I first have to confess that I do not remember ever being a victim of bad barista attitude. I'm pretty adventurous when it comes to trying new shops. So, I've been the victim of plenty of bad coffee, which usually means poor training, but even my worst espressos have been served with good cheer.

However, the number of other people's "attitude" complaints is simply too large to write it up to their imaginations or thin skins. Maybe my gray hair shields me from the worst.

Anyway, I get together occasionally with coffee industry friends to discuss issues like this, and this week our topic is this exact problem.

Would people care to share their bad attitude experiences and, if you can, what you think may have triggered it? Do you think you contributed in any way to what happened? Thanks.

My experience has been much like yours. I've had a lot of bad coffee but rarely seen a bad attitude in coffee shops. Considering that there must be a few people here and there having truly bad days or really hating their job.. I've had really good experiences. The worst I've seen is a few people looking frayed around the edges (not really a bad attitude) or one person rolling their eyes because I asked if they had any coffee beans that were less than a week old.

I experience this quite often, maybe 3 times a week.

Maybe it was due to a bad night's sleep, or the dog peed on the floor, or the shot poured too fast, or the milk didn't come out right. The barista was so annoyed it was obvious, and I thought that maybe he was going to start throwing things.

Oh, crap, maybe I misunderstood. I thought we could include our own bad selves, making drinks first thing in the morning.

ken

Ken Fox wrote:Oh, crap, maybe I misunderstood. I thought we could include our own bad selves, making drinks first thing in the morning.

!#%^@$&#% reservoir out of water in the middle of the shot
@#$^Y@&$#@$ steam boiler filling in the middle of the shot

My experience is the same as yours, Marshall.

I did witness some appalling owner behaviour during so-called barista training over the weekend, though. Ironically (although perhaps not surprisingly) the owner has no idea how to keep their grinder clean, never mind pull a decent shot, but they managed to pull some really overbearing and humiliating behaviour on the barista, who did amazingly manage to keep her cool (and pay packet).

Cheers

Mike

I'm a little surprised by the question. What I mean is this: how many people here deal with the actual barista?

In most cafes, I stand in line at the cashier, give my order, leave a tip, and wait for my name to be called. Sometimes, rarely, when I order a straight shot, the barista makes interrogative eye contact when I pick up the shot. In that case, I'll take a sip and give a polite critique. But mostly, they are already busy with the next order by the time I arrive to pick mine up. In those cases, I don't give feedback unless the shot is very good.

If this is the typical way cafe purchases happen, how can bad attitude play a part?

I suspect that the reproach of bad attitude comes into play when the customer makes a request the staff believe is exploitive. Then we, hearing the report, have to decide whether the customer was exploitive or the staff was too rigid.

However, this may not be as simple as it sounds.

For instance, someone asking for a the cheapest small coffee in the largest possible container, then filling it with half and half, is ripping the store off. Turning that customer down is not bad attitude. On the other hand, if a customer wants a drink in a cup larger than the usual one, but without subsequently abusing the condiments counter, her getting turned down probably does show bad attitude. Unfortunately, there is no way to tell ahead of time which customer is which.

I think you might need to pose this question in a more detailed and specific way.

another_jim wrote:I suspect that the reproach of bad attitude comes into play when the customer makes a request the staff believe is exploitive. Then we, hearing the report, have to decide whether the customer was exploitive or the staff was too rigid.

However, this may not be as simple as it sounds.

For instance, someone asking for a the cheapest small coffee in the largest possible container, then filling it with half and half, is ripping the store off. Turning that customer down is not bad attitude. On the other hand, if a customer wants a drink in a cup larger than the usual one, but without subsequently abusing the condiments counter, her getting turned down probably does show bad attitude. Unfortunately, there is no way to tell ahead of time which customer is which.

I think you might need to pose this question in a more detailed and specific way.

If I were the manager (or owner) I wouldn't allow my employees to make these judgement calls. Is the customer who fills his large cup with half and half really ripping the cafe off? I wouldn't think so. Overhead is not as simple as a container of milk. I would rather have that customer come in day after day for their cheap coffee with a lot of milk rather than the old guy that comes in once and cleans out your Splenda bin without ordering anything! You've seen them!! Maybe you are even related to one!!!! What really ticks me off are the guys who buy one drink and then sit at one of the three available outdoor tables for an entire afternoon! This happens all the time in South Beach on Lincoln road. But even then, without a formal rule about seating times I wouldn't want employees making up their own rules and kicking out the guys. The manager should handle these situations.

mitch236 wrote:If I were the manager (or owner) I wouldn't allow my employees to make these judgement calls. Is the customer who fills his large cup with half and half really ripping the cafe off? I wouldn't think so. Overhead is not as simple as a container of milk. I would rather have that customer come in day after day for their cheap coffee with a lot of milk rather than the old guy that comes in once and cleans out your Splenda bin without ordering anything! You've seen them!! Maybe you are even related to one!!!! What really ticks me off are the guys who buy one drink and then sit at one of the three available outdoor tables for an entire afternoon! This happens all the time in South Beach on Lincoln road. But even then, without a formal rule about seating times I wouldn't want employees making up their own rules and kicking out the guys. The manager should handle these situations.

I had a customer who would regularly come in and order a double shot of espresso in a sixteen ounce cup. He would then go fill the cup with ice and half and half. Half and half is around $8 a gallon. Milk is a couple of bucks. After about the third time I told him to knock it off and if he wanted a breve we would prepare it for him. He insisted that he just wanted to make his drink a certain way. When I explained the situation from my point of view a lightbulb went off. He simply didn't understand. That was years ago and he still comes in for his double shot in a sixteen ounce cup. Now, he pays for a 16oz breve and prepares it the way he wants.
As for BBA (bad barista attitude), I watch for it all the time. I consider my staff very good, but I've seen them come close to the edge of BBA on occasion when a boyfriend/girlfriend/instructor/landlord dispute comes to work. It's always the fault of the owner if the behavior continues. I've caught myself a few times in sync with a BBA when I'm having a bad day and not reacting a quickly as I should to provide some service recovery. Nowadays you can't afford to lose one customer so I'm far more tuned in to happy customers than in the past. I'm always looking for ways to motivate part-time employees who are at their first job and are partly supported by mom and dad while going to college. It's not always easy to find service oriented staff when you are drawing from a group planning on a career.
Bernie

I only go to cafes when traveling and this allows me (usually) to go during off peak times. This generally works in my favor because the barista is not slammed with 10 orders in the pipeline. I try to make it a point through conversation that I am not just there for a jolt of caffeine but because I "heard XY or Z about the shop or coffee" or I will ask specific questions about particular coffees. In my experience, the majority of baristas at our favorite cafes are really into coffee and appreciate that fact. Last time I was in NYC I went Gimme at around 11 and talked to the barista there for about 30 minutes (over two drinks) about coffee and then NYC in general. I imagine if I frequented cafes and went during peak hours my experience may be different...you know the whole 10% rule and all.