{"id":7104,"date":"2024-11-11T12:23:07","date_gmt":"2024-11-11T17:23:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/?p=7104"},"modified":"2024-11-11T13:23:51","modified_gmt":"2024-11-11T18:23:51","slug":"sayeed-muhammad-an-alternative-to-starbucks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/sayeed-muhammad-an-alternative-to-starbucks\/","title":{"rendered":"Sayeed Muhammad: An Alternative to Starbucks\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Photo: <\/em>Muhammed working his cart! — Media provided by Fiona M. \u201826<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this summer, after almost 30 years of business, the Starbucks on Astor Place closed for good<\/a>. Grace’s students were not happy. Many took to social media with emotional posts and loads of crying emojis on their private stories. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was very sad because I went to Starbucks maybe four times a week,\u201d said Ava L. \u201826. \u201cI was upset because it wasn\u2019t just a coffee shop. It was a social place as well.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students have been on the hunt for new coffee spots. Some alternatives include Pret a Manger, MUD, and Bluestone Lane. But all of these options are pricey compared to Starbucks. A single cold brew at Pret a Manger costs $5.50, the lowest price for coffee in the area near Grace. If a student were to get a coffee from Pret every morning, they would be spending almost $30 a week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, there are more options that students need to check out, and Muhammad is at the center of these. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Muhammad\u2019s cart. Media provided by Fiona M. \u201826( created on <\/em>Autodesk Sketchbook<\/em><\/a>)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One morning, prompted by her sister\u2019s cart-coffee recommendation, Anika A. \u201826 meandered her way down East 8th Street. with some friends. \u201cI went to Muhammad with Cassie,\u201d she said, recalling the $2.50 coffee. \u201cWe were amazed at the price and we wanted to spread the word!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the word spread, some of the 11th graders also started going to Muhammad. \u201cWord had been floating around about Muhammad\u2019s coffee and his kind spirit,\u201d said Mika H. \u201826.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Muhammad\u2019s full name is Sayeed Muhammad. He has been in America for two years and has spent six months in his current, bustling location on East 8th Street. outside of Wegmans. He is one of 20,500<\/a> mobile food vendors in New York City. Muhammad does not speak English (instead he speaks the Egyptian dialect of Arabic) , so it is hard for him to connect with his English-speaking customers through words. Additionally, many don\u2019t know about his story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Media provided by Fiona M. \u201826<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

He immigrated to America from Egypt to be closer to his son who was working in Pennsylvania as a doctor. He mentioned that while one of his sons is practicing medicine, the other is a professor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before following his son to America, Muhammad had a very different life. He did not always sell coffee; back in Egypt, he was an accountant. \u201cHe has an accounting degree so he has a college degree. He came here just to try to achieve the American dream in an Egyptian way,\u201d said Ali Al-Maqtari, our French teacher and Arabic translator. \u201cBut he can\u2019t use his college degree because he doesn\u2019t speak English.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the interview, Al-Maq reflected on Muhammad\u2019s disposition. \u201cHe has a father-figure quality to him,\u201d he said. This is evident in the way he takes care of his customers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of Muhammad\u2019s regular customers, Zoe Z. \u201826, said, \u201cWhen Anika and Cassie introduced me to Muhammad, I was like: I don\u2019t really like coffee that much but this is such a steal. We kept going back during lunch and found out he\u2019s such a nice person.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ava is now another one of Muhammad\u2019s regular customers. The former Starbucks enthusiast detailed her transition: \u201cI wasn\u2019t a coffee drinker until Muhammad\u2019s coffee. He really made me like coffee. He\u2019s very funny and sweet. I look forward to seeing him every day!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What makes Muhammad\u2019s coffee good is not the flavor or the toppings he puts on it. Instead, it’s the kindness and heartfelt interactions he shares with his customers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Muhammad said that Grace can support his business by using the menu. \u201cGive it to the students so they know about the spot!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because of Muhammad\u2019s bright disposition and kindness to his clients, we decided to share his story in the hope that readers would support his business, too! Muhammad is not just an amazing barista but a kind soul. So, if you need a morning drink, consider visiting Muhamad\u2019s truck at the Northwest corner of 8th and Lafayette. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And if you see Muhammad today, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024, wish him a happy birthday! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Media provided by Imogen M. \u201826. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fiona Miller \u201826, one of the authors, is a staff writer for <\/em>The Grace Gazette. Cassie Ball \u201826, the other author, is a Deputy Editor for <\/em>The Grace Gazette. They would like to give a shout-out to Mr. Al-Maq for being an outstanding translator.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo: Muhammed working his cart! — Media provided by Fiona M. \u201826 Earlier this summer, after almost 30 years of business, the Starbucks on Astor Place closed for good. Grace’s… Continue reading “Sayeed Muhammad: An Alternative to Starbucks\u00a0“<\/span> <\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":7105,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[8,9,16],"tags":[180],"appful":[],"class_list":["post-7104","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-downtown-life","category-special-sections","tag-featured"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9uEnr-1QA","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Screenshot-2024-11-11-at-12.22.12\u202fPM.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7104","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7104"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7104\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7110,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7104\/revisions\/7110"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7104"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7104"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7104"},{"taxonomy":"appful","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracegazette.org\/wordpress1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/appful?post=7104"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}