Cafes are sites of urban aspirations in India. The overpriced Latte, is at the intersection of food, clean cool place to sit, a toilet, good looking crowd, or at least the expectation of it. The vernacular meets the global, the chai latte is still inferior to the cutting chai at ten percent the cost. The ‘Welcome to Starbucks’ in a very desi manner is heart warming, while the patrons are snooty at best with the bohemian attire, excellent hair off a catalogue. The beverage is really the minimum denominator, peripheral but the core.