A user on TikTok has gone viral after claiming that a Starbucks worker put coffee in drinks she purchased for her 4- and 8-year-old children.
In a video with over 158,000 views, TikTok user Stella (@salty.stella) says she is creating the video to figure out if she had ordered something incorrectly or if the worker made a mistake.
“Starbucks just caffeinated my 4-year-old and my 8-year-old at 7pm at night, and I’m trying to figure out if I’m in the wrong here,” she starts.
@salty.stella I’m genuinely confused 🤷🏻♀️
♬ original sound – salty stella
As the video goes on, Stella explains that she treats her children “like twice a month” to Vanilla Bean Frappuccinos.
According to the Starbucks website, the ‘Vanilla Bean Crème Frappuccino’ is a “rich and creamy blend of vanilla bean, milk, and ice topped with whipped cream.” There is no caffeine unless a shot of espresso is added.
On this most recent trip, Stella says she ordered two “tall Vanilla Bean Frappuccinos.” While she notes that the employee looked “miserable” and messed up her iced coffee order, she says she let the incident slide. In her words, “I don’t care.”
But when she received her Vanilla Bean Frappuccinos, she says something immediately seemed suspect, noting that the drink appeared darker than the whipped cream on top. However, she says the frappuccino was still “a shade of white,” adding that the fact that it was dark outside could have altered her perception.
Later, one of her children complained that the frappuccino tasted different than it normally does. At that moment, Stella realized that the frappuccinos had, in fact, been made with coffee.
“I am so confused as to what happened. Am I missing information?” she asks. “Anyway, first world problems. Do something kind today.”
At first, some users said that Stella was in the wrong.
“frappuccinos have caffeine in them. you wanted the creme one,” wrote one user.
“Frapuccino’s have caffeine,” agreed another.
However, alleged current and former Starbucks employees soon chimed in to say that it was the employee’s mistake, not Stella’s.
“I used to be a store manager. They are not made with coffee unless you ask for it,” claimed a commenter.
“I’m a barista! This isn’t right, could be someone new? The ‘technical’ name is a vanilla bean créme, but it could have passed over their head?” offered a second.
“I used to work for Starbucks, the employees mess up all the time. yes there should be no caffeine in the vanilla bean,” added a third.
Starbucks has a range of non-caffeinated frappuccinos under the title of “Creme Frappuccinos.”
In the future, users advised Stella to mention “creme” specifically to avoid another, similar incident.
“Sometimes the[y] accidentally make a Cafe Vanilla frapp. Which has coffee. Say vanilla bean Crème frapp to be sure,” suggested a commenter.
The Daily Dot reached out to Starbucks via email and Stella via her website contact form.
