WARNING! DON’T MESS WITH MY COFFEE!

“Is that it?” “That All?” “Anything else?”

Aaaaarrrrrgggghhhhhhhhh!!!!! These three statements get under my skin like no other when going through a drive-thru. Let me start by saying that using one of those statements just ONCE at the end of an order may be acceptable… It is still highly unprofessional in my opinion but I can get over you asking me “That it?” at the end of my order. No, that’s not what we are here to talk about today. What we are here to talk about is the highly irritated, “My job sucks,” “FML,” “I’m so over it,” snippy drive-thru person who has nothing better to do then make my morning “Happy Moment” a miserable one.

Let me explain:

Every morning I sit through a good hour and a half of traffic (like most Americans). When I finally get off of the highway, I have approximately 3 miles that stand between me and my sweet sweet cup of Baby Jesus. I am not joking when I tell you that from the moment my Coffee touches my lips, it is like the Heavens open up, angels start singing, they make it rain delicious Sumatra Coffee Beans, and all is right in the world. Usually, the only thing I order is a Small/Medium Coffee (depending on which side of the bed I wake up on) and I keep it moving. However, every once in a while I yearn for a Chocolate Frosted Donut (this usually depends on something else. Heyyyyyy Mrs. Flow!). So this morning I pull up to the drive-thru and what transpires is this:

DTL (Drive-thru Lady): “What do you need?”

Me: “Good Morning, may I have a Small Iced Coffee with Cream and Sug….”

(Cut Off) DTL: “Is that it?”

Me: “Actually, I would also like sugar in my coffee please.”

DTL: “That it?”

Me: “No, may I also have a Chocolate Frosted Do…”

(Cut Off) DTL: “Anything else?”

Me: “Well, did you get the donut?”

DTL: “Yea. Pull around.”

Me: “Wait. I also need a regular white milk please.”

DTL: “K. Anything Else??” (Attitude in full gear at this point).

Me: “What I need is for you to stop cutting me off before I complete a sentence. Yes, that completes my order.”

(Silence) So I pull around. When I get to the window, the girl who took my order is not there. She has been replaced with a very polite lady who apologizes for the rudeness and only charges me for the milk. I say thank you and I drive off. I am annoyed and slightly heated after my experience and this frustrates me because my morning coffee stop is a sacred one. I take that shit seriously. My coffee sets me up for my whole day. It puts a smile on my face and gives me a sense of peace. Now for all you coffee haters out there, I am sure I sound like a crazed maniac right now. But for all my coffee addicts, you know exactly what I am talking about and we share a bond that can never be broken. So when someone tries interfering with my coffee routine, I get understandably perturbed and want to tell every small child I see that SANTA ISN’T REAL!!! This is just terribly insensitive… So you see how important it is to let me order my coffee without interruption or any kind of attitude.

Before I get bombarded with angry drive-thru workers who shout things like, “You don’t know what we deal with,” “Our job is so demanding,” “You try working a drive-thru for a week,” “You would never survive working a drive-thru,” and whatever else comes to mind in your moment of disbelief, I HAVE WORKED A DRIVE-THRU. In fact, I worked at one of the busiest Starbucks in the tri-state area for 4 years. Our Starbucks had a drive-thru and there was never a dull moment. The constant Bing!!! Of the headphones in my ear indicating there was a car ready to order is a sound I will never forget. Car after car, order after order: “Can I get 3 Triple Venti Non-fat, 3 Pump, No Whip Toffee Nut Lattes, 1 Red Eye, 2 Grande No Whip Caramel Frappuccino’s, and 3 Blueberry Scones?” The orders were long, complex, and more often than not we would get customers who didn’t really know what they were ordering and we had to explain what the difference was between a Latte and a Cappuccino. It was exhausting at times and there were moments I wanted to throw my headphones out the window… But I never did.

Professionalism. For me, this word stands for something; it means something. I have worked many jobs and most of them have not been glamorous. That never mattered to me. I took my jobs seriously. Maintaining a professional attitude was key for me no matter what job I was performing. Of course I had lots of laughs with my coworkers and joked about the Venti Non-fat Mocha Lady (She was always adamant about her Non-fat milk but wanted us to add 7 Sweet-and-Lows, extra mocha, and whip cream. Makes sense.) But I would do that on my own time and I never took my frustrations out on the customers.

It’s simple really. When someone comes through the drive-thru, you say “Welcome to (Insert place here), what can I get for you today?” Take a moment to listen to the customer’s order and when they pause you: A) Repeat the order back to them and B) You say, “Is there anything else I can get for you?” or “Does that complete your order?” It really isn’t a hard concept. I promise. And you just might get a well-deserved tip if you are polite and courteous to your customers. All it takes is a smile and a pleasant attitude to set someone up for a fantastic day. In turn, that person may reward you and the whole “Pay it forward” mantra will continue.

Moral of this story: Don’t mess with my coffee people. I am not responsible for my actions if you do. Cheers!!