This topic recently sparked a heated debate online after a Tiktok video of Scottish vlogger Dale Philip went viral. Pinoys’ opinions are quite divided on this particular coffee shop culture, with some disagreeing with what he said and others siding with the vlogger.

How the debate started

In the Scottish vlogger’s Tiktok video, he was walking right outside a coffee shop, seeing it full of people with laptops, books, and notebooks out, all of whom appear to be working or studying. He said he wanted to order but wasn’t able to do so due to the “big queue” and the lack of seats available.

“I was thinking about getting a Matcha Frappucino in there but a big queue. Yeah, I would hate to have a business where people just come and use it as their personal office, use your WiFi, your electricity, buy like one coffee.”

Addressing the people inside the coffee shop, he said in the video: “Just sit in your house, just sit in your condo, in your hotel room, and do your work. Why do you need to be sitting in somebody’s coffee shop with people disturbing you and coming in and out?”

According to Dale, the coffee shop is a Starbucks branch in SM City Baguio.

The video was originally posted last week, November 5, but went viral after X (formerly Twitter) user maroontito shared a clip on the platform. It has since garnered over 1.5 million views on Tiktok and 8.5 million views on X (formerly Twitter).

Pinoys are divided

Some are defending the people who stay in cafes for long periods of time, while others say that the vlogger may have a point.

User maroontito pointed out how the vlogger didn’t bother protecting the identities and privacies of the people of whom he took videos.

Others chimed in how this type of cafe culture is also being observed in other countries, not just the Philippines. Apparently, even in Scotland, where Dale is from. “As a Scottish person, it’s not different. Idk what he’s complaining about, students do it every where, whether it’s a campus coffee store or not,” one netizen wrote.

Another Scottish user even claimed that the vlogger is probably only doing this for the engagement. “He’s only published this for the reaction he’s getting. Don’t give it to him.”

Another netizen pointed out that this is probably part of the coffee shop’s business model, which also charges a premium to compensate for long stays like these. “Coffee shop culture is different everywhere,” the netizen wrote. “I know other shops that don’t allow laptops and that’s okay too.”

Meanwhile, some netizens believe that Dale actually has a point, stating that some cafe-goers are abusing the system.

“Hindi naman bawal pero dapat maging sensitive man lang sa iba,” one said, while another pointed out, “Culture and social norms are not exempted from criticisms.”

An alleged former Starbucks barista even shared an anecdote of how a customer brought not just their laptop, but also their printer. Ooof.

What Starbucks has to say about staying in their shop

Starbucks promotes itself as the “third place”, a place beyond the home and the office where people go and stay.

The same goes for their Philippines branches.“Third place is between home and work right? That’s where you come up with the third place, so we wanna be the third place,” Starbucks Philippines Noey Lopez told the media in 2022. “If we can be the first place, then even better. We don’t really mind.”

This echoes the sentiment of Starbucks as a whole: “We strive to create a welcoming environment for all of our customers. We do not have any time limits for being in our stores, and continue to focus on making the Third Place experience for every Starbucks customer.”

What do you think of this debate? Tell us in the comments.

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