• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI

2

Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 

3

Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis

1

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI

2

Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 

3

Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis
LifestyleStarbucks

‘We have GOT to get paid more’: Starbucks workers fed up with Gen Z ‘hacking’ the menu with complicated drinks orders they see on TikTok

By
Chloe Taylor
Chloe Taylor
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Chloe Taylor
Chloe Taylor
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 15, 2022, 4:30 AM ET
A Starbucks barista prepares a drink at a Starbucks coffee shop in New York on January 13, 2010.
Starbucks workers are fed up with customers ‘hacking’ the menu with complicated orders.Ramin Talaie/Corbis via Getty Images

Social media is rife with so-called Starbucks “hacks” that involve convoluted recipes aimed at slashing prices or opening up secret menu options.

The hashtag #starbuckshack has almost half a billion views on TikTok alone, and social media accounts dedicated to the detailing of formulas for drinks that aren’t actually on the menu at Starbucks have thousands of followers.

However, many Starbucks workers are fed up with customers walking into their stores and ordering made-up drinks they’ve seen on social media—many of which the staff themselves have never heard of.

Last month, the Starbucks Workers United union vented its frustration toward those intricate orders, suggesting in a tweet that the company wasn’t paying its employees enough to be dealing with increasingly time-consuming orders.

We have GOT to get paid more https://t.co/nqUMElhqzM

— Starbucks Workers United (@SBWorkersUnited) September 9, 2022

A spokesperson for Starbucks was not available for comment when contacted by Fortune.

‘It brings me to a screeching halt’

Many Starbucks employees have spoken publicly about their hate of having to fulfill tailor-made orders that comply with customers’ whims rather than what they’ve been trained to do.

One barista who works at a Starbucks in Kentucky told U.S. food publication Eater this week that around a quarter of the drinks she makes have some form of customization, adding that customers often didn’t consider that staff hadn’t actually heard of so-called “secret menu” items before.

“A customer ordered a blended latte with strawberry cold foam by a secret menu name, and when I handed it out, they said, ‘That’s not what it looks like’ and showed it to me on their phone,” she said.

“It brings me to a screeching halt, trying to figure out what they want, how to make it, actually making it, and more times than not, remaking it, both because I messed up somewhere or because the person sent it back—either because it didn’t look like the pictures they had or because they didn’t like the taste.”

Another Starbucks barista, who has worked at stores in New York and Ohio, told Eater around two-thirds of the drinks he has to make are “a hack drink or a TikTok drink.”

“I have begun to unironically dread seeing younger customers come into the store,” he said, noting that the number of specialty drinks being ordered had increased over the past year and were becoming increasingly complex.

At the end of September, a stressed-out Starbucks employee’s TikTok video urging customers to stop trying to game the system went viral.

“Just get a Pumpkin Spice Latte,” he said, explaining that menu “hacks” are creating tough working conditions for the coffee chain’s baristas.

Last week, another barista’s TikTok video racked up more than 4.2 million views, with the woman revealing she and her colleagues had canceled an order because a customer purchased a 5-cent bag on the Starbucks app and then placed their entire order in the “extra request” section in a bid to drastically reduce the price of their drink.  

However, some baristas are on board with the growing menu hack trend, sharing their own content online that tips coffee fans off on how to open up more or cheaper menu options.

Sign up for the Fortune Features email list so you don’t miss our biggest features, exclusive interviews, and investigations.
About the Author
By Chloe Taylor
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Lifestyle

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Lifestyle

hoeg
HealthFDA
RFK ally confirms she was fired by FDA: ‘I learned so much and leave with no regrets’
By Matthew Perrone and The Associated PressMay 16, 2026
18 hours ago
tom
SuccessEntrepreneurs
Top Chef’s Tom Colicchio got a 15x return on a tech company most Americans have never heard of. He thinks his own industry is broken
By Nick LichtenbergMay 16, 2026
20 hours ago
lawyer
CommentaryLaw
Would you hire the lawyer who just got sanctioned for using AI?
By Alexandra SmythMay 16, 2026
21 hours ago
jensen
Travel & LeisureChina
‘It’s so good’: Jensen Huang enjoys Beijing delicacies on trip with Trump
By The Associated PressMay 15, 2026
2 days ago
lori
Commentarymental health
I run Valvoline Instant Oil Change and work with young people every day. They’re in crisis—and we all have to try to help
By Lori FleesMay 15, 2026
2 days ago
Claude is telling users to go to sleep mid-session and nobody, including Anthropic, seems to fully understand why it keeps doing it
AITech
Claude is telling users to go to sleep mid-session and nobody, including Anthropic, seems to fully understand why it keeps doing it
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 14, 2026
2 days ago

Most Popular

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
AI
Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
19 hours ago
Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 
Politics
Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 
By Jason MaMay 16, 2026
10 hours ago
Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis
Future of Work
Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
23 hours ago
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
4 days ago
‘You’re not a hero, you’re a liability’: Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary warns Gen Z founders to stop glorifying hustle culture
Future of Work
‘You’re not a hero, you’re a liability’: Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary warns Gen Z founders to stop glorifying hustle culture
By Jacqueline MunisMay 16, 2026
20 hours ago
Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that
Success
Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that
By Preston ForeMay 13, 2026
4 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.