resident of Sag Harbor, Bruce values this Starbucks for its convenient location.

“It’s a nice layout…I hope it’s not on the hit list,” he said, referring to the recent closing of several hundred Starbucks nationwide due to the weakening economy.

Joanna commented on the quality of the coffee, claiming that she prefers it to the Golden Pear’s, which she described as bitter. “(This Starbucks location) could be cleaner, but otherwise it’s nice,” she said. She wished the music were softer and “more relaxing,” however.

Meanwhile, some of the barista were chatting amongst each other, while others were setting up the music stands and restocking the coffee bags. They were not available for comment. “We’re not allowed to talk to the press,” one of them said curtly. Since when are blogs considered part of the “press”?

It was just another daily visit to Starbucks for Julie Falk and her children, 6-year-old Lindsay and 3-year-old Ryan. Upper West Siders in the off season and Bridgehamptonites by summer, Julie and her kids have been hooked on the chain since its first Manhattan appearance on 87^th St. and Broadway, close to their home.

“(Starbuck’s) a huge mommy magnet in the city,” Julie said, admitting that she and her kids frequent the shop approximately 2-3 times a day.

“Devastated” by the first location’s closing a few years ago, the Falks were forced to walk to the 93^rd or 95^th St./Broadway locations until a Starbucks location was added to the first floor of their apartment building.

“The proximity has certainly worsened my addiction (to Starbucks coffee),” she said.

Though very appreciative of the new location in her building, Julie prefers the Bridgehampton location to any of the urban shops. “In the city everyone has strollers—the space is confined, and it’s often very crowded and noisy,” she said.

Julie alluded to the Bridgehampton loction as “the crossroads of the Hamptons” due to its central location on Main Street.

The stay-at-home mom also commented on the wide range of regulars at the Bridgehampton location. “You see the same people here every day…from celebrities, to landscapers, to moms—it goes by the clock. You see the waves passing through,” she said.

With regard to the competing coffee shops, such as the Golden Pear or Hampton Coffee, Mrs. Falk feels more comfortable at her second home.

“I don’t feel the need to be at Hampton Coffee, ‘cause it’s the local place. And the coffee is generally not as reliable. Golden Pear’s coffee sits on burners—it gets old and stale,” she said.

The Falk family has been coming to the Bridgehampton Starbucks since the late ‘90’s, when they were renting a house right in back of the coffee shop.

“When I was a baby, I used to organize the coffee bags and get everything into shape,” Lindsay said.

The Falks also enjoy the Bridgehampton Starbucks location for the pre-Starbucks bank items, such as the safes. “We love sitting on the couch in the back and admiring the big safe door,” she said. “When (the kids) were smaller, we used to try to guess the combination of the safe in the front,” the mother said with a smile.

The only missing component, according to Julie Falk, are diaper changing tables.

Mitchell Iden, another weekly regular of the Hamptons Starbucks, is an attorney in Manhattan and has been coming out to his East Hampton home for a decade now. “This location is bigger and brighter than the East Hampton location,” he said, mentioning the vault as one of the signature attractions of the Bridgehampton space.

Iden criticized the Golden Pear for being overpriced. “You get better value (at Starbucks),” he said. “You get more for your money. A smaller iced coffee, for example, is sold for the same price as a grande here.”

Iden also prefers the quality of coffee at Starbucks. “It’s a stronger, better taste,” he said.

Just another summer weekday at the Bridgehampton Starbucks.