One Grande Eyesore . . . To Go?

MARCH 5, 2006  |  Chris and Gideon kill time at the Forbidden Starbucks, in the Forbidden City in Beijing. The franchise "taints China's national culture," according to a Chinese lawmaker.

I guess I knew this was bound to happen: A member of the Chinese parliament, Jiang Hongbin, last week called for the removal of the infamous Starbucks branch in the Forbidden City. Guess what -- the Forbidden Starbucks is the smallest Starbucks out there, and it is in the space once used by gathered officials before seeing the emperor. (They probably could've used an apple multi-grain donut, they are scrumptious.)

"Starbucks must move out of the imperial palace immediately, and it can no longer be allowed to taint China's national culture," said Jiang, as cited by the Xinhua news agency, on the sidelines of the legislature's annual session.

The 720,000-square-meter (0.3 square mile) Forbidden City in Beijing, which attracts 7 million tourists a year, was home to 24 emperors from the Ming and Qing dynasties for a period beginning in the early 15th century and running through the 1920s.

Starbucks was invited by the management company that oversees the site to open its outlet in September 2000. The cafe, the smallest Starbucks shop, was located in a tiny lounge where Qing officials gathered before meeting the emperor.