High Culture Got You Down? McCafe to the Rescue

In the latest TV spots for its McCafe label, McDonalds surrenders the art house crowd to Starbucks -- and liberates the crusty, football-loving Joes that never quite fit in.

This ad starts with two guys reading books while sipping coffee out of wide cups. One haughtily asks, "Did you hear McDonald's has cappuccinos now?"

"McDonalds?" the other repeats.

"Yeah."

"That's awesome. I can shave this thing off my face!" With that, both guys start shedding their cultured trappings: cultivated goatees, fake eyeglasses (in the case of one, anyway), even a contrived interest in film. A McD's voiceover sweetens the awakening by offering viewers a free "handcrafted cappuccino, latte or mocha, on us, every Monday until 2pm."

Score one for McDonalds: you don't have to be a beatnik cafe junkie to enjoy steamed milk and espresso. Some people even go so far as to call this "an outright Sarah Palin moment."