A Starbucks customer says an employee of the chain yelled at them for being a minute early.
Brittany DiDo (@bdido_) posted a viral TikTok detailing her experience at a Starbucks drive-thru. Upon placing a mobile order, DiDo arrived at the store precisely one minute before the quoted completion time. Consequently, she says she was chewed out by a Starbucks worker for disrupting their drive-thru metrics.
Why you gotta be so rude?
“A Starbucks employee just told me that I was messing up their drive time,” she says at the top of the video. As she lifts a cup of coffee from her cupholder, she details what happened in the drive-thru.
“I just went to Starbucks and picked up two cake pops, egg bites, and this drink,” she says, tapping the iced beverage.
According to DiDo, her experience at the chain was akin to any other day she’d do business with them. This includes putting in a mobile order for a specific time. However, because she was sixty seconds early to pick it up, she was on the receiving end of some back sass.
“I mobile ordered it, like I usually do. And I pulled in the drive-thru 1 minute prior to when it said it was supposed to be ready,” she shares.
According to DiDo, this was not cool, and an employee at the chain admonished her for doing so.
“And they yelled at me. They told me that I needed to wait longer before coming. Or I need to come in and get my stuff,” she stated.
Continuing, she asked other viewers if she somehow broke a cardinal rule of mobile ordering etiquette.
“I was a minute early. I had to be there at 11:51 and I got there in the drive-thru I looked at my time, it was 11:50,” she says. “Where’s the problem, here? I’m confused.”
Drive-thru times are serious
The Daily Dot has previously written about the metrics many fast-food establishments measure in the drive-thru. The time customers spend waiting for their food after their order is placed is recorded to determine if it’s satisfactory. As a countermeasure, some fast food workers have come up with creative ways to fudge these numbers. Such as this employee who was recorded intermittently sticking a metal sheet outside of a drive-thru window.
This practice purportedly confuses the sensors used to count the number of vehicles that enter the drive-thru. Moreover, it also determines how much time each customer spends waiting in line. Tricking the system into thinking that more cars entered the drive-thru, decreases the overall average wait time.
Additionally, a Wendy’s employee went viral after purportedly declining a drive-thru customer’s request. That’s because the patron in question wanted to add an item after their order had been placed. Once they arrived at the pick-up window, they asked if they could add a Frosty. They were denied by the Wendy’s worker, who cited concerns over drive-thru time as the reason.
Starbucks turnaround time
A LinkedIn blog post by Neil Thompson, CSO of NextGen Kitchens wrote about the Seattle-based coffee chain’s obsession with time. He wrote that the company’s CEO, Brian Niccol wants every patron to receive their coffee in four minutes. It’s a feat that Thompson says could be achieved if Starbucks turns to Tim Horton’s for inspiration.
One key component the writer mentions is a drive-thru timer. According to him, while he was working at Tim Horton’s the data from these timers was invaluable. Employees soon became obsessed with besting their times by utilizing the info the system offered.
However, it appears that Starbucks already has a drive-thru timer system in place. One Redditor referenced the counter, saying it quickly became a point of stress during morning shifts.
“They want the car at the window waiting no longer than 50 seconds on average during peak at my store.. IT. SUCKS,” they penned.
TikTokers weigh in
One commenter who replied to DiDo’s post said they couldn’t understand why she’d place a drive-thru mobile order.
“I don’t understand mobile ordering in a drive thru, why not just order like normal at the drive thru? Whats the benefit?” they asked.
According to the TikToker, however, it had more to do with not wanting to speak her order aloud. “Not speaking my order to them lmao,” she said.
One person commented that while this does mess up a worker’s flow, it doesn’t excuse their behavior. “So, it does affect the drive thru time on their end because it’s not ready yet. They have to stop their sequence to make your things bc you’re holding up their line; they could be nicer about it!” they wrote.
@bdido_ Didnt mean to mess up the stores stats sorryyyy @Starbucks #starbucksbarista #starbucks #ohiomomma #ohiomom #ohiocheck #contentcreator #ohiocontentcreator ♬ original sound – Brittany DiDo
Others remarked that the mobile order time estimates are often off. “It may say it’s ready in 5-7 but that’s just an estimate the app gives,” they wrote. “The person doing mobile orders is also doing deliveries and cafe orders. So you may be behind 15 others.”
Another person echoed this sentiment. “The app isn’t accurate. We have too many orders coming out one machine at the same time.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Starbucks via email and DiDo via Instagram direct message for further information.
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