Buffalo Grove Starbucks Closes for Renovation

on Buffalo Grove Road closed this morning (Sept. 21) for a month-long renovation project, but customers will still be able to get their jolt.

The store is in the process of setting up a trailer in its drive-through lane. There, customers will continue to have access to nearly a full menu. Breakfast sandwiches will not be available because the trailer will not be equipped with an oven, store manager Ash Kolodziej said.

“It will have the efficiencies we give you in the store, just in a satellite location,” she said.

While customers might feel inconvenienced by the renovation, Starbucks employees are making the best of the situation, dubbing the trailer “Java the Hut” and promising that the end result will be worth it.

Improvements will include a drive-through line that will accommodate more vehicles, and changes to the inside setup that will result in shorter wait times at the store’s busy drive-up window.

“We’ll be built for speed,” said Kolodziej, who added that the majority of the store’s business comes from drive-through customers.

But those who stop inside the shop will also notice changes when the building reopens.

“We’re just updating the entire store. We’ll have a more current color scheme. It will be much more modern,” Kolodziej said.

The renovated shop will feature additional seating, including a community table, high-top tables along the front windows and new couch-style seating in the common area. For the first time, the store will also have two or three outdoor patio tables, Kolodziej said.

The trailer is expected to open for business sometime Sept. 22. The coffee shop is tentatively scheduled to reopen Oct. 19, Kolodziej said.

Starbucks stores undergo renovations every 10 years, she said. The Buffalo Grove location marked its first decade of business in May.