If you have time, I encourage a coffee tasting or make samples of a drink for your team and customers to try

*everything* is clean? how about all those ledges, how about the fridge gaskets? ALL the cabinets are pristine? The fridge floors are spotless? How about the fridge doors? Underneath the shelves? behind the desk?

I could go on.

But let's say you're done with all the cleaning fr, you could start a tasting, or work on training.

The trash cans could be more shiny

Dishes. There are ALWAYS dishes. Back ups to be made, drains to clean, baseboards to wash, QASA to go over.....never nothing to do at the BUX!!!

When I used to work at BK 20 years ago my manager would say “clean it again”

There is always something to do. In my experience, even if everything looks "clean and stocked" it's not. The syrup stands are a great example. The store can look good, but 9 out if 10 times they're sticky and gross. Same goes for however you store sugar packets, at my store those are rarely cleaned so if I have a free moment I like to do it

You can always ask your shifts if they have something, I give both those things to baristas who tell me "everything is clean"

Double check all your stock is properly rotated for FIFO. ALL of it. Calibrate your thermometers.

Give coolers/fridges a good cleaning, inside and out. Pull coolers out that aren't built-in, and clean behind/under them. Scrub coffee stains out of sinks (this was always a favorite of mine when I was a partner, super satisfying). Deck brush the tile grout, daily mopping doesn't clean as well as you think it does.

Bear in mind, I haven't been a partner in about a decade, so I don't know how much daily cleaning procedures have changed, but these are all pretty solid time fillers that clean the more neglected spaces in most food service environments.

I give myself a 10 until a customer walks in…
Guilty as charged

(Edit: I should probably say that I’m being sarcastic)

I hate the “always something to do” attitude but I understand! Like people said, always something to wipe off, dishes to do, cabinets to clean/stock, we even have a small hand held vacuum to get up all the crumbs and coffee grounds

Backups.

Stock other things, like sugars/brewed teas/utensils/oatmeal inclusions/warming bags.

Look for expired products in RTD&E.

Stock RTD&E and gift cards, or organize RTD&E and make it look nice if it’s already fully stocked.

Wipe down things that you normally don’t get a chance to wipe down, like doors, cabinets and the backsplash.

Insides of cabinets and fridges get pretty dirty quickly, sweeping under fridges, re organizing cabinets and shelves, breaking down boxes, running trash, chatting with customers in the cafe, restocking small things you usually wouldn’t think about such as alternative sugars, oatmeal items, napkins spoons etc, checking expiration dates, bleaching out sinks, cleaning drains, restocking cinnamon and pumpkin shakers, disinfecting tables in the lobby, making sure the coffee timer is running, if your SSV is okay with it turning change in the tip jar into dollars, cleaning the party case, cleaning the back desk, or make a fun drink to try for yourself (:

Just grab a cloth and wipe things. Even if it’s already clean just detail it.

Csr cards

There's always something to do at work. Clean the bathroom, sweep the floor, check the patio (if your store has one), check every garage can. Maybe do a change over, never can be too clean at starbucks standards eh? If I have nothing to do, i would just find something to clean haha

There is always something to do. Always

Doors, seals, deep cleaning devices, dismantling them if needed. When was the last time you cleaned the underside of the tables, for example?

I like to use urnex to deep clean the 2L pitchers and cubes. Makes them look brand new. It's super satisfying.

I usually just start wiping counters, even if they're clean. Or I'll check milks, and restock dt (im usually in dt) it depends on the day but you can never go wrong with wiping counters

Good lord I’m envious. 😂

Sweep, wipe down high contact areas, wipe down behind the stuff.. spot mop. Restock the merchandise.

Make backups, organize and FIFO back of house, FIFO retail, clean around and under register impulse, clean behind and under fridges and metros … if it’s really REALLY slow at my store I start doing stuff for the next shift.

Undersides of the cabinets, ice machine and refrigerators are usually in need of a good scrub

I like to keep busy makes day move faster.

It's time for the monthly intense scrubbing of this one specific window, for several hours.

Cleaning inside the fridges throughly is a good start. Move everything and clean them. Underneath and behind the fridges as well. Floorboard tiles are always messy. The drains can be washed throughout the day. Sinks can be deep cleaned, as well as most dishes. Things can be organized in cupboards and cleaned. There’s usually something to do no matter what.

The whole “if you have time to lean, you have time to clean” mindset is so toxic and gross. You should be allowed to take a breather.

At my store, it’s never perfectly clean. I’ll wipe down the walls, inside the fridges, inside and outside cabinets. I just find spots that are neglected. I usually never have down time though.

I used that time to experiment and come up with new fave barista drinks or to perfect latte art.

My go-to is always to wipe down the stainless fridge doors and cupboard doors. They always get splashes on them. Very simple and easy thing to do and makes you look busy.

Also I cannot even imagine having everything done and having time to stand around. 😭

Shelves? Especially shelves near the window POS. People rest their feet there, gets gross. Also all that electronic stuff by the 2 window monitors with all the cords gets horrendously dusty. I know, that’s what I was cleaning while on window today

I usually clean the drains bc those things are aggressively neglected.

Wipe down tables check the bathrooms, rearrange the overstock shelves in BOH sanitize the credit card machines read weekly updates

Yep yep true.

👍🏼😊

They always say don’t stand there and do nothing. Or there is always something to do. And they’re not wrong most of the time.

Sometimes we draw new chalk signs

This is the thing I hated most about working at corporate Starbucks. It’s really unrealistic to expect every single second to be spent on something when sometimes business is slow which allows for things to be done a lot sooner

sometimes when we arent busy but i wanna look busy- i'll absentmindedly wipe down counters that are already clean. but since im usually closing shift, we try to do pre-close stuff so depending on what shift you do, theres that :)

Say something like this:

How about I have an extra hot latte with brown sugar and oat milk and take a break? Lol

Does that count as doing something 😄

I cry

Polish a mug like I’m a tavern keep

literally all I do is clean the same spot until I get a drink order 🤷🏻‍♀️

BULLSHIT everything is clean.

Just do nothing. They won’t fire you.

I used to go back and check dates on inventory. Sometimes when there’s a rush and people are trying to put shipment away, something gets pushed into the back instead of being FIFO’d, so I would pull things out and check the dates and organize. There’s been times I’ve found punctured packages of caramel that could cause ants, etc.

Here’s my list I made so if I’m in a scenario like you I can do stuff:
- [ ] Sweep and clean drive thru
- [ ] Clean drive thru counter
- [ ] Clean mop sink
- [ ] Clean outsides of fridges
- [ ] Clean insides of fridges
- [ ] Clean insides of cabinets
- [ ] Sweep behind trash cans
- [ ] Clean bathrooms
- [ ] Empty bathroom trash cans and restock
- [ ] Clean the trash can in bathroom
- [ ] Clean trash cans
- [ ] Actually clean and squeegee bathrooms
- [ ] Clean base boards in cafe
- [ ] Clean pastry case cart
- [ ] Clean sink heads
- [ ] Clean walls in back
- [ ] Clean shelves in back
Here’s my restocking list as well:
- [ ] Refill tea packet pull outs
- [ ] Fill topping shakers (like cinnamon or cinnamon dolce topping)
- [ ] Check and get new frap toppings
- [ ] Refill inclusions
- [ ] Refill frap things (van bean, matcha)
- [ ] Refill sandwiches and egg bites fridge
- [ ] Fill stoppers
- [ ] Restock straws
- [ ] Make sure frap bases are fully stocked
- [ ] Refill sleeves
- [ ] Make sure caramels are full

just push a rag around on counters and move around.

I usually find more cleaning to do honestly, your store can never be too clean, clean play tasks are a good place to start or other small areas that get missed on the daily!

**Everything is never clean**

But if it’s dead slow, coffee tastings

take the bucket of pumps in the back and pump sanitizer in each one and put them through the sanitizer, guaranteed you’ll find leftover syrup in them.

I usually do little coffee dumplings, so like half batches wrapped in a filter that I can pop in the brewer once the current batch goes stale. I make like five or so of these at a time, but because they do technically last 24 hours so if we don’t use them up the morning shift will.

Ah geez I’m really feeling guilty. I have been not doing enough.

Cleaning fridges and making sure drains are clean

Just drop a full bag of ground coffee

There is always something. Take everything out of drawers and wipe them out, vaccum and deep clean the RTDE, dust shelves, clean the dried syrup from...everywhere, scrub table bases and polish furniture.

😊

👍🏼

We actually have those little time cards to help in these situations (I barely ever use them, but if idk what to do, that’s my go to)

I go to the bathroom

Like I always used to tell my team, "be busy or look busy." Even if it doesn't look like there's anything to do, just wipe down the counter. Sweep under a fridge. Dust the merchandise. A personal favorite of mine was getting some cleaning wipes and wiping down the inside of stained pitchers like some kind of old timey bartender. Just find something that looks productive that will fill your time, instead of just standing around. Looking busy will always get your managers off your back

Use the stainless steel cleaner on the fridges and freezers to get them extra shiny. Take the gaskets out of the fridges and clean them really well. Pull out the BOH fridges and clean the grout underneath.

There is always something to do. I used to work with people who would say “everything is done,” but backup lids could be filled, merch wall could be faced, windows could be cleaned. I’m more often than not these smaller jobs would fall one 1-2 people who would notice things.

Flip to the clean play booklet and do something easy from there like the cup risers and such . Everything is always covered in syrup and coffee grounds. Maybe clean under the espresso bars like I’m so sure there’s stuff for you to clean . No wayyyy in hell that store is so clean there’s nothing to do. Take apart one of the coffee urns and clean the spigots cus those get gross aff. Take initiative and get in all the nooks and crannies.

My personal fav task that always gets overlooked is sink drains. We always do floor drains daily but beside some water being ran down them they never get that clean. I run multiple liters of hot water down the cold bev and refresher rinser drains. I cannot thoroughly explain what came out of the cold bev sink one day when I was trying to locate a bad smell. It took about 10 liters to break through the inclusion/Java chip plug that was smelling up the store and another 10 liters for the water to run clean. It was the worst smell, we had to open the door and started window to clear it.

Deep clean and recalibrate the Grinder. 😁

You get a tooth brush and start cleaning the grouts, they probably haven’t been scrubbed in a while

There's no way... Sorry to be that person, but there is ALWAYS something to clean or do. I didn't realize it until I became a shift lol

Active sampling with a coffee pairing. Teaching newer partners store maintenance. Troubleshooting/finding solutions to issues in the store like organization and storage.

There's always something to do

i take that time to get to know my coworkers. store culture is so important.

Checking if things got there right date and not expired always works too. Especially if no one rotate the milks, whipped creams, etc.

Oh Man I remember deep cleanings but I had a closing shift. If at all possible you could do some of the coffee tour that you need to do to be a black apron :)

Remember to be human, connect with customers or your co-workers. Ask them how their December is going... or if they need help with anything. Usually I get to check out of cleaning mode and hear cool stories, like this one lady who does roller derby, and i had no idea.

Or, try to see your store from an outsider's point of view, and put any notes or customer stories/comments in the book for others to read... Might be appreciated?

Also, if allowed, it's calming to straighten retail, dust, make everything more full and appealing looking, if there is no one to talk to.

Or, for less chatty people... check the clean safe and ready section of the drb, each station starts with an concise but detailed list of things to clean, might open your eyes to more of the usually forgotten things needing attention.

Theres always something to do. In these rare cases wed prep for the next shift like preparing trays for the next day, prepping afternoon food, refilling...

Sometimes I would do the coffee passport - knowing more about the actual coffee and sharing a new idea with others can be cool.

I’m going to make a list of all this and be very busy when we r not busy tomorrow 😊

Doodle on some cups