"I drank a cup of coffee at a Starbucks."

Anonymous"I drank a cup of coffee at a Starbucks.""I drank a cup of coffee at Starbucks."I think we need "a" if the Starbucks is a branch or is there a difference meaning between them? Thank you so much as usual in advance.

From a conversation standpoint, neither version sounds natural in my opinion, if they were intended to mean "I stopped at (a local) Starbu

Anonymous"I drank a cup of coffee at a Starbucks.""I drank a cup of coffee at Starbucks."I think we need "a" if the Starbucks is a branch or is there a difference meaning between them? Thank you so much as usual in advance.

Both are possible. The first is more likely to be used if that particular Starbucks is an unfamiliar one; the second is more likely if the

Thank you so much and I am totally with you but if it is known to each other, isn't there "the"? Or they are the same or different? Thank you a million.

Starbucksis a name, and will be used with the definite article only in certain contexts. When the name of a store, restaurant, etc, is a proper noun, there is some flexibility:

I had coffee in Starbucks this morning. It is possible that the particular coffee shop is know to both parties in the conversation. However, it is also possible that the speaker is simply using Starbuck

Yes, you are right. But "I had coffee in the Starbucks." can be also possible in some context, can't it? For example, when we know where it is or it is the particular one we go to and the speaker might get lazy. Or the sentence is never possible? Thank you so much.

fivejedjonI had coffee in the Starbucks near the station this morning. The suggestion is that there is only one Starbucks near the station.

Fivejedjohn has already given you a valid example.

Thank you as usual and you are right but I do not know why he considers the sentence to be wrong, "I had coffee in the Starbucks this morning." I think that can be also written and spoken in some context. What do you think? Thank you so much as usual.

AnonymousThank you as usual and you are right but I do not know why he considers the sentence to be wrong, "I had coffee in the Starbucks this morning." I think that can be also written and spoken in some context. What do you think? Thank you so much as usual.

If you wish to say, "The John and the Mary went to the Starbucks this morning for the cup of coffee",

AnonymousThank you as usual and you are right but I do not know why he considers the sentence to be wrong, "I had coffee in the Starbucks this morning." I think that can be also written and spoken in some context

As 5jj has shown you, it can be used in some context. What is it that concerns you? Of course you cannot blurt the sentence out if your listener doe

Anonymous,
Adding to the natives' comments, "a" is possible as already explained. "The" - as used in your example is wrong as written. However, "the" Starbuck would be correct if it is a particular one, i.e. "I had a cup of coffee at the Starbuck near my condo.