Is Starbucks actually good now?

• Starbucks says sales are up.
• The "Back to Starbucks" changes look like they're actually working.
• I visited my local store to see for myself — and I can see why the changes are helping.

First, I should admit that ordering Starbucks' new "Iced Caramel Protein Matcha" was an obvious mistake. I'm not a huge matcha fan, and combining it with caramel and protein (part of Starbucks' push into trendy wellness drinks)? Come on, I was asking for it.

Still, I had to see what's been working so well at Starbucks lately.

Clearly, something is working. Starbucks' latest earnings report on Wednesday showed sales up for the second quarter in a row. This is a reversal of a downward trend over the last 18 months, ever since Brian Niccol, former Chipotle CEO, took over at Starbucks.

Niccol's big campaign is "back to Starbucks" — attempting to revive the coffee chain to its glory days as a place people wanted to sit and chat and drink coffee, not just order over an app for pickup or drive-thru.

This has meant some small but meaningful changes: trimming the chaff from its drink menu, upping efficiency and speed, requiring baristas to doodle cheerful messages on cups, and refurbishing some locations to be more appealing for sitting and spending time — even adding more power outlets.

The location I went to in suburban Connecticut was completely new inside. (It had relocated from a building across the street in the town center.) So I got to experience what a fresh design looks like in a brand-new store.

And you know what? Brian, my boy, you did good. It was a really nice-looking location. There were a few tables with padded chairs or stools, and a back seating section with three different styles of leather chairs.

The far wall was lined with shelves stocked with bags of beans and travel cups, along with framed art. The back wall of the barista's zone had a pleasing, earthy dark green tile. It didn't look like the Starbucks of the late '90s (when I worked at one as a teen), but it also didn't look like a copy of the minimalist, trendy coffee chains like Blank Street or Blue Bottle that usurped it as the preferred coffee destination of the discerning coastal urban office worker.

While I was there, around lunchtime, the location was busy. As I typed this, seated in a plush leather chair at the back of the store, four other people joined me in the comfy area. The ambient bustle is nice, although I couldn't help notice the woman next to me was playing YouTube videos at full volume on her laptop with no headphones, which is fairly unpleasant.

Perhaps Starbucks is trying to get back into the coffee shop/"third space" glory days, but some customers are still treating it like a public restroom that serves milkshakes — they're not yet following independent coffee shop norms and etiquette (where this kind of behavior would merit a good shaming from the workers or other customers. Me? I'm minding my own business).

The menu (aside from the screen promoting the Iced Caramel Protein Matcha) had been redone to list "Coffeehouse Classics" — a smaller, manageable list of drinks that resembled things recognizable as coffee-related. That was a nice relief from two years ago, when I found myself staring at a Starbucks menu, bewildered by all the newfangled drinks and feeling like an out-of-touch grouch. Sure, many of those weird, sweet drinks are available by customization, but I think the slimmed-down menu makes sense.

Yes, the barista wrote on my cup — a practice that I loathe. I find it offensive to the barista that they're forced to write "you rock!" on my cup, and offensive to me that the assumption is I'll be charmed by this saccharine mandatory gesture.

As for the Iced Caramel Protein Matcha? I'm sure some people might like it, but next time, I'll stick to ordering something that's more to my taste. For now, I can see why Starbucks is doing well again.