Starbucks (SBUX: sentiment, chart, options) has already been in the news this morning, reporting that no employee higher than the vice president level will receive a salary increase in the next fiscal year. But that isn't the only news the company has made. Now, the story is a couple of days old, but I missed the fact that SBUX has overhauled its breakfast menu. A couple of days ago, the coffee house made its latest attempt to become a coffeeteria by introducing a healthier menu. So, with your calorie-laden mocha-frappa-venti-espresso-carmel-double shot- latte, you can now enjoy a healthy cardboard bowl of oatmeal (for a mere $2.50). Or, you could accompany your chai-green-black-orange-and-brown tea with a Power Protein Plate, which includes a hard-boiled egg (from uncaged hens), a small whole-wheat bagel, a 70-calorie pack of peanut butter (from uncaged peanuts), a cheddar cheese wedge (from uncaged cheese), apple slices, and uncaged grapes. All of this for $4.95 the price of your tea, what a bargain!

I believe it was SBUX CEO Howard Schultz that dismissed coffee from the likes of McDonald's and Dunkin' Donuts because they aren't coffee boutiques (or something hoity-toity like that)? Well, if I want a quick breakfast, I will go to McDonald's or Dunkin' Donuts and at least get my money's worth rather than dishing out $1.75 for a Chewy Fruit & Nut Bar (which my kids know as Quaker Chewy Granola bars).

Oh, let's not forget our Schultzie gem of the day, apparently, SBUX has "cracked the code" on oatmeal. Please ... hot water, oats, a dash of brown sugar, a splash of milk, and some blueberries ... not hard.