Hey, Peet, let's get alternative

Yesterday, I wrote about the Inland Empire Starbucks that are closing.

On Friday, Volkan Uzun (MVM) asked a semi-related question:

when will Peet's Coffee come to Inland Empire

Let's catch everyone up. If Starbucks or Coffee Klatch (see the February 2008 mrontemp post, or watch Heather Perry talk about farmers) isn't your thing perhaps Peet's Coffee & Tea is for you. They started in 1966 in Berkeley, California, five years before you-know-who. In fact, without Alfred Peet, there may not have been a Starbucks:

[Peet's] reputation was well in place in 1971, when he was approached by a group of entrepreneurs who asked him to provide his roasted coffee beans for their new venture, Starbucks, in Seattle.

"Peet supplied us with roasted coffee, and he taught me how to roast coffee," [Starbucks co-founder Jerry] Baldwin said. "He was very generous."

So I began wondering - how many Peet's Coffee & Tea locations were within 50 miles of 562 West Holt (the Ontario Starbucks that is scheduled to close?).

30 locations are within 50 miles, but only one - Peet's Chino Hills at 13855 City Center Dr., Suite 3015 - is within the Inland Empire. The store just opened in May, along with the rest of the Shoppes at Chino Hills. As of this afternoon, Yelp contained two reviews of the location, one of which was happy with the store except for the parking experience, and the other concerned about slow service.

We'll have to see if Peet's expands elsewhere in the Inland Empire. I understand that several coffeeshop locations are becoming available.