Working in a customer-facing role and serving the general public isn’t for the faint of heart and one Costa barista is at their wits’ end because of one annoying habit countless people seem to do
Coffee shops are a beloved high street staple, with everyone having their go-to spot. Whether it’s one of the recognisable chains like Costa, Starbucks, Caffe Nero and more dotted throughout Britain, or an independent venue, coffee remains a timeless, popular drink across the nation.
Visiting a coffee shop can offer a tranquil setting to step away from the hustle and bustle of a busy day, or to rest, or even to reconnect and catch up with a friend. They’re convenient spots to pause for a breather amid tackling errands, and they offer a vast array of caffeinated drinks which can help give people a much-needed energy boost.
However, this rosy picture doesn’t always reflect the experience of employees. It’s no secret that working in customer-facing positions is challenging, and interacting with the public throughout the day can be exhausting and wearing.
With that in mind, one Costa team member turned to Reddit to air their views on the customer habits they find most irritating.
In a thread titled “let’s all have a bit of a vent”, they said: “Now that things are returning to normal post Xmas and January slump, customers are once again losing their politeness and goodwill spirits and are up to their old annoyances. List off the single most annoying thing that customers do, I’ll start:
“Changing drink into takeaway once receiving their orders. Tell me at the till, or at the very least when you see me start to make your order.
“WE DO NOT CARE if you have a takeaway cup to sit in, if anything, that is preferable. Just please respect our time and care that is put into our drinks and know that when we have carefully made a drink in a glass/mug, it is then ruined when we tip it into a paper cup and every time it breaks me ever so slightly.”
So there you have it – if you’ve been switching your coffee order to take away when it’s already being made, you could unwittingly be annoying your barista!
The barista’s rant didn’t end there. They added: “Special shout-out to customers that have to catch a bus in two minutes, run in and expect me to push their order in front of the four people already queuing and waiting.”
The post sparked a flurry of comments from others keen to share their own experiences of working in coffee shops.
One fellow Costa employee said: “I’m at a drive thru and my only annoyance at the moment is having to list off every cake and toastie we have. Please be prepared if you’re in the drive thru.”
A second shared another drive-thru-related blunder: “When the passenger tries to order in the drive thru like please I can’t hear you just get the driver to say it”.
A third said: “People who ask for ‘Regular’ or ‘Normal’. Sorry those aren’t sizes. And everyone seems to have a different idea of what is regular and normal.”
An ex-barista listed a string of their gripes and finished with: “Why are you walking past the fridge FULL of toasties and sandwiches and asking me at the till what toasties we do???”
Someone else said: “The amount of times people would ask me for ‘a regular Costa’ and then would have the audacity to get annoyed at me for not knowing what they actually want when they don’t know themselves.”
Another added: “People who let their kids run around the shop, like hello, are you stupid?? There’s people carrying hot drinks!”
