English Professor Kicked out of Starbucks for Refusing to Use Starbucks’ Jargon

Yeah, Starbucks’s lingo is a pain, and I can understand not wanting to use it. But do you have to be such an ass about it?

I believe in standing up for your principles. But is “the way I order something from a fast food joint” really a principle worth embarrassing yourself over?

Just do what I do: don’t go to Starbucks.

While I agree with her sentiment, she must be a real pain to get thrown out.

I’ve only been to Starbucks while traveling, but in quite a few cities I’ve ordered their coffee in, I’ve never had a barista insist on using their jargon. If I order a small coffee, they just give it to me. Either I have “tourist” written on my face, or most people who work there are flexible and accommodating.

I think she was just being a dork. English is not a fixed language, nor is any other, for that matter. There’s no such thing as “correct” language because anyone is free to make up words and lingo and if you don’t like it don’t talk to them.

New York City where you can always find an argument to get into.

She is full of it. Starbucks policy is not to hassle people about the stupid names for things. I have never ordered a “tall” or “vente” coffee – I always ask for large or medium – never hassled or corrected once. Why does whether you want butter or cheese matter so much to this clown? If you go to Joe’s Diner and order a cuppa joe, and Balnche the waitress says “cream or sugar?” would you make a big speech about not having to specify what you DIDN’T want? If so, Blanche and Joe would likely bounce you on the sidewalk, and you would deserve it.

In any case, she shares my Jerk of the Week award with the JetBlue clown.

I don’t get why people are so snarky about using Starbucks’ terminology. I mean, you don’t go into McDonalds and order a small medium or large hamburger, you ask for either a hamburger, Quarter Pounder or a Big Mac. No one seems to find anything wrong with this. So at Starbucks, your medium sized coffee is a venti – why does that raise so much ire?

This reminds me of the Ill Pill Press cartoon about Starbucks. I bet that squirrels rant kicked this guys ass.

Being a professor does not grant you the right to behave like an asshole…

If you’re in Manhattan, why the hell are you going to Starbucks for a bagel in the first place?

Gotta say I’ve been using standard English when determining the size of coffee I want for years now. No repercussions so far. Just from the brief of this article, I imagine that the prof simply refused to specify if she wanted it without the toppings just to be difficult. One thing to insist on speaking non-jargon English; another to just be difficult about it.

This subject always makes me think of the following clip…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkpDEn7mGVY

I used their terms when ordering coffee because I want the transaction to go as quickly as possible and I don’t really give a sh*t if they’re using improper english. This is not a crusade I find particularly important, I guess.

I also refuse to use Starbucks slang. But I go about it in a much different manner. I refuse to patronize the place.
Go to an actual local cafe and order a regular coffee.

If a clerk asks you for something you don’t want, why not simply say “No thank you.”?

The clerks don’t want to have to ask you this stuff, but they are required to do it, so why unload on them? Just say “No thank you.” in a pleasant voice and move on with your life.

I would imagine the reason that Starbucks uses Tall, Grande and Venti is because their coffee is very epensive. They probably don’t want people saying “I just paid several dollars for a small cup of coffee”.

This is epic fail. This so called English professor is ignorant of the fact that English as a language is constantly changing and evolving. Pop culture influences like Starbucks have a part tp play in that change. Obviously the professor has become set in her ways and therefore would not be a very interesting teacher. This is the kind of behaviour I expect from internet trolls not college preofessors.

I lived in Seattle through the 90′s and I remember first moving there. Starbucks was common but not nearly as ubiquitous it is now. Grande was, at first, nonexistent. There was just “short” and “tall”. You can still get a short sized drink if you ask for it.

It seemed to me that the terms “tall” and “short” were local shorthand for the available sizes regardless of whether the espresso shop (or shack) was Starbucks or any number of other coffee startups.

I’d been to many bars across the region where I could order a “tall one” or a “short one” and receive the sized beer that I wanted. Nothing to do with Starbucks there.

So it seems to me that as Starbucks expanded out of the Northwest U.S., “short” and “tall” made them distinctive. Grande and ultimately venti continued that distinction.

Lastly, lattes in Boston stink. I miss you Diva Espresso in Greenwood!

Waiting for my lesson in proper usage of quotations,

-V

I rarely go to Starbucks, but at Chipotle three people in a row asked me if my order was to go or eat in. I answered each of them clearly. Then they ignored my request to eat-in.
At Taco Belle they always say “Can I take your order” and after a couple of words they always interrupt me to ask if it is to go or eat in. One of the workers told me they are trained to do it that way.

As a Starbucks barista I have issue with not only the stuffy prof, but with the barista.

Starbucks policy is basically “Just say yes,” meaning, whatever the customer wants, we’ll do it for them. If she just wanted a plain bagel, then she should have been given the standard, which is with cream cheese. The barista should not have egged the customer on.

English professor aside, why be such a nasty human being?! Life doesn’t revolve around you, so suck it up like the rest of humanity and compromise. It’s a few words in exchange for coffee and a bite to eat.

To clarify, “venti” does mean twenty in some languages; a “venti” sized drink is 20oz. (Iced Venti drinks are 24oz, so rather than saying “ventiquattro,” it is kept “venti”)

And as much as I love working for Starbucks, I’d say go to a different coffee shop if you’ve had repeated problems with the jargon!

Coffee is extremely cheap to import and extremely easy to brew. Why people keep falling for the fake$$ inflation, thinking it somehow equals better quality, is beyond me.
Stop being so gullible for starbucks, people! I wish I could reach inside your brains and unscramble the stupid.

Yeah this is all about respecting other people (not to sound like an idiot) the customer should be polite to the staff and vica versa – I used to work in retail and a bit of politeness made your day so much easier, especially when you had stock phrases to repeat 1000000 times a day! If you have to go to a big chain just try to be nice to the poor unfortunate staff members; store policy is hardly their fault!

Anyway, here in Ireland people are pretty forgiving about lingo, for instance, we say “chips” instead of fries and even McDs don’t get annoyed when we ask for a small chips with our burger ^_^ Starbucks are only just making inroads here in the last 5 years or so and I’ve heard people saying small/medium/large and tall/grande/venti and being served just the same.

It isn’t a matter of not using Starbucks jargon… The bagels come with butter or cheese, and the woman refused to say what she wanted (or in this case did not want) on her bagel.

I like ordering a 20oz coffee, just to see what happens.

used to work in a coffee joint, i remember someone ordered a ‘macchiato’, and my snarky coworker gave them one – that is, straight espresso poured through milk foam. girl was *not* happy.

Why would anyone go to that place to get ripped off anyway? Their prices are just stupid.

I’ve always assumed that it was because I live in central Kentucky that my local Starbucks doesn’t care when I say “medium.” I’m glad to know it’s a common thing. My favorite though is to rattle off a long drink around here. If I order a “single grande, 5-pump rasberry, 2-pump chai, organic, no water chai,” I will get a different drink every time.

It ain’t news until the barista goes Steven Slater on said customer’s ass.