Ask a Starbucks Barista anything

164 Questions

Last Answer on June 12, 2016

How much money did starbucks pay to their employees in 2013?

Asked by sukhdev Singh Badayak over 11 years ago

I do not know.

At the time of my employment in 2011, I was making 15 cents over the federal minimum wage (so $7.40). That will change depending on experience, employement level (barista vs manager) and location.

955 Votes

Does Starbucks hire people over the age of 30?

Asked by carmoore11 almost 12 years ago

Yes, I had several coworkers over the age of 50 and knew of many others at other locations.

949 Votes

So you wanna work in Food Services?

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Do you think I could handle a part time Starbucks job while in high school?

Asked by HS almost 12 years ago

I think that is entirely dependant on your ability to juggle work and school. Many people find they are able to do it. I managed to work full-time in a career job as well as 20 hours a week at Starbucks.

947 Votes

how do you apply for a job at a new location that hasn't opened yet? I can't seem to find it online and every time I ask an employee or manager they say check online.

Asked by Jess about 11 years ago

If it's not online yet, it's probably because they're not hiring yet. In my experience, Starbucks has been really good at maintaining their online system. They really only need to hire about a month in advance of the store's opening. So keep checking!

Alternatively they may only be transferring current partners to that store, but that seems unlikely to me.

946 Votes

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What are the best kind of shoes to wear on the job?

Asked by lulz almost 12 years ago

Comfortable, closed toed (and in the case of Starbucks, black or white) ones. I wore ones that had thick soles since I was standing on concrete most of the day, but any comfortable ones should be good.

944 Votes

How long did you get trained to be considered an official barista? Are there a certain amount of hours you must have in order to be considered a barista?

Asked by anonymous about 12 years ago

It's the standard training of two weeks (I think) to be considered a barista. Unlike in other coffee shops, all low level employees are called baristas once they complete the training.

939 Votes

I can never decide on what I want when I get to go to Starbucks. Any advice on how to never feel like what you got was not the best thing for you on the menu?

Asked by 123 over 11 years ago

You have a lot of options, and you really have to know what's best for you. If you want milk, get a milk based drink (latte, cappucino, frappucino). If you want a lot of caffeine, get a cup of regular drip coffee and add an espresso shot. If you like sweet, get something with a lot of syrup in it or add more (trust me, we've seen 24 pumps of syrup before so it's not going to freak us out).

Starbucks has such a wide variety of customers, it's hard to suggest something. I'm more than happen to recommend but I don't know anything about you... Do you like/hate paricular flavors? What do you usually drink from restaurants or pick up at the grocery store?

Some of my personal favorites aside from straight tea or coffee (keep in mind I dislike too much sweet): a steamed soy milk, hazelnut white mocha (1 h, 1 wm), coconut creme frappucino, passion tea lemonade (no syrup) and I really like the Refreshers (no syrup)

Also reference http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/ to see if there is any drink in there you like. However, DON'T ask for it by the name on the "secret menu" (really, there isn't a secret menu that Sbux maintains, I still have no clue what a Double Dalmation or a Fruity Pebbles is) and just order it by the listed ingredients. Example:

For the Mexican Hot Chocolate (http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/mexican-hot-chocolate-starbucks-secret-menu/), order a hot chocolate with soy milk, 1 pump mocha, 1 pump white chocolate mocha, 1 pump cinnamon dolce and add cinnamon powder yourself. (I'm pretty sure it's Starbucks policy not to add any powders while steaming milk).

939 Votes