‘Dumb Starbucks’ Was a Comedy Central Stunt

Mysterious parody store popped up in L.A. this weekend

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“Dumb Starbucks” was just a dumb TV stunt.

The parody Starbucks store that opened Friday in Los Angeles was the brainchild of Comedy Central reality-TV-show host Nathan Fielder, the Los Angeles Times reports. Fielder’s show, Nathan for You, revolves around Fielder giving prank advice to small-business owners.

“Dumb Starbucks” featured Starbucks-style branding and drink selections with the word dumb added on the front. Customers lined up around the block over the weekend for the novelty and the free drinks. The shop has since been closed, KPCC reports.

Fielder admitted to the stunt in a Monday press conference, adding that he planned a second “Dumb Starbucks” location in Brooklyn. But Starbucks’ lawyers may put the lid on that brewing idea: the real Starbucks told TIME earlier Monday that “they cannot use our name, which is a protected trademark.”

Whether Fielder’s coffee shop gets any leeway as a parody of Starbucks’ trademark remains to be seen.

[L.A. Times]