Support for LAist comes from
We Explain L.A.
Stay Connected

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

Food

The Brain Behind Dumb Starbucks Reveals Himself, Announces Dumb Expansion Plans

We need to hear from you.
Today, put a dollar value on the trustworthy reporting you rely on all year long. The local news you read here every day is crafted for you, but right now, we need your help to keep it going. In these uncertain times, your support is even more important. We can't hold those in power accountable and uplift voices from the community without your partnership. Thank you.

We've been wondering all weekend who was behind Dumb Starbucks: there was speculation it was Banksy, a rogue employee at Starbucks or comedian Nathan Fielder. If you guessed it was Fielder of Comedy Central's "Nathan For You," turns out you were right. Fielder showed up at a press conference being held this afternoon at the Los Feliz location to out himself. Reporters asked him why he was doing this and the comedian answered: "the American dream." He also clarified that he does not believe Starbucks is dumb, "I like Starbucks. I appreciate everything they do."

Fielder has a reputation for doing stunts kind of like this. Once he had a gas station offer a massive rebate for gas, except that customers had to go to the top of a mountain to get it.

Fielder welcomed the press to his new flagship store and talked about "major pushback,"

Support for LAist comes from

Fielder didn't break character during the press conference. He announced that he planned to open up a second location in Brooklyn and keep expanding indefinitely: "This one really caught on so I'm just going to ride it out."

Here's Fielder welcoming you to his flagship store in Los Feliz and announcing his plans to get rich from the venture:

His dumb venture might run into some problems: if not from lawyers then from the health department. Just before the press conference, the Dumb Starbucks announced that county workers had paid them a visit and they would not be serving coffee for now.

LAist writer Matthew Bramlett contributed to this article from the field

Most Read