| jACEDesignsLtd | 07-21-2012 10:03 AM |
Starbucks - Tips and Tricks, share
Just got my gold card in the mail. WTF? didn't know this program was going on; I just use my SB card. So I looked up online and found this page Quote:
-Need a smaller drink? Order a "Short". The short is 8-ounces and is priced significantly lower than a tall.
-Dog treats? Order a "Puppy Latte" (aka "Puppicinno"). It is whipped cream in a sample cup. They are free (or at least at most locations, if not, they would be pennies).
-Want a latte without the espresso? Sometimes you need the taste of one of their lattes, but you don't want the espresso. Order it as a steamer. A steamer is just steamed milk to which you can add any pumps of flavor you want.
-Is your drink too sweet? Order it with fewer pumps. The sweet is in the pumps, so if you reduce your pump count by one, you can reduce the sweetness. For example, the recipe for a white mocha has 3 pumps for a tall, 4 pumps for a grande, and 5 pumps for a venti.
-Want a frappuccino but not the fat or caffeine? With the new frappuccino blends they are using as of last summer they can now make a non-fat and/or decaf frappuccino. Prior to the change that wasn't possible.
-Want a unique chai? They can make any tea into a chai tea latte. My wife does say that you don't want to do this with the Passion tea as the hibiscus in the tea blend will cause milk to curdle. My wife's recommendation would be to order a "London Fog." The corporate stores will know how to make that.
-Need Wi-Fi? Wi-Fi is free now at Starbucks stores. It also allows access to some premium content such as the Wall Street Journal.
-Have extra foreign currency? Before you leave the country stop at a Starbucks and load up your Starbucks card with all your left over currency. That converts at rate to your home currency without bank fees.
-[Added 3/2/11] Drink doesn't taste right/don't like what you ordered? At most corporate stores in the US/Canada you can try new pump combinations and drinks with no risk. If in the first few sips you don't like the taste tell the barista and they will remake the drink. If you just don't like the drink because you tried something new tell them what you don't like about it and they should make you something else using what you don't like as a guide to something that would better fit your palate.
-[Added 3/2/11] Need a quick shot without the latte price? Order a "solo espresso in a tall (or short) cup". They will put the shot in the cup and you can fill the rest of the cup with milk and sugar as needed. This is priced about the same as an Americano, which is a shot of espresso and then the cup is filled with water.
-[Added 3/2/11] Need to save cash when having a get together at a store? If you and several friends want to enjoy brewed coffee you can order a "coffee press" which will serve about 8 cups of coffee and is cheaper than ordering all those cups separately.
There are a couple of others that I want to touch on, but they didn't really fit into the above.
-Know the difference between a corporate store and a licencee store. A Starbucks in Target, Barnes & Noble, Safeway, etc is not a corporate store. The people working those stores do not go through the same level of training and those stores are the last to get any new products. The people working at, for example, Safeway Starbucks kiosks are employees of Safeway and are often borrowed from other departments like the deli department.
-Get a Starbucks card and register it. Yes, it is a rewards program and you do have minimum qualification levels, but it gives you discounts and free drink coupons. Additionally, you will need the card for the foreign currency trick and having it registered allows you to track the balance.
As I detailed in a thread in the Delta forum, Starbucks owns Seattle's Best, so many of these tips and tricks will work at Seattle's Best as well. However the lingo may be a bit different depending on what you are ordering.'']
Starbucks Tips and Tricks | milepoint
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Anyhow, the changing the currency one I never thought of. Will do, as I travel frequently to the US. My bank doesn't like to convert US coins.
And if you have a registered card, charge the drinks separately as each individual transaction to earn your stars way easier. E.g. Buying 2 lattes, ask barista to do 2 transactions. | 