Grey's Anatomy star Patrick Dempsey was dubbed "McDreamy" in the hospital drama, but he may be the real "McSteamy" after beating Starbucks to buy a coffee chain at a bankruptcy auction.
Now the actor, whose co-star is "McSteamy", may soon be serving hot, steaming cuppas after winning the auction to buy Tully's Coffee, a small chain based in Seattle, Washington.
Among those he beat is Tully's much bigger Seattle neighbour, Starbucks, known for its ubiquitous white cups with a circular green mermaid logo.
Dempsey, whose company Global Baristas plans to keep the Tully's name, declared victory on the social media site Twitter, saying: "We met the green monster, looked her in the eye, and...SHE BLINKED! We got it! Thank you Seattle!"
The win for Dempsey deals a rare setback for Starbucks on its home turf. Starbucks has long been both praised for bringing "coffee house culture" to the US and criticised for crushing smaller chains.
The coffee giant, which had planned to convert the Tully's cafes to its own brand, announced plans last month to expand its global footprint to 20,000 cafes over the next two years, up from the current 18,000.
Dempsey said in an interview yesterday that as the underdog in Seattle, Tully's would need to find its identity.
"It's a much smaller chain that has a lot of potential that hasn't been given the proper care," he said.
But in a statement shortly after Thursday's auction, Starbucks suggested that Dempsey should not celebrate just yet.
Starbucks said that a final determination on the winning bid would not be made until a court hearing on January 11. It said it was in a "back-up" position" to buy 25 of the 47 Tully's cafes, with another undisclosed bidder making an offer for the remainder.
The combined bids of Starbucks and the undisclosed bidder come to 10.6 million dollars, above the 9.2 million Dempsey's company is offering to pay through his company, which was formed to purchase Tully's. The other investors in Global Baristas are not being disclosed.
Tully's Coffee, which is known for serving coffee with a milder taste than Starbucks brand, filed for bankruptcy protection in October, citing lease obligations and underperforming stores.
Tully's wholesale business, which includes Tully's Coffee in bags and single serve K-cup packs that are sold in supermarkets and other stores, is owned separately by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters.
TC Global, the parent company of Tully's, said it was "encouraged and excited" about Dempsey's commitment to the chain.
Dempsey said he planned to be very involved in the running of the company, adding that the immediate challenges were to address bookkeeping issues, staff morale and sprucing up the coffee shops. Once the business is stabilised, Dempsey said the long-term goal would be to take the chain national.
"We can pull this off. We just have to take steps that are slow and smart," he said. "I'm going to get behind the counter. I'm going to serve coffee...I'm going to give the company a boost of energy."
Although Dempsey lives in Los Angeles, he plans to spend more time in Seattle, the city in which Grey's Anatomy is set. He said he believed there was room in the city for Tully's and Starbucks.
"In a society where there are so many big corporations that swallow the little guy, we thought, let's not let this happen to this company," he said.