Thank you for this comment 😂

Until that happens, (ha)
Unions for all!

there’s plenty of ways to make baristas more efficient. only problem is customers would probably never return lol

This

The dude invented a way to make cold foam with a handheld blender. I'm not sure how this actually solves the problem because you still have to walk away to get the unblended VSC and then you also need to walk back to the station to wash and set down.

It also looks annoying to wash whether the top portion pops off or not.

I will say, a lot of issues at my store would be solved if our cold bar wasn't in a corner. We're always tripping over each other when someone needs sweet cream or foam. As soon as someone orders a frappuccino, everything else that needs to be done over there gets backed up because we just don't have room!

That being said, more people on the floor so we could have one or two people stationed there, and higher pay so we're all less stressed would be significantly more helpful than making the cold bar bigger.

Perfectly said. I feel like it's also Howard coming back trying to say, "Your savior is here! Back only a week (or whatever), and already I'm making changes!" So he can pat himself on the back w one of his many wads of hundred dollar bills.

So you would keep vsc in your bar fridge too?

If the headsets could also somehow not pick up our voices from the speaker, that'd be amazing! I might actually be able to handle working DTO in that case! Hearing my voice echo back at me makes my brain short circuit.

Giving shifts permanent permission to temporarily shut off mobile orders when we're swamped and getting yelled at by every other customer because they had to wait would also be nice.

And of course pay should be such that anyone working full time hours is able to comfortably pay all their bills and actually make use of the healthcare and 401k benefits.

Also fully agree to everything else you said here!

Yeah, for sure! Boston shakers are the most commonly used shakers in the industry, and they're just a metal cup that is slightly larger than a standard pint glass, and a pint glass. Proper technique involves straining the drink out without the broken ice. If the finished drink gets ice, it gets poured over fresh ice.

However, it's not uncommon to see bartenders serve the drink in the pint glass they shook it in, especially if they're slammed. (Worth noting if you receive a drink like this, the ice will melt a little faster and the drink will get watered down sooner, but otherwise it's the same. Usually.)

As for our shakers, I have a few fairly minor complaints (though minor annoyances build up through the day, especially when 90% of the drinks being ordered are shaken)

1. I really don't mind the shaking part, but I hate having to pour everything into the cup when I'm done because unlike glassware, our cups like to run away if we don't hold onto them while pouring.

2. I'm also not a fan of how the lids fit because shaking drinks makes the lid seal onto the cup. With a Boston shaker, you remove the metal cup by gently hitting the side to break the seal. It's easy, and makes a fun, satisfying *pop* sound. Haha
Shakers with lids like ours can be a lot harder to break the seal. Ours are of course plastic, so they don't actually freeze together like metal ones do, but metal shakers with lids are designed to come apart more easily.

3. Not actually an issue with the design, more a reason I agree we should be able to shake drinks in their cups: when everyone is ordering teas and refreshers, at least in my store, we end up having to maneuver around each other and we get in each other's ways a lot. If we could shake drinks in their cups, we wouldn't have to be reaching for the sink unless it's a watee-based drink. Would cut down on a lot of unnecessary extra movement.

4. THE MATCHA POWDER IS SO HARD TO RINSE OUT

... Technically the shaker lid fits on Venti cups but the cups don't have the same measurement lines.

That's a really good idea though, just give us shaker lids and modify the recipes to use standard cup markings

when you make cold foam you really shouldn’t just be standing there watching it blend, you should step away and get your next drink prepped. the blender being handheld offers no benefits because you’ll have to be holding it and trying to do other work with one hand. It’s a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist

Sometimes I daydream about shooting whipped cream at them

I think we would in my store. I honestly don't see how we would have space at the hot bar, even for something that small