Starbucks just opened the first of its upscale, stand-alone Princi bakeries in New York - take a look inside

Jessica TylerNov 29, 2018, 01:31 IST

Business Insider/Jessica Tyler

Starbucks just opened its first stand-alone Princi bakery in New York City.
The bakery, located in New York's Theater District, is the third Princi Bakery to open in the United States. Starbucks is an investor in and licensee of Princi.
We visited the bakery on opening day. Here's what it was like.

Starbucks just opened its first stand-alone Princi bakery in New York City.

The Princi bakery in New York's Theater District is Starbucks' third in the United States, following openings in Seattle and Chicago. Princi was first opened in 1986 by Italian baker Rocco Princi, expanding to five locations in Milan and London over the course of 30 years. Starbucks and Princi joined forces in 2016, when the coffee giant joined the bakery's global investment team and licensed the first Princi location in the US at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Seattle.

Princi is the sole provider of baked goods at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Seattle and at Starbucks Reserve Roasteries around the world. The Roasteries are seen as more upscale than the typical Starbucks location. Customers typically spend four times more in the company's Roastery locations than in a traditional Starbucks, according to a company spokesperson.

While the new Princi bakery in New York is not part of a Reserve Roastery, Starbucks has announced that there will be a Reserve Roastery - with a Princi inside - opening in New York by the end of the year.

The design of Princi's first New York bakery was inspired by Rocco Princi's original bakery in Milan, using natural materials, earth-colored stone, hand-blown glass light fixtures, and a 20-foot wall displaying colorful ingredients like lemons, peppers, and tomatoes. A 20-foot communal table sits in the center of the room, meant to promote a sense of community.

We checked out the bakery on opening day - here's what it was like:

See Starbucks just opened the first of its upscale, stand-alone Princi bakeries in New York - take a look inside >>

Princi opened in the Theater District, on the corner of 51st Street and Broadway, on Wednesday.

It was packed when I arrived at 9 a.m. You could smell the freshly baked bread as soon as you opened the doors.

There was a huge crowd of people waiting to order.

Behind the counter was a 20-foot wall of ingredients that stretches up to the ceiling. It had jars of fruits and vegetables, dried flowers, and fresh bread.

Everything behind the glass counters was fresh out of the oven. The bakery cases were full of cinnamon rolls, muffins, croissants ...

... fresh breads ...

… fresh fruit, granola, and jam.

In addition to the food on display in the bakery cases, there were menus being handed out to everyone in line. Everything on the breakfast menu costs $10 or less.

Princi also has a separate lunch menu with inexpensive soups, salads, and sandwiches.

Customers had the option of ordering coffee with their baked goods, or skipping the bakery and heading straight to the coffee bar.

I noticed the menu was a lot smaller than at a traditional Starbucks store. Princi offers two coffee blends, espresso drinks, cold brew, nitro cold brew, and a few tea blends.

There were a few more baked goods like croissants and rolls at the coffee bar as well. Like at the bakery counter, everything was fresh out of the oven.

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