Is there a proper way to order an Americano where they don’t fill it all the way to the brim with hot water? No matter how I explain it a barista always seems confused. In my mind it’s such a simple concept but I must be doing it wrong or it must be some sort of Americano faux pas. Help!

I have been part of a little community that has frequented Glenmore Landing GoodEarth coffee house for almost a decade, many have for nearly 2 decades, but most are finding new places. And I am going to encourage others to if I can.
I want to put out to the city and the company that allowing the new owner to not pay the baristas, to soft fire, by just removing their shifts and holding their T4s, when they try to approach this with you, is not okay or acceptable. Not long ago this practise would have never stood, it should not now.
Exploiting people who have the vulnerable enough circumstances to be forced to accept it, is disgustingly, unacceptable. In Canada and that means Alberta, we must uphold our standards of fair practice for everyone equally, in accordance with laws created for everyone residing in Canada.
When a person works for you they must be paid on time, in full, for their time; and any company that allows this treatment of their staff to continue, and allows the owner also to apply financial fines as punishment to her employees, whether it as Alberta Born franchise or not, should see their business fail as a result. These baristas are amazing, this treatment if them is deplorable. Not a very Good GoodEarth

I have an interview with Dunkin and was wondering what they like to ask/ how they want you to respond and how to look. I’m 26 and have worked several retail jobs. I currently work as a cashier at Harris Teeter, and if this job is to be part-time, that job would continue. So I definitely can talk about my experience with customers and how much I absolutely am passionate about helping people. That said, even though this is far from my first interview, I’m nervous because it seems like nowadays, companies are looking for very specific things in terms of image, and how people respond to interview questions.

I love coffee, but I’ve never worked as a barista. I’ve applied several times to multiple chains, but never got past the interview stage and don’t really know why. I actually got an interview with Dunkin months ago when I lived in a different town and worked as a substitute teacher. I told them this at the interview, but I told them that I was willing to work around that schedule. I still didn’t get the job even though they seemed to like me at the interview. Should I not talk about another part-time job?

Are you more hesitant to work for a cafe that has uniforms? What about checklists, pre designed music playlist and a script? I just started managing a space that does this and I fear it's scaring away talented people and creating a sterile environment for guest experience. But am I an outlier?

I’m not a barista I’ve just been wondering this for a while!

I go to the same cafe twice a week and order the exact same drink and exact same food. I appreciate that the baristas remember my order exactly, but I’ve also wondered if they ever make fun of or laugh at those of us who are eating and drinking the same thing all the time. Or thinking “wow, she orders that sugary drink twice a week?? Yuck”. Or is this my generalized anxiety disorder talking lol

Hey everyone!

The owner of my cafes/roastery wants me to do a deep dive into batching espresso for our iced drinks.

I figured the best first step is to see what people think when they hear “Batched Espresso”

Please respond to poll and expand on it in the comments if you feel like it!

I appreciate any input :)

Simple question: If you knew that a cafe was using batched espresso, would you order coffee there?

View Poll

Wtf is a Thai Chi latte? I just had a guy ask if I could make one and I said no but I could make a chai tea latte and he said 'no, nevermind'.... couldn't find anything about it online lol I'm so confused

i was talking with the owner of the shop i work at and suggesting that we use a local kids jam (we previously used his jam and it sold okay) mostly to make blueberry matchas and lattes etc (because any method of blueberry-fying stuff we’ve tried hasn’t worked)
in any case, his response to that was- “well we won’t be doing that because you’re all incompetent with keeping things in stock”. (literally JUST AVOCADOS AND BANANAS)
i was absolutely stunned that he said that to my face so obviously i was speechless. he laughed and said to the OTHER PEOPLE PRESENT “see? she doesn’t even have a response!”
then i stuttered my way through a response along the lines of “we aren’t respond for keeping things in stock”
again he laughed in my face and said “you wanna try that again?”

this is insane right? i’ve been working at this cafe for over two years (the second tenured employee there behind my manager) and we are all still treated like shit. this isn’t the first time the owner has been incredibly disrespectful but this was intentionally hurtful and my coworker called it bullying so idk man. he’s the reason i’ve applied to a bunch of other places.

and also this man knows NOTHING about coffee. he opened this place as a money grab p much

So I’ve been a barista for the past 7 years but have only worked at very slow specialty shops where I am the only one working so I’m essentially used to taking one order at a time and making very few drinks at once but I’ve started at a new shop where one person is on register and one is on bar so orders just constantly keep coming in and I’m having a hard time keeping up with that many drink orders during a rush. Any advice or tips would be helpful thank you.

Unpaid barista shifts, the manager stopped responding. What should I do?

So, the way I applied for this barista role was through a friend who visited the café. They gave me the manager’s number, so I messaged him. Probably about a week later, he called me and asked me to come in on a certain day for an interview.

It was a very informal interview. I sat down with him and talked about my previous experience, the hours I would be willing to work (3 days a week, 5 hours a day), etc. I didn’t have my CV with me. He then asked me about my pay expectations, and I mistakenly said that I “wouldn’t mind” regarding the salary.

A trial shift then came along, and he told me it would be unpaid. I was fine with that.

During the trial shift, I asked him again about the salary and said that anything between £13-£14 an hour would be reasonable, especially given my extensive hospitality experience, particularly in cafés. He responded with, “Money isn’t an issue.” We then said goodbye.

After that, he texted me asking me to come in for my first actual shift, which was on a Monday at 11am. I worked from 11am until 4pm.

Before I left that day, he told me to come in again the next day at the same time. So I came in on Tuesday at 11am. However, at around 2pm, he told me I could leave at 2:30pm because it wasn’t busy. I was fine with that.

Before leaving, I asked him again about my salary. He said we would talk about it next time and that we would keep in touch.

When I got home, I texted him to ask whether I was supposed to work the following day. He replied, “Hello, no you are not working tomorrow,” and that was it.

A week passed, and I decided to text him about my pay, rather than necessarily asking about whether I was still going to be working there. He didn’t reply.

Another week went by, so I sent another message, this time more formally, saying that I had yet to receive my pay and would like the matter to be resolved within 7 days.

This is very unprofessional, and I still haven’t heard anything. My last shift was the 21st of July.

At this point, I think he is ignoring my messages. As far as I understand, I am entitled to be paid for the 8.5 hours I actually worked, even though we never formally agreed on an exact hourly rate.

What should I do from here? Should I send another message, contact ACAS, or take some other route to recover the money?

Any advice would be appreciated.

I just applied to my local cafe ! not very local as its around 30 minutes away from me but id like some advice ! I am currently a full time college student looking for a part time job here. im 23 and this would be my first job....kinda late I know im ashamed of it... so since it's my first job I don't have any prior barista experience besides volunteer work with my church and an internship as a phlebotomist... im just over thinking about getting hired or just not qualified... I do enjoy drinking and going to cafes so Ive always had an interest in learning more about it.

I guess im just looking for advice because I would really love to work here :)

Hi guys - my espresso machine can only make 2 shots at a time and there are rushes where the line is out the door simply because of this.
Would it be psycho to pull some shots to then keep in the reach in, for the sole purpose of using for iced drinks during these rushes?
I don’t have any coffee snobs, but I also don’t want to sacrifice quality for speed.

Hi! I’m completely new to the world of espresso and could really use some advice!

I’m moving out in September to start university, and I’d like to get a proper espresso setup for my new place. I’ve never used a manual espresso machine before, but I’m really interested in learning. It sounds like a fun skill to pick up!

A few things about my preferences/situation:

* I prefer a **creamy, smooth espresso** and usually like to add a little milk, but not a lot.
* I’m interested in getting a **manual espresso machine + a separate grinder** rather than an automatic machine.
* At home, I currently use a **De’Longhi Magnifica S**, so that’s basically all my experience with making espresso.
* Since I’ll be starting university, I don’t want a setup that takes **an hour to make one coffee every morning**. I’m happy to learn and spend some time making coffee, but I’d still like it to be reasonably convenient once I get the hang of it.
* I’ll be living with two other girls, so I’m also wondering whether it would make sense to **split the cost and buy the setup together**, or if it’s better for everyone to have their own equipment.
* I’m looking for something **affordable and beginner-friendly**. I’ve seen the **De’Longhi Stilosa EC-230** recommended quite a bit, but I’m not sure if it’s actually a good choice or if there are better options around the same price.

So, what would you recommend for someone in my situation? I’d especially appreciate suggestions for a **machine + grinder combo that’s good for a beginner without being too expensive**.

Also, if you started with a manual setup, how difficult was it to learn and how long does it realistically take you to make a coffee now?

Thanks! :)