He was probably at some swanky overpriced restaurant

I've definitely seen $8+ lattes at some super expensive restaurants in various cities around the world

A little bit of rounding up, excessive generalization, and not backing down, and BAM!

It was during last year on the GDC on some weird place near the convention center. Didn't visit any normal starbucks during the trip. Just enjoyed the $14 or so alcoholic drinks.