Working at Starbucks for over two years now has taught me a lot about coffee. It isn’t just about the coffee, however, I’ve learned a lot about my customers as well. Your order can either make or break your Starbucks experience so here five things your Starbucks barista wants you to know.

1. Seasonal Drinks Are Not Available All Year

Seasonal drinks are seasonal. This means that they will only be in stock for the season and then will disappear after same time. So please don't be upset when your barista tells you that they cannot make a pumpkin spice latte for you in the middle of June.

2. Please Learn The Sizes

Short. Tall. Grande. Venti. Trenta. It’s not that hard. We understand that it is an inconvenience but when you order a large iced tea we don't know if you want a Venti or Trenta and it throws everything off.

3. The Starbucks “Secret Menu” Isn’t Made By Starbucks

You can make thousands of drinks with Starbucks ingredients but that doesn't mean your barista knows them all. If you order a Cap’n Crunch Frappuccino, chances are your barista is going to look at you weird. It is humanly impossible to remember every secret menu item. If you bring in a recipe we will gladly make it for you but don't expect us to know these off the top of our heads.

4. Please Make Sure You Are Ordering Correctly

A well-trained barista will be able to keep up with your long order, but only if you tell us whether the drink is hot or iced first. So let your barista know if your drink is hot or iced before we start writing your order on the wrong cup.

5 .Baristas Are Humans Too

Surprise! Your baristas are humans too! That means, like all humans, we make mistakes too. Baristas that work the morning shift have to be at the store at 4 a.m. and sometimes earlier to set up the store. With fifteen drinks in line and sleep deprivation sometimes the wrong drink gets handed out to the wrong person. If you come back and let us know we would gladly make you your drink.

Next time you go to Starbucks keep these things in mind and I can promise you your experience will be better. Also take some time and get to know your baristas because we love hearing about our customers!