How to Properly Order Your Drink at Starbucks

From a Former Starbucks Barista

Image: Nicolle Howden on Pinterest

“Can I get a mediu- I mean a Grande…”

Okay let’s be real, we’ve all been there but as a former Starbucks Barista of over 3 years, I can tell you they do not actually care if you say small, medium, large, etc.

If you do want to make their lives easier while also relieving your intense social anxiety when placing an order, here’s what you need to know:

There’s Actually a Specific Order

Yes, there‘s a particular way to say the order for your favourite drink, even if it has one too many modifications (no judgement here).

Here are your steps to success, start with:

Image: product at amazon.ae

1. Decaf (if your drink isn’t decaf, skip this step)
2. Iced or Hot
3. Size (Short- hot only, Tall, Grande, Venti, Trenta- cold only)
4. Shots (Ex: blonde espresso, long, doppio or you can skip)
5. Syrup (vanilla, hazelnut, white mocha, or you can skip)
6. Milk (non-fat, almond, whole, or you can skip- default is 2%)
7. Custom (light ice, no whipped cream, or you can skip)
8. Drink Name

This might sound like a lot so let’s put it together and you’ll realize that you don’t need every step.

Example of My Favourite Drink:

“Could I please get an (1. skip the decaf) 2. iced, 3. grande, (4. skip the shots, 5. skip the syrup) 6. non-fat, 7. light ice, 8. caramel macchiato for Nolan?

Now here’s what it looks like but without the breakdown:

Could I please get an iced, grande, non-fat, light ice caramel macchiato for Nolan?

Here’s another example to order a common hot drink:

I’ll take a hot, grande, no-room, Americano for Nolan, please.

Why Does the Order Exist? Two Main Reasons:

1. The POS (Point of Sale) / till systems at Starbucks are designed for Baristas to ring in orders in a particular way. We could of course punch in your order no matter how you say it, but valuable time and backtracking will be saved by both parties if you say it in order.
2. If the store you go to still has the Barista’s write your order on the cup directly instead of the sticker, they will need to know from the beginning whether or not to grab a hot or cold cup and which size to start the process. If not, they’ll have to wait until you specify or have to ask you.

Now, I know some of you might think this is a bit extra and placing your order this way won’t make a big difference, and that’s partly true.

But, if you want to make your regular Starbucks Barista smile after they’ve been standing for 6 hours straight, burnt themselves multiple times with hot coffee and got yelled at by three different Karens, you will become one of our favourite customers.

I also can’t speak for all Starbucks globally, but this sure is the best method in cities all over Canada and the United States.

Congratulations, you‘re now certified in placing the perfect Starbucks Order!

Enjoy and have a great rest of your day!

Photo by Omar Lopez on Unsplash