Coffee Wars, I coulda Bean a contender

I live in Seminole Heights and back in May the much-heralded Starbucks debuted in our neighborhood. I spent some time out West where coffee is king and was quite familiar with Starbucks, but never really was a devotee. Out in Oregon and Washington the drive-up coffee stands are as dense as Waffle Houses are in Georgia, and Dunkin Donuts are in the Northeast. Maybe even more so. Most of these are single site entreprenuers, and the coffee is more often
than not quite tasty. Usually quite better than Starbucks, and in most areas they hold their own against the global chain.
Now compare this to Tampa, the only true competitor in the realm of drive up coffee stands is to my knowledge, Indigo Coffee(I know that there's a drive up coffee stand in Brandon, or at least there used to be, but have no experience with them to compare, besides Brandon is a whole other world :-).
I've lived here for approximately a year and my commute takes me right past two locations, MLK and 275, and the one between Howard and Armenia at 275. For the better part of that year if I left after 7am I may as well forget getting in and out of Indigo in enough time to get to work on time. The one at Howard usually had traffic backed up around the store on one side and spilling on to Green St. They must have been making a killing. But that seems to be changing. I noticed this morning that Indigo coffee at their NoHo location has further cut back their hours(I had heard they had done so previously, but can't confirm) I was wondering if this is due to a lack of business. I also considered that it might be the Summer weather. It's hot, so people may not drink as much coffee. But, no one has told that to Starbuck's customers. They are packed every day I pass that location. Is Starbucks killing Indigo?
Now, coffee is definitely about taste, and we all have different ideas of what's good. Many people claim Starbucks is nasty and tastes burnt. Some people think it's the greatest thing on earth. In my opinion Starbucks coffee is good, but not great coffee and if nothing else, consistent and predictable. Tastewise I think Indigo has better tasting drip coffee, still not great, but better, and their Cafe Indigo is, as they say, "to die for". So I have to wonder why does it seem that a single store has such a profound effect on two established locations. I hypothesize that its the overall experience that draws folks to SB vs Indigo. While I have never had a rude or even impolite employee at Indigo, they were never what I would call friendly either. Starbucks employees at the Seminole Heights location have always been friendly and warm, with a quick smile. On a few occasions, I've even had a brief chat while the drink was being created.
At Indigo speed does not seem to be their strong suit either. Starbucks has the workflow down and can turn out caffeine-laden beverages at breakneck pace. I have waited longer when I was the only car in the line at Indigo than I have when I was the 3rd car back at Starbucks. For morning commuters, time is most likely their main concern.Indigo might have to revisit how they operate. I for one hope they can manage to stay competitive.
A third player in this war might be able to do well. Out west they have what were colloquially known as "Slut huts." Think drive up coffee meets Hooters waitresses, sort of, but with more clothing(Though there was at least one where barristas in bikinis were their claim to fame). The drive up coffee shacks were staffed with cute young ladies with bubbly personalities and they could turn out coffee like it was going out of style. The contractors trucks would line up 10 deep for these joints. And the coffee usually put Starbuck's to shame. One of these places could often hold their own with a Starbucks right next door. Drive by the Seminole Heights Starbucks and its easy to see that they are currently winning the coffee war. The place is always packed.