Barista at Starbucks Could Not Make Iced Cappuccino

I really wish people would put this negative energy to good use rather
than trying to complain about things that do not exist!

(sigh)

It's already been said, but I'm going to jump on the bandwagon.

There.is.no.such.thing.as.an.iced.cappuccino.

At least, if we're talking about a real cappuccino, that is.

As far as what you're describing, I'm sure that the local 7-11 can
accommodate you.

What you wanted was a sweetened Iced Coffee Drink with milk, yes? At
Starbucks that would be an Iced Latte! I work at Starbuck.

Why are you mad at whoever trained them? The were RIGHT! A
cappuccino...a REAL cappuccino is not the kind you get from Dunkin
Donuts or the gas station. Those are more like lattes. A cappuccino
is steamed milk that has been free-poured so that there is a lot of
foam (steaming milk creates froth). A latte has little to no froth.
So because milk needs to be steamed in order to be foamed and
Starbucks uses cold milk for Iced drinks, you cannot make an Iced
Cappuccino and NO, Starbucks does NOT advertise them! Dunkin Donuts
might.

You owe the baristas an apology for giving them such a hard time! Not
only did you ask them to make something they can't make, you were
asking them to defy the laws of physics and go against health code by
adding milk to a shaker that is not supposed to TOUCH dairy!

First of all, I have to say that I don't buy these drinks - I think
they are a horrible waste of money when I can make a damn good cup of
coffee myself - anyway - How do you know it wasn't the employees first
day on the job? The trainer might have walked away for a moment to
deal with something else. Too many people make such snap judgements
about others without fully knowing the circumstances. The fact is,
you don't want to know the circumstances because you don't care enough
about other people to learn them; you do not have the capacity to feel
empathy for others - everything has become me, me, me and me- and THAT
my friends is what is WRONG with this country, and why it is going
down the crapper so quickly.

A Starbucks just opened in the new Target here, in Mentor, OH. They
have a Rolodex of recipes near the cash register.

I asked at the Starbucks webboard I frequent and got the answer that
an Iced Cappuccino is an "iced latte with foam on top with a dome
lid."

Also some baristas said at their particular store they are not allowed
to make them because of the health code.

Another barista added that she puts the foam in a separate container
for the customer to add themselves.

Are you serious??? I am sorry, but your way of handling this is quite
immature. Mistakes happen, and you could have just pointed that out
or write a suggestion note. They have those at starbucks. But
seriously, stop complaining about something that does NOT exist. Any
coffee shop, or anyone, who understands coffee would tell you that
iced cappuccino just simply does not exist. So really, choose
something else next time and stop being a baby about it.

So on one of my weekly trips to starbucks this morning I couldnt help
but look at the menu board and it does say hot or iced espresso drinks
and capucinno is on that list.

You technically cannot make an iced cappuccino. Cappuccinos are half
milk, half foam, and it's a health violation to add hot foam to cold
milk. Since there's no Dunkin Donuts around here, I'm assuming that
the "iced cappuccino" you get is what Starbucks calls "frappuccinos".

you see!! you my friend I admire you are not a FREELOADER and you
don't ask for free coffee or money back unlike someone who posted a
letter on this website ("Lack of Concern for Safety at Vistana
Villages") asking for a free night LMAO


but it's true I agree with you some places don't train. wal-mart is
one of them but I hope next time you get what you ask lol

I do hope everything turns out with your situation...

I too use starbucks as a rare treat, usually only to get their
seasonal or holiday flavors, things like that are not easy to screw
up.

Hi,
I agree with what most of you said, and I am grateful to you for the
difference between a cappuccino and a latte.
That said: Why is it on their sign, if they can't do it?

Most of my letters are complimentary. If I have a complaint, I try to
write a complimentary letter to another company so that the commenters
don't think I'm one of those whiny entitlement jerks. I'm ALWAYS
surprised that I get more comments on the complaints than I do on the
complimentary letters.

(by the way... saying that I didn't want stock options or huge gift
certificates is in the letter AND it's a gift to y'all; we're pretty
sick of the entitlement letters, aren't we?)

Paralegal....LOL

According to the drink recipe cards, my 3 years of working in a B&N
Cafe (serves Starbucks) and my recent Starbucks training (thanks to
transferring to a new store), when a customer orders an iced
cappuccino, they get an iced latte. You can't foam cold milk without
making it hot and putting hot foam (150-170 degrees) over ice is just
disgusting. I've also been told that in some places this is a health
code violation, but I cannot be positive about this.

Regardless, true cappuccinos are not meant to be consumed in the large
sizes offered anywhere. Cappuccinos are supposed to be equal parts
espresso, foam and milk. Or at least relatively close.

My suggestion to you, if you don't like so much milk (though I have a
sneaking suspision iced lattes is what you've been drinking all a
long, since as I said, the drink manual has them as one and the same),
as to add another shot of espresso. As a cappuccino drinker (a DRY
cappuccino drinker I might add), I generally get a triple or quad shot
of espresso when I get my "cappuccino" iced.

Also, in defense of the barista, I generally say the "we can do an
iced latte" bit as a question too. Not because I'm slow, not because
I'm stupid, not because I'm lacking in training (not saying I'm
perfect, I do mess up, but at the same time I am THE trainer), but
because I am asking you, without asking you, if that is an acceptable
alternative.

I would think in your position you would have learned how to make a
letter of complaint brief and to the point.
You spend multiple paragraphs explaining the situation with your iced
tea only to sum it up by adding, "My complaint isn't about the -1/3
cup of iced tea and +2/3 cup of ice, for $1.91. (Oh, if only the
vending machine at the front of the store had been working! - I could
have had a chilled diet peach Snapple for $1.25!) "

You ask for an explanation: The people may have been new and never
been asked for that. Not everyone is perfect and knows everything
about their job on the spot. I have had many really good bar tenders
not know how to make a certain drink (God Father) and it is nothing
against them even though it is a popular drink and uses common
ingredients. It would be nice if every worker that dealt with the
public could be trained to know everything about everything from day
one but such is life. Be realistic.

Don't worry, I am not mad at you. I am mad at the people who trained
you at your current position on how to communicate a complaint.

I admit I have had the ice problem before. My friend Lisa manages a
Starbucks, and she told me to ask for "light ice" so when I order the
white chocolate mocha (damn you Lisa!), I ask for one with no whip and
light ice.
I agree with another poster- they would have had to make you a regular
cappacino and just put ice in it. Yeah, the independant ones are
better- the ones in the store don't seem the same, even though
corporate says they are.
Starbucks is a treat- too many calories and spendy. My husband has me
hooked on JavaMonsters. They are a coffee and energy drink mix, half
the cost of Starbucks and a third of the calories!

I ran into a problem at my local Starbucks that was located inside a
Safeway grocery store. I came to find out that the employees in that
kiosk are actually employeed by Safeway, and not Starbucks. The way
the Safeway manager explained it to me is that Starbucks does the
initial training, but when new people are brought in the Safeway
employees train them with a manual. The people making (or NOT
making!) your drink are most likely employeed by the supermarket so
may I suggest that you write a letter to the supermarket, indicating
which location you were visiting, and allow the store manager to
address this issue with his employees. Good luck!

You are pissed that they didn't have a iced cappuccinos yet you wished
they had a vending machine that was working so you can get a DIET
snapple? Boy, maybe it is good you couldn't get the iced cappuccinos
because that has nearly a day's worth of calories in it. One other
reason Starbucks sucks - their employees are incompetent and rude and
they make everyone fat who drinks it. I cringe when I see people
drinking Starbucks - It drains their wallet and turns them into huge
blimps.

I hate Starbucks. I have yet to find anything there I like. It all
tastes scorched to me.

However, I have come to realize, and been told by people who do like
Starbucks, that the only ones that are any good are the freestanding
Starbucks. The one located inside other stores are far lacking for
some reason.

Starbucks intimidates me for some reason. Probably because I never
know what I want and people always seem to be in a hurry there. LOL!


If you mis-understood, I have no idea. I get lost just walking into a
Starbucks.

Rebekah,
This appears to be a local issue.
What did the Store Manager say and do when you brought this to their
attention?
Training issue or not there are bits and pieces of this that the
Manager will be better off knowing than not.
You crack me up when you state that you are not looking for stock
options or huge gift certificates.
Taking a picture of the sign is a strange touch..
Maybe watching a little too much Law and Order or Judge Judy?
Though you state that you very seldom frequent Starbucks my bet is
that they will get back to you as they have not gotten to where they
are by not satisfying their customers.
Do stop back and let us know what comes of your letter.
BillR.

It's all in the steamed milk. It's hot, it would have melted the ice.
Therefore, you get an iced latte, w/o steamed milk. I am going to
assume the Barista was just trying to not make you look like an idiot
in public, and seemed to do a good job.

"If there's more difference than that, I'd like to know what it is."

The difference is this: the steamed milk to frothed milk ratio. Since
a drink being iced eliminates the steam part and the froth part, an
iced cappuccino and an iced latte are essentially the same drink.
Maybe the barista didn't want to sound like a smarty pants telling you
this, or maybe you really had her confused.
Often, donut shops will serve an "iced cappuccino" drink that is made
with syrup. I find them kind of gross, but my husband loves them. They
are very sweet, and don't taste as milky. Maybe this is what you had
in mind?

Cahnces are, if you have ordered an iced cappucino in the past, the
barista actually made you an iced latte.In my experience, if we serve
someone a cold drink with the 1/2 to 1/3 cup of froth that makes the
cap, it would be handed back. More than likely, DD makes their
"cappucinos" with a powdered mix, no froth.

Actually, if you look at the Starbucks menu
http://www.starbucks.com/retail/beverages_lineup.asp?subcat={E844139E-
AE93-44A7-844C-C29D35D5EFB0}

There isn't an iced capp listed.
I know at Tim Horton's they have an iced capp, but it's a syrup that's
frozen and mixed with milk - not a real iced capp.

I don't often drink coffee, either, but if I order something and the
cashier/barista don't seem to know what they're doing--skip it.

I'm guessing that your supermarket has cold drinks available at the
checkout. You could have checked the coolers for your Snapple.

A cappuccino at Starbucks is made up of espresso and foam...there's
very little liquid in the drink..that's probably why your request
caused the barista some pause.

What they should have done was simply made you a regular cappuccino
and put ice in it for you.