Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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Weekly abuse from a regular (self.starbucksbaristas)
submitted by dnims24
So we get this lady that comes in approx every week or two and complains every time that we made her drink wrong. Except she doesn’t just complain. She stands there at the end of bar and watches you make it, then remake it. Yesterday I had the lovely chance of talking to her so I did let her know “we’ll call your name as soon as your order is ready” and she immediately came back with “you don’t have to call me bc I’ll be standing right here” even though I did have a couple of orders in front of hers. I don’t remember exactly what her drink was but it was hot and had whip where it normally wouldn’t. As soon as I handed it to her she said she’d taste it to see if I made it wrong. She took the tiniest of sips and opened the lid and declared it was wrong (even though it looked fine to me and everybody else). She became extremely rude and yelled about how she comes every week and we always do it wrong. Thankfully my coworker was right there and he offered to remake it and honestly I just walked away. I wasn’t in the right headspace for her to be talking to me like that. I started working on drive orders so he could remake her stuff and the next thing I knew she was gone.
healthypenguins 19 points 10m ago
I’m sorry. We’ve had a few of these at my store, and after a couple of times I firmly but politely let them know that we don’t tolerate poor treatment of our baristas, and if it’s always wrong then maybe we need to reevaluate how it’s being ordered. If it’s still an issue, they can feel free to try another store in the area (but we also have a ton of nearby stores here.)
dnims24 [OP] 5 points 10m ago
Yeah we have a couple nearby as well. I asked how she hasn’t been banned from our store yet and one of my shifts just said everything needs to be documented (even though it has been many times).
danielkmathers 2 points 10m ago
“Need to reevaluate how it’s being ordered” is the politest “if everybody else is an asshole, maybe you’re the problem” I’ve ever heard.
healthypenguins 2 points 10m ago
I've gotten really good at that. Sometimes I know someone is being ridiculous/manipulative and I just have to wait it out for an opportunity like that too. Had a woman one time who was convinced her "floating foam latte" in a tall cup was going to taste different than a cappuccino, which is essentially what it was. I was new to the store, so I made it for her even though it was really ridiculous because she wanted the foam to be piled over the edge of the cup without a lid.
I would tell her every once in a while that we have a high enough turnover that we can't guarantee there will always be someone there who will know how to make it. And then she came in one day when I had a newer, young barista on bar and I conveniently went to the back and waited for him to come get me when she tried to explain the drink. I was able to use the fact he didn't feel comfortable making a hot drink like that without a lid to tell her, while I made it, that yes right and technically we're not supposed to serve beverages that way but we've been accommodating her. She ultimately decided not to come back because I didn't take her side, and nobody misses her.
I would tell her every once in a while that we have a high enough turnover that we can't guarantee there will always be someone there who will know how to make it. And then she came in one day when I had a newer, young barista on bar and I conveniently went to the back and waited for him to come get me when she tried to explain the drink. I was able to use the fact he didn't feel comfortable making a hot drink like that without a lid to tell her, while I made it, that yes right and technically we're not supposed to serve beverages that way but we've been accommodating her. She ultimately decided not to come back because I didn't take her side, and nobody misses her.
opalciara 1 points 10m ago
we have a customer who orders a tall cappuccino with one raw sugar- simple. she has her own 16oz cup she brings in for the discount- fine, excellent. every single person at our store has made her drink wrong at least once, and every time she comes in i walk in the back to avoid her cause she's so mean and just weird about the whole exchange. the other day i was on bar 2 when she came thru the lobby so i immediately gave it to my bar 1 partner to do cause i didnt have the patience.
she gets her drink from another partner (after accosting me when her drink wasnt out before the grande black cold brew that was ordered after her but whatever) and surprise surprise she complains. she takes a sip, shakes her head, and acts like a cartoon character who just bit into a cactus. she was like "ugh this is awful and there's not enough milk!" cause she likes her tall to really be a grande and she likes her cappuccino to really be a very wet cappuccino. so i turn to her and say "you get a tall right?" and the way she stopped dead in her tracks, looked me in my eyes, and said "what?" i asked her again, "you order a tall cappuccino right?" to which she replies very normally very on topic very not weird, with, "i have done this for 20 years. i know when my coffee is wrong." as if she knew i was calling her out on her bullshit for wanting basically a grande latte and being super fucking rude to the baristas who make her tall 1 raw sugar cappuccino as a tall 1 raw sugar cappuccino.
i firmly believe these people know exactly what theyre doing and they just dont give a shit. im no simp for the siren, but if customers could stop exploiting us, being outwardly aggressive to us, having zero common decency or basic etiquette, that would take so much stress off baristas. just treat us like humans and dont assume we're idiots cause we make your cappuccino a cappuccino
she gets her drink from another partner (after accosting me when her drink wasnt out before the grande black cold brew that was ordered after her but whatever) and surprise surprise she complains. she takes a sip, shakes her head, and acts like a cartoon character who just bit into a cactus. she was like "ugh this is awful and there's not enough milk!" cause she likes her tall to really be a grande and she likes her cappuccino to really be a very wet cappuccino. so i turn to her and say "you get a tall right?" and the way she stopped dead in her tracks, looked me in my eyes, and said "what?" i asked her again, "you order a tall cappuccino right?" to which she replies very normally very on topic very not weird, with, "i have done this for 20 years. i know when my coffee is wrong." as if she knew i was calling her out on her bullshit for wanting basically a grande latte and being super fucking rude to the baristas who make her tall 1 raw sugar cappuccino as a tall 1 raw sugar cappuccino.
i firmly believe these people know exactly what theyre doing and they just dont give a shit. im no simp for the siren, but if customers could stop exploiting us, being outwardly aggressive to us, having zero common decency or basic etiquette, that would take so much stress off baristas. just treat us like humans and dont assume we're idiots cause we make your cappuccino a cappuccino
dnims24 [OP] 1 points 10m ago
I’m so sorry but the “I’ve been coming here for 20 years” made me chuckle for some reason. But yeah I’m all seriousness some customers make me dread going in. This week I have all 4 hour shifts which I’m not quite sure how I feel about yet.
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