Picky People Shouldn't Be Allowed in Public

I wasn't going to write tonight but given tonight's shift, I feel inclined to. This is something I've needed to get off my chest for a while: picky people drive me absolutely nuts. It's not really the ones with a lot of requests (ie: the skinny mocha, light on the mocha, lots of foam) kind of people, but rather the ones who have simple requests (ie: a chocolate chip cookie or iced coffee) and then find fault in such a simple thing. The former group of people make me feel like I'm actually doing my job, they are my little bit of a challenge in a fairly easy job. So let me enlighten you on what happened tonight:

My coworker, Mike, and I are serving this couple, both of whom order small iced coffees. Five minutes later, the boyfriend/husband comes in and says his iced coffee just isn't right. Well of course, we accommodate him with an iced americano (for the non-coffee intelligent that's shots of espresso + water). It's the closest thing we can do without just pouring hot coffee over ice. So everything's hunky dory until he comes back and says that his wife noticed that her's was a bit off as well. Ok that made sense seeing as they both got iced coffee. Here's the weird part- I tasted the iced coffee later to see what was wrong. ABSOLUTELY FREAKING NOTHING. The coffee tasted exactly as it always did; it tasted as it should. Mike tried it and also found there was nothing wrong with it. Another customer even had some and couldn't understand what was wrong- he thought it was delicious! So I guess they were hoping for something else when they asked for iced coffee. I'm not really sure.

Believe me, this is not a one-time sort of picky either. Living in the part of Pittsburgh that I do, we have a lot of wealthier people who believe they should get EXACTLY what they want, even if that's just not possible every hour of every day. Sorry, if we bake in the morning, you probably just won't have fresh chocolate chip cookies at 8 pm. Nor do we bake the same things everyday, but rather when they get low/run out. So maybe we have brownies in the case for a day or two. The thing is, how long do people let home-made cookies and brownies stay around at home? If it's been three or four days since you made cookies at home, you would still eat them, right? This isn't crazy, right? Of course, I can't say that to a customer, which is why, I guess, I'm saying it to you guys. But seriously- we have one lady (we'll call her Alpaca based on her camildae-esque manners) who not only turns her nose up at cookies which weren't made on the day she comes in, but also expects a refund if she deems them insufficient. ARE YOU KIDDING?

I tell ya what. Picky people. They need a reality check. Anyone who has similar situations, feel free to comment.


DRINK OF THE DAY:
Iced Green Tea. It's just so delicious!!

I Smell Like Coffee....Always

Just to inform everyone- I'm a barista at Uptown Coffee, a small coffee shop in Pittsburgh, for the summer. This is the second cafe I've worked in, and I've almost exclusively been working in them while I'm home, and even when I studied in Scotland, for the past three or four years. I love working with coffee, and let's face it, I'm good at it. Here's the rub: when not working, I still smell like coffee. I wouldn't mind so much if I didn't need to see other people. I honestly think I sweat coffee now- which doesn't help when it's almost 90 degrees outside. It's like that guy from Peanuts (Pigsty I think- you know the one with just dirt and bugs around him always) except instead of dirt, I just have a haze of coffee essence around my being at all times. It's something those who love me have just learned to accept.

Let's discuss the humble beginnings of my relationship with coffee. Flashback to the year 2000 (remember Y2K???). There I was, a 10 year old in Indiana, and 'working' for my grandmother at her gift store. She also (still) roasts here own coffee, which she sold at the store. One day she offered me some to relieve my headache. I've been hooked ever since. Lattes and mochas and cappuccinos and frappiccinos and all that crap didn't exist to mainstream America yet, I don't think. No. Just straight up, working man's coffee. I was in love. I loved the smell (probably because I didn't smell like coffee myself yet), the taste, the complexities. Some may say that it's bad how much I drink (what's wrong with 4 or 5 cups a day?) but hey, I'm a college student, and coffee has been the drink of the intellectual for centuries. Thank you, Enlightenment.

It's not like caffeine does anything weird to me

But just real quick- I'd like to mention that I greatly dislike INSTANT coffee. It is the worst thing that's ever happened to my favorite drink (ok maybe wine is my favorite but I just don't drink it quite as often). Who wants weird little bits of gross coffee floating around in their mug- and you all know you can never dissolve all of it. It's just not good. My dad disagrees, and likes putting instant coffee in heated up milk. This is a 'milky coffee'....I guess? I still think it's gross.

 I guess that concludes my first blog post. Stay tuned for more coffee rants!

DRINK OF THE DAY:

Iced hazelnut coffee with a splash of soy milk. It's been super hot in the Burgh lately so iced drinks are a necessity.