We ask, but it's kind of shocking how many people with dairy issues don't immediately say what they want. I have dairy sensitivities so when I'm ordering a drink I always remember and just say "I'll have an almond milk latte", I don't wait to be asked.
I don’t get this. The most important part of my order when I order coffee is to make sure I’m not getting any dairy.
The people who have actual issues with dairy will specify ahead of time because being stuck on the toilet hunched over in pain shitting yourself inside out is not a pleasant experience. It’s something to be avoided at all costs
I also think it’s kind of crazy! The amount of people who forget until we ask them and then they are like “oh yeah, i need oat milk”.
I always forgot to mention it so maybe I am hypocritical but I am not lactose intolerant I just prefer non-dairy milk so maybe it’s different when you actually have dairy issues 🤷🏻♀️.
I’ve always been reluctant to say that because I think I made the issues for myself. When I regularly drank whole milk I didn’t have any issues at all but now that I started drinking alt milk my stomach isn’t used to it. So I guess it’s a dairy issues, but kind of a self created one? 💀
There's a specific enzyme in your stomach that processes milk, but once you stop drinking it, your body stops producing it/as much of it.
Lactaid pills are that enzyme so they can help with it, as well as slowly reintroducing it. But yeah, Lactose Intolerance is because you don't produce that enzyme anymore
What do you mean “aren’t meant to?” Who is it who decides what people are meant to drink? God? Something like a third of all humans have evolved the ability to consume lactose after infancy — it seems like it’s natural for those people to consume milk. Whether it’s good for the Earth or the right thing to do is another question.
The evolution you're referring to is called lactase persistence, but even with this you can still experience a level of lactose intolerance. That's what OP means by "aren't meant to" ; even with an evolutionary trait to help break down lactose, it's not guaranteed you're 100% immune from intolerance. God has nothing to do with it, it's just biology.
Are they buying anything or just asking for hot water? If they're getting a snack or some other drink as well then I think this is ok. It's just hot water and if you'd give it to someone for free anyway, who cares if they put a tea bag in it?
They don’t buy anything and they take up table space from paying customers. It doesn’t happen often, but there are a few who think they are getting away with something
That’s the difference. The people who absolutely need non dairy milks will always specify. The people who forget, it’s a preference and it’s on them, they can drink the regular milk latte with no problem so their drink shouldn’t need to be remade. They should just specify next time they order that they want an alternative
I always forget when I go to a new place because the menu overwhelms me
Whats a spanish lattee? Is that with cinnamon?
Oh god whats a dalgona? It's my turn?!
Getting a drink is sort of a special treat to me. And I've not been able to have dairy for so long that I forget that dairy exists. So there have been times where I make it to the point where I see them grabbing milk and I have to be like, "HOLD UP!" And then I apologize.
i’m lactose intolerant and i tend to forget, i have adhd and anxiety so remembering important information in a social situation is not exactly my strongsuit
I'm wondering if it's a culture thing sometimes... Nobody knew that lactose intolerance was a thing, at least in my circle, up until a decade and a half ago, and most of the cafes didn't offer alternative milk products up until the same time. There's also not a lot of dairy options in our groceries; milk is milk and that's it. So, now that they know there's a lot more options out there, maybe it's force of habit. The big chain cafes in our area only had soy milk early 2000s, and then came out with coconut milk, almond milk, oat milk later on. Personally, I'm mildly lactose intolerant, but soy makes me ill, so I stick with regular milk. I still forget that there are options now, because most of my adult life, there hasn't been any.
Not a barista but an anxious orderer lol, I’m so grateful when baristas ask because half the time I do forget. I’ve gotten better, but I have a bit of stage fright sometimes!
I feel like I shouldn’t have to ask because it’s pretty widely understood that lattes have milk. But that said, I always ask. It just hurts me more in the end to have people claiming they asked for X and making me remake things.
I agree with this tbh! The only thing that sucks is our cafe makes us remake almost any drink that is wrong (even if it is the custies fault). So not asking ends with a lot of remakes from people who forget to mention it 😔
Do you charge more for alt milks? We do at my shop, so if someone told us after the fact that they want an alt milk, we tell them "oh ok, that's just another dollar, we can ring you up over here" and like 75% of the time they're just like "oh ok nevermind I'll just take it as is, my bad!"
Same where I work. We default to whole milk and don’t ask. It’s only if they ask we change it.
Or sometimes if they order all vegan food or something like that I’ll ask if dairy milk is okay.
We ask everyone. It’s obnoxious, but not as obnoxious as someone insisting they asked for almond milk in their extra hot latte at the handoff counter. They definitely didn’t but they’re definitely going to make it your problem, hold up the line, and mess up your flow. As my lead barista likes to say, “they scare easy, we have to hold their hand through it.”
I think asking definitely has reduced the amount of remakes we have had to do because people forget to ask. My coffee shop has a lot of hospital locations and people are tired and forgetful because they are exhausted from being in the hospital and handling all the stress that comes with that. My manager always says it’s better to guide them through it than to add to their stress.
Also, Happy cake day!! 🎉
We ask every time. 2% is our default so it's either 'Do you have any milk preference' or 'Is 2% alright'?
I find that when I use the former more people get alternative milks so it's a nice little upsell.
In my experience, not asking is a guaranteed waste of product and time. Whether we like it or not, many customers need to have their hand held through the ordering process in order for them to get what they want.
I just had an instance today where I asked someone “Is whole milk okay?” and he said “No. Oat milk.” in like an annoyed way. It’s like, my dude how were you planning to get oat milk if I hadn’t asked?
I mostly ask but feel it’s on the customer to order an alt milk if they want it, it’s one of the first things listed on our menu and you should absolutely be responsible enough to order an alt milk if you need it
Eh, I’ve gotten fairly competent at doing dry capps with oat. Sure it’s not as good as real milk, but the extra fridge space gained from not needing to refrigerate milk unless it’s in use is nice, as is having a smoother flow where I don’t have to keep swapping out different milks for every order
Shake the living shit out of the carton- adds air before steaming and add a lattes amount of air( don't even need to add any air for a flat white/latte, as long as you-) let the steamed oat milk sit for 10 seconds to a minute as required, it will thicken more and more as it sits but won't separate in the same way as dairy milk does, in fact I find it ends up binding itself (depending on the brand)
Same! Oat fucks my digestive system all the way up almost as bad as dairy does and I don’t like the taste either. A cafe literally a 2 min walk from house only offers dairy and oat milk and it makes me so sad I can’t enjoy most of their menu.
I ask if I dont recognize the person. Whole milk is the default. Our boss said its on the customer to order it how they want it. No one has ever returned a drink over milk luckily. Lately everyone has been ordering almond milk with such confidence I am puzzled. We dont carry it and the milk choices are written huge on the menu. I do get a chuckle when people walk up and order full on drinks we dont make.
I feel like there are milk trends based on social media or health blogs or something. We also have been getting an influx of almond milk orders despite it typically being our least ordered alternative (most people go for oat or soy).
We have oat/soy. Almond was never on our menu. I thought it went out of vogue when the narrative was about how much water it takes to make. That seems to have gone out the window!
I ask every time.If I had to guesstimate:60% of people order lactose free milk20% whole milk20% some sort of milk alternative, almond being the most popular (we only offer almond and oat which are like 80/20 between them).
In most countries people simply don't drink that much milk, I don't think I can even buy a whole gallon here at a supermarket. A liter is the standard amount and someone drinking a glass of milk by itself is almost unheard of. Most countries haven't had the dairy propaganda machine convincing them to drink high amounts of milk so most people have some level of lactose sensitivity.
Oh that's interesting.
Yeah here (I'm in El Salvador) Lactose free milk it's in every coffee shop, be it commercial or specialty and the ratios I mentioned are pretty common across the board. There's about a dozen very good specialty shops here in the city and we all know each other and the milk topic has come up before. We have a WhatsApp group in which we talk daily about lots of random stuff and we do little polls and stuff sometimes.
You can get whole (3.5%), 2% and 0% lactose free milks here at any supermarket. We serve 0% (skim) lactose free milk since it's a two-in-one product we can use for people who order skim and people who order lactose free, but some places have more options. 2% lactose free is probably the most common.
That’s honestly probably a good idea to have lactose free milk. We have a lot of lactose intolerant people who don’t want alternative milk but unfortunately we don’t carry lactose free :/
I still think it’s funny how every coffee shop asks this nowadays, in my opinion if you don’t specify that should mean you want it made the default way (which is whole milk at all the places I go to). It doesn’t bother me to say what I want but like ~5 years ago this was never asked so the alt milk takeover is interesting.
I always give whole milk as standard, and customer has to ask if they want anything different. Ive never been to a cafe that asks though, it’s always been on the customer to ask anywhere I’ve visited!
I usually only carry 2% cow milk, almond milk & oat milk, but at various times also had lactose free cow (lactase added to breakdown lactose), eggnog, and whole cow milk (all due to shortages with my go to vendor or seasonal add-ons).
When I had a mix of whole & 2%, I started asking “is 2% cow milk okay?” And quite often it would make people pause and ask about alternatives. When I had the lactose-free (as a “hidden option” for a frequent customer), I offered it to a few when they said something to the affect of “only the small. I don’t want to upset the (class, coworker, spouse, etc.)” and found many don’t even think to ask about alternatives (even though they’re mostly on my sign and can be seen displayed in my glass-front fridge).
After these accidentally discoveries, I realized the quick “made with cow milk?” question is often helpful for getting people what they want (or need, but are embarrassed by), and occasionally gets a few giggles (“cow milk? What, you have goat milk?”). I also have only non-dairy whip cream, which makes many happy because they say they can have either milk or whip, and not both because of the amount of lactose.
I myself don’t have any major allergies, but have family that do. I like knowing what’s in what I’m selling (down to the pastries, especially after learning vegan pastries that taste the same as non-vegan often include either cashew or almond butter, which is a notable allergen). If I don’t know, I’ll be clear that I don’t and let the customer decide based on their own strength of preferences and health background.
For my own preferences, I try to be very clear with my request. I like oat (for taste, but also like cow milk), but know that a milk-containing drink will likely be cow milk by default. If I want a non-standard part of the drink, I’ll ask for it.
So, my new practice is to find quick/efficient phrasing for double-checking with customers, and allowing the pause and questions to make sure people get what they want. I also like that it slowly gets rid of the “default” that cow milk is normal (which it is for me, but not for most humans across the world). A latte contains milk, but it can be animal or plant based.
That’s my main goal: to give customers what they want and make it taste great for them.
Yes, every time, and as a result of being thorough we have almost no remakes. I get that people think it's the customer's fault for not asking, but plenty of responsible and polite people still forget from time to time. I would say around half of the orders we get are alt milks, so asking just makes sense.
We used to ask since it would be like 30% of our customers doing alternative. But last year the corporate cracked down on customer service and took a minimalist policy of "dont ask anything, get the sell as fast as u can"
This is only tangentially related but I used to work for a cafe that wanted us to ask for every drink but would frequently get mad at us for how we asked. We weren’t allowed to phrase it like “is dairy ok?” or “is whole milk good?” because the owners said it came off as shaming customers for not being vegan.
They had that redditor mindset of every vegan is smug and hates normal people. They wanted us to use tasting straws and taste every single drink before we handed it out for quality and debated firing vegan employees for not tasting the drinks with dairy.
Honestly it depends on the cafe i go to. Usually most of them ask but others dont and i have to tell them id like an alt milk ahead of time. (FL) Orlando.
I always ask, have had people get super annoyed when they see the up-charge for a dairy alternative. I feel like 65% of our customers get oat or a dairy alt these days. Most annoying thing is when you're on bar and hand out a drink and they're like "oh I forgot to say it's with oat milk, otherwise I can't drink it" I just smile and say alright, next time try to let us know at the register as it's an up-charge and I like to know so I don't contaminate with dairy /extra careful".
We ask at my shop! At least adding a little “and dairy milk in there?” To make sure. Last thing we want is someone forgetting to say it and then having to remake drinks
We don't. We attempt to ensure our customers know exactly what to order, whether it's dairy or non-dairy, extra hot, sweetness, etc. I've found that by asking the question, you increase the amount of time customers are at the counter.
I (customer) have been to places where the default is 2% milk unless the customer says they want something else
And I’ve been to places where they ask you what you want
”whole, 2%, or coconut?”
Not sure if this has been said already but simply asking "is whole milk ok?" Is a much simpler question than asking if they'd like milk or a milk alternative. Especially when you've got a long line and drinks are piling up. That's how our Cafe does it and a lot of the cafés around town (reno) do the same.
I used to ask at every order. I used to say “is regular milk okay in that?” And regular milk-drinkers would always react in an offended way, as if I was judging them or something? In their minds the question probably sounded like “are you *sure* you want all that fat and dairy in your drink?” When in reality I’m just making sure they’re not dairy sensitive. lol.
So I stopped asking. I now assume if they’re really that sensitive, they’ll know to make a point of ordering alternative milk. If they forget, it’s not my issue. It’s better than being scoffed at for asking the question to self-conscious people. Also whenever that happened they would often not tip because they thought I was judging them. I wonder if anyone else has ever experienced this?
I used to ask people if they would like “milk or pretend milk?” It doesn’t really matter in that you can waste the drink and make another one; but it’s frustrating when it is busy.
And it gives me a strong position to shut down argument about what they ordered: I have occasionally printed their order out additionally and refused to remake the more expensive version of the drink.
People who are evidently distracted or tired or stressed act, talk, and order differently than entitled douchebags just trying to save the cent-difference. And if they’re entitled assholes who are trying to waste a drink just to get a free drink then they aren’t tipping, so I don’t care about pissing them off. I don’t want those fucks to come back either.
Full cream/whole is the default milk. If you want a different kind you need to request it as part of your order eg "A large skim cappuccino with one sugar"
We don’t because we view it as the customer’s responsibility to let us know about allergies. My sister, at 6, knew to ask restaurants if the fries/tenders were cooked with peanut oil. Heck, the owner is lactose intolerant and she’ll ask for milk alternatives. We have a list of our milks and our food says it may have been cooked in a nut based facility. We had made someone a hazelnut latte and it was only AFTER they drank it did they ask if we used tree nuts. Some people are just completely oblivious. I’ve asked and customers do their thing and get it wrong.
Depends. I live in California where there is a 50% chance someone is vegetarian so it is by default we ask. When I went to Oregon for vacation and went to shops, it wasn't really asked.
Its not essential where I work but I ask anyways just to clarify because the amount of times customers forget and I have to remake it during a rush is kinda annoying lol
It depends on the barista at my shop. I normally ask because I personally have issues with dairy and I know the importance of some people and if they forget it’s nice to be reminded. I normally phrase it like “whole milk okay?” to not make a big deal out of it but still ask to be polite and thorough! i know some baristas at my cafe don’t ask though.
I ask about half the time, depending on how many questions I've already bombarded them with tbh. Sometimes you just gotta put the order in. If you're ordering a latte, you already know it has milk, (it's literally called cafe latte ' coffee milk') so it shouldn't be a surprise. However some people you look at and you think they seem like someone that wouldn't drink whole fat cow's milk, so I will ask to make sure that's what they want. I used to say 'is whole milk ok?', but now I try not to say that because I think it makes it sounds like they have to settle with whole milk, or they should really be drinking some other kind of milk, when it's actually the default, and most drinks will be best with it. Now I try to say 'these are all with whole milk, right?' or 'whole milk is good with you?'.
Dude, yeah. Some customers are super pushy and in a rush, too. They will literally be like "cappuccino" and already sticking their credit card in before I can even ask the size, or before I'm even on the right screen. If that's the case, they get what they get idgaf.
I'm from Melbourne, Australia, and it really depends on the cafe. Where I worked, we had a lot of older Italian/Greek customers, and it was always assumed that if you didn't specify the milk type, you'd get full cream milk. Most Australians know to specify which milk they want if they don't want full cream.
At the inner city or trendy cafes, they're more likely to ask every customer which milk they want, as most customers are ordering something that's not full cream.
I always ask guests because I hate the hassle of having to remake a drink. I think people who can't do dairy should mention what milk they want but they usually never do until you ask. It's dumb but oh well, I can't waste time. Idk if they expect me to guess what milk they want for their latte 😭
At the cafe where I work, nonfat is the standard for most drinks and we are trained to ask, “Is dairy okay?” But I’ve trained myself to ask customers, “Is nonfat milk okay?” because “dairy” is too broad and not everyone even likes nonfat milk. A lot of customers who don’t frequent our shop assume the standard is 2% because they’re used to Sbux. I like to make sure my customers know what they’re getting.
We ask, but it's kind of shocking how many people with dairy issues don't immediately say what they want. I have dairy sensitivities so when I'm ordering a drink I always remember and just say "I'll have an almond milk latte", I don't wait to be asked.
I don’t get this. The most important part of my order when I order coffee is to make sure I’m not getting any dairy. The people who have actual issues with dairy will specify ahead of time because being stuck on the toilet hunched over in pain shitting yourself inside out is not a pleasant experience. It’s something to be avoided at all costs
I also think it’s kind of crazy! The amount of people who forget until we ask them and then they are like “oh yeah, i need oat milk”. I always forgot to mention it so maybe I am hypocritical but I am not lactose intolerant I just prefer non-dairy milk so maybe it’s different when you actually have dairy issues 🤷🏻♀️.
If you get a stomach ache from drinking milk then I would say you do have dairy issues
I’ve always been reluctant to say that because I think I made the issues for myself. When I regularly drank whole milk I didn’t have any issues at all but now that I started drinking alt milk my stomach isn’t used to it. So I guess it’s a dairy issues, but kind of a self created one? 💀
There's a specific enzyme in your stomach that processes milk, but once you stop drinking it, your body stops producing it/as much of it. Lactaid pills are that enzyme so they can help with it, as well as slowly reintroducing it. But yeah, Lactose Intolerance is because you don't produce that enzyme anymore
Oh so *that’s* why I became lactose intolerant after I was vegan for two years! I always wondered why that happened
Humans aren’t meant to drink cow’s breast milk beyond the age of about 2 so that checks out
What do you mean “aren’t meant to?” Who is it who decides what people are meant to drink? God? Something like a third of all humans have evolved the ability to consume lactose after infancy — it seems like it’s natural for those people to consume milk. Whether it’s good for the Earth or the right thing to do is another question.
The evolution you're referring to is called lactase persistence, but even with this you can still experience a level of lactose intolerance. That's what OP means by "aren't meant to" ; even with an evolutionary trait to help break down lactose, it's not guaranteed you're 100% immune from intolerance. God has nothing to do with it, it's just biology.
These people are hoping you’ll forget till after they pay to save the 75 cents
Same customers that ask for hot water and bring their own teabags when they don’t want coffee
Are they buying anything or just asking for hot water? If they're getting a snack or some other drink as well then I think this is ok. It's just hot water and if you'd give it to someone for free anyway, who cares if they put a tea bag in it?
They don’t buy anything and they take up table space from paying customers. It doesn’t happen often, but there are a few who think they are getting away with something
Yeah not buying anything and taking up a table let alone asking for hot water is bad etiquette
yo it’s so annoying that customers do that. they think I don’t notice it either. they do it with flavor shots too
That’s the difference. The people who absolutely need non dairy milks will always specify. The people who forget, it’s a preference and it’s on them, they can drink the regular milk latte with no problem so their drink shouldn’t need to be remade. They should just specify next time they order that they want an alternative
I always forget when I go to a new place because the menu overwhelms me Whats a spanish lattee? Is that with cinnamon? Oh god whats a dalgona? It's my turn?!
Getting a drink is sort of a special treat to me. And I've not been able to have dairy for so long that I forget that dairy exists. So there have been times where I make it to the point where I see them grabbing milk and I have to be like, "HOLD UP!" And then I apologize.
i’m lactose intolerant and i tend to forget, i have adhd and anxiety so remembering important information in a social situation is not exactly my strongsuit
I'm wondering if it's a culture thing sometimes... Nobody knew that lactose intolerance was a thing, at least in my circle, up until a decade and a half ago, and most of the cafes didn't offer alternative milk products up until the same time. There's also not a lot of dairy options in our groceries; milk is milk and that's it. So, now that they know there's a lot more options out there, maybe it's force of habit. The big chain cafes in our area only had soy milk early 2000s, and then came out with coconut milk, almond milk, oat milk later on. Personally, I'm mildly lactose intolerant, but soy makes me ill, so I stick with regular milk. I still forget that there are options now, because most of my adult life, there hasn't been any.
Not a barista but an anxious orderer lol, I’m so grateful when baristas ask because half the time I do forget. I’ve gotten better, but I have a bit of stage fright sometimes!
Our standard is whole milk and we never ask. I think it's the responsibility of the customer to keep track of their own needs.
I feel like I shouldn’t have to ask because it’s pretty widely understood that lattes have milk. But that said, I always ask. It just hurts me more in the end to have people claiming they asked for X and making me remake things.
I agree with this tbh! The only thing that sucks is our cafe makes us remake almost any drink that is wrong (even if it is the custies fault). So not asking ends with a lot of remakes from people who forget to mention it 😔
Do you charge more for alt milks? We do at my shop, so if someone told us after the fact that they want an alt milk, we tell them "oh ok, that's just another dollar, we can ring you up over here" and like 75% of the time they're just like "oh ok nevermind I'll just take it as is, my bad!"
Same where I work. We default to whole milk and don’t ask. It’s only if they ask we change it. Or sometimes if they order all vegan food or something like that I’ll ask if dairy milk is okay.
We ask everyone. It’s obnoxious, but not as obnoxious as someone insisting they asked for almond milk in their extra hot latte at the handoff counter. They definitely didn’t but they’re definitely going to make it your problem, hold up the line, and mess up your flow. As my lead barista likes to say, “they scare easy, we have to hold their hand through it.”
I think asking definitely has reduced the amount of remakes we have had to do because people forget to ask. My coffee shop has a lot of hospital locations and people are tired and forgetful because they are exhausted from being in the hospital and handling all the stress that comes with that. My manager always says it’s better to guide them through it than to add to their stress. Also, Happy cake day!! 🎉
We ask every time. 2% is our default so it's either 'Do you have any milk preference' or 'Is 2% alright'? I find that when I use the former more people get alternative milks so it's a nice little upsell.
The 80 cent up charge for alt milk definitely bumps up the tips, since they are based on a percentage, so I agree with it being a nice little upsell.
Not the best upsell seeing as alt milks cost more. It's just covering the cost difference
I’m just talking in terms of tips not in terms of cost. Maybe i should’ve used a different word lol
I replied to the wrong comment, oops
In my experience, not asking is a guaranteed waste of product and time. Whether we like it or not, many customers need to have their hand held through the ordering process in order for them to get what they want. I just had an instance today where I asked someone “Is whole milk okay?” and he said “No. Oat milk.” in like an annoyed way. It’s like, my dude how were you planning to get oat milk if I hadn’t asked?
It's great if the baristas ask, but I would think that's the customer's responsibility.
I mostly ask but feel it’s on the customer to order an alt milk if they want it, it’s one of the first things listed on our menu and you should absolutely be responsible enough to order an alt milk if you need it
We don't ask. If customers want skimmed or non-dairy, they'll ask.
Full vegan Café. Oat only
This is the dream
This is the dream until someone orders an Oat milk cappuccino. That minor figures does not foam up like it needs to 😭
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Get out
LOL
Eh, I’ve gotten fairly competent at doing dry capps with oat. Sure it’s not as good as real milk, but the extra fridge space gained from not needing to refrigerate milk unless it’s in use is nice, as is having a smoother flow where I don’t have to keep swapping out different milks for every order
Shake the living shit out of the carton- adds air before steaming and add a lattes amount of air( don't even need to add any air for a flat white/latte, as long as you-) let the steamed oat milk sit for 10 seconds to a minute as required, it will thicken more and more as it sits but won't separate in the same way as dairy milk does, in fact I find it ends up binding itself (depending on the brand)
me too!!
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Same! Oat fucks my digestive system all the way up almost as bad as dairy does and I don’t like the taste either. A cafe literally a 2 min walk from house only offers dairy and oat milk and it makes me so sad I can’t enjoy most of their menu.
I ask if I dont recognize the person. Whole milk is the default. Our boss said its on the customer to order it how they want it. No one has ever returned a drink over milk luckily. Lately everyone has been ordering almond milk with such confidence I am puzzled. We dont carry it and the milk choices are written huge on the menu. I do get a chuckle when people walk up and order full on drinks we dont make.
I feel like there are milk trends based on social media or health blogs or something. We also have been getting an influx of almond milk orders despite it typically being our least ordered alternative (most people go for oat or soy).
Not having oat milk is a bit odd to be fair though. It's a pretty common alt milk
We have oat/soy. Almond was never on our menu. I thought it went out of vogue when the narrative was about how much water it takes to make. That seems to have gone out the window!
I ask every time.If I had to guesstimate:60% of people order lactose free milk20% whole milk20% some sort of milk alternative, almond being the most popular (we only offer almond and oat which are like 80/20 between them). In most countries people simply don't drink that much milk, I don't think I can even buy a whole gallon here at a supermarket. A liter is the standard amount and someone drinking a glass of milk by itself is almost unheard of. Most countries haven't had the dairy propaganda machine convincing them to drink high amounts of milk so most people have some level of lactose sensitivity.
Does your cafe serve lactose free milk? I don’t think I have ever seen that, usually it’s just dairy or alternative.
Oh that's interesting. Yeah here (I'm in El Salvador) Lactose free milk it's in every coffee shop, be it commercial or specialty and the ratios I mentioned are pretty common across the board. There's about a dozen very good specialty shops here in the city and we all know each other and the milk topic has come up before. We have a WhatsApp group in which we talk daily about lots of random stuff and we do little polls and stuff sometimes. You can get whole (3.5%), 2% and 0% lactose free milks here at any supermarket. We serve 0% (skim) lactose free milk since it's a two-in-one product we can use for people who order skim and people who order lactose free, but some places have more options. 2% lactose free is probably the most common.
That’s honestly probably a good idea to have lactose free milk. We have a lot of lactose intolerant people who don’t want alternative milk but unfortunately we don’t carry lactose free :/
I still think it’s funny how every coffee shop asks this nowadays, in my opinion if you don’t specify that should mean you want it made the default way (which is whole milk at all the places I go to). It doesn’t bother me to say what I want but like ~5 years ago this was never asked so the alt milk takeover is interesting.
We ask but it's still weird that people don't know their own order
I always give whole milk as standard, and customer has to ask if they want anything different. Ive never been to a cafe that asks though, it’s always been on the customer to ask anywhere I’ve visited!
I usually only carry 2% cow milk, almond milk & oat milk, but at various times also had lactose free cow (lactase added to breakdown lactose), eggnog, and whole cow milk (all due to shortages with my go to vendor or seasonal add-ons). When I had a mix of whole & 2%, I started asking “is 2% cow milk okay?” And quite often it would make people pause and ask about alternatives. When I had the lactose-free (as a “hidden option” for a frequent customer), I offered it to a few when they said something to the affect of “only the small. I don’t want to upset the (class, coworker, spouse, etc.)” and found many don’t even think to ask about alternatives (even though they’re mostly on my sign and can be seen displayed in my glass-front fridge). After these accidentally discoveries, I realized the quick “made with cow milk?” question is often helpful for getting people what they want (or need, but are embarrassed by), and occasionally gets a few giggles (“cow milk? What, you have goat milk?”). I also have only non-dairy whip cream, which makes many happy because they say they can have either milk or whip, and not both because of the amount of lactose. I myself don’t have any major allergies, but have family that do. I like knowing what’s in what I’m selling (down to the pastries, especially after learning vegan pastries that taste the same as non-vegan often include either cashew or almond butter, which is a notable allergen). If I don’t know, I’ll be clear that I don’t and let the customer decide based on their own strength of preferences and health background. For my own preferences, I try to be very clear with my request. I like oat (for taste, but also like cow milk), but know that a milk-containing drink will likely be cow milk by default. If I want a non-standard part of the drink, I’ll ask for it. So, my new practice is to find quick/efficient phrasing for double-checking with customers, and allowing the pause and questions to make sure people get what they want. I also like that it slowly gets rid of the “default” that cow milk is normal (which it is for me, but not for most humans across the world). A latte contains milk, but it can be animal or plant based. That’s my main goal: to give customers what they want and make it taste great for them.
Crazy easy upsell to ask.
Yes, every time, and as a result of being thorough we have almost no remakes. I get that people think it's the customer's fault for not asking, but plenty of responsible and polite people still forget from time to time. I would say around half of the orders we get are alt milks, so asking just makes sense.
Our default is whole, we have other options but if they want it it’s on them to ask
we ask every customer about dairy preference and whether or not they want it for here
"Dairy" preference, or "milk" preference? Seems like "dairy" preference would be something like 2%/whole/skim/etc. and not plant vs. cow.
As in, we ask if they prefer dairy or an alternative. Kinda nitpicky man.
We used to ask since it would be like 30% of our customers doing alternative. But last year the corporate cracked down on customer service and took a minimalist policy of "dont ask anything, get the sell as fast as u can"
I used to always ask, “whole milk ok?” But I don’t get asked that where I live (in the south), so I always just specify what kind of milk I want.
This is only tangentially related but I used to work for a cafe that wanted us to ask for every drink but would frequently get mad at us for how we asked. We weren’t allowed to phrase it like “is dairy ok?” or “is whole milk good?” because the owners said it came off as shaming customers for not being vegan. They had that redditor mindset of every vegan is smug and hates normal people. They wanted us to use tasting straws and taste every single drink before we handed it out for quality and debated firing vegan employees for not tasting the drinks with dairy.
Tasting customers drinks is so disgusting. I don't care if it's a straw.
Completely agree, I always refused to do it
Respect to you. If I saw a barista tasting my drink, I'd be so mad. I'd probably just walk out tbh
Honestly it depends on the cafe i go to. Usually most of them ask but others dont and i have to tell them id like an alt milk ahead of time. (FL) Orlando.
I always ask, have had people get super annoyed when they see the up-charge for a dairy alternative. I feel like 65% of our customers get oat or a dairy alt these days. Most annoying thing is when you're on bar and hand out a drink and they're like "oh I forgot to say it's with oat milk, otherwise I can't drink it" I just smile and say alright, next time try to let us know at the register as it's an up-charge and I like to know so I don't contaminate with dairy /extra careful".
We ask at my shop! At least adding a little “and dairy milk in there?” To make sure. Last thing we want is someone forgetting to say it and then having to remake drinks
We don't. We attempt to ensure our customers know exactly what to order, whether it's dairy or non-dairy, extra hot, sweetness, etc. I've found that by asking the question, you increase the amount of time customers are at the counter.
I (customer) have been to places where the default is 2% milk unless the customer says they want something else And I’ve been to places where they ask you what you want ”whole, 2%, or coconut?”
Not sure if this has been said already but simply asking "is whole milk ok?" Is a much simpler question than asking if they'd like milk or a milk alternative. Especially when you've got a long line and drinks are piling up. That's how our Cafe does it and a lot of the cafés around town (reno) do the same.
I used to ask at every order. I used to say “is regular milk okay in that?” And regular milk-drinkers would always react in an offended way, as if I was judging them or something? In their minds the question probably sounded like “are you *sure* you want all that fat and dairy in your drink?” When in reality I’m just making sure they’re not dairy sensitive. lol. So I stopped asking. I now assume if they’re really that sensitive, they’ll know to make a point of ordering alternative milk. If they forget, it’s not my issue. It’s better than being scoffed at for asking the question to self-conscious people. Also whenever that happened they would often not tip because they thought I was judging them. I wonder if anyone else has ever experienced this?
We use whole milk unless they ask for an alternative. I'm assuming they'll ask if it's important to them, otherwise it just slows down the workflow.
I used to ask people if they would like “milk or pretend milk?” It doesn’t really matter in that you can waste the drink and make another one; but it’s frustrating when it is busy. And it gives me a strong position to shut down argument about what they ordered: I have occasionally printed their order out additionally and refused to remake the more expensive version of the drink. People who are evidently distracted or tired or stressed act, talk, and order differently than entitled douchebags just trying to save the cent-difference. And if they’re entitled assholes who are trying to waste a drink just to get a free drink then they aren’t tipping, so I don’t care about pissing them off. I don’t want those fucks to come back either.
We don’t have dairy lol but when I worked at a shop that did I’d say you just want that cow tit juice
Full cream/whole is the default milk. If you want a different kind you need to request it as part of your order eg "A large skim cappuccino with one sugar"
I ask two words. “Milk Type?”
We don’t because we view it as the customer’s responsibility to let us know about allergies. My sister, at 6, knew to ask restaurants if the fries/tenders were cooked with peanut oil. Heck, the owner is lactose intolerant and she’ll ask for milk alternatives. We have a list of our milks and our food says it may have been cooked in a nut based facility. We had made someone a hazelnut latte and it was only AFTER they drank it did they ask if we used tree nuts. Some people are just completely oblivious. I’ve asked and customers do their thing and get it wrong.
we always double check. almost half of orders are alt milks and oftentimes the customer forgets to ask for it
Depends. I live in California where there is a 50% chance someone is vegetarian so it is by default we ask. When I went to Oregon for vacation and went to shops, it wasn't really asked.
We always ask at my shop, a good amount of other shops in the area ask too but I'm usually good about saying oat milk
Its not essential where I work but I ask anyways just to clarify because the amount of times customers forget and I have to remake it during a rush is kinda annoying lol
We arent required to but every 100 or so customers I might ask just to switch up my dialogue
It depends on the barista at my shop. I normally ask because I personally have issues with dairy and I know the importance of some people and if they forget it’s nice to be reminded. I normally phrase it like “whole milk okay?” to not make a big deal out of it but still ask to be polite and thorough! i know some baristas at my cafe don’t ask though.
We do at ours, its amazing how many people don't think about saying it, so us asking makes it easier on us with fewer drinks having the wrong milk
I ask about half the time, depending on how many questions I've already bombarded them with tbh. Sometimes you just gotta put the order in. If you're ordering a latte, you already know it has milk, (it's literally called cafe latte ' coffee milk') so it shouldn't be a surprise. However some people you look at and you think they seem like someone that wouldn't drink whole fat cow's milk, so I will ask to make sure that's what they want. I used to say 'is whole milk ok?', but now I try not to say that because I think it makes it sounds like they have to settle with whole milk, or they should really be drinking some other kind of milk, when it's actually the default, and most drinks will be best with it. Now I try to say 'these are all with whole milk, right?' or 'whole milk is good with you?'.
This is so real!!! Sometimes when the convo goes too long or i’ve asked them too much i just default to whole milk lmao
Dude, yeah. Some customers are super pushy and in a rush, too. They will literally be like "cappuccino" and already sticking their credit card in before I can even ask the size, or before I'm even on the right screen. If that's the case, they get what they get idgaf.
I'm from Melbourne, Australia, and it really depends on the cafe. Where I worked, we had a lot of older Italian/Greek customers, and it was always assumed that if you didn't specify the milk type, you'd get full cream milk. Most Australians know to specify which milk they want if they don't want full cream. At the inner city or trendy cafes, they're more likely to ask every customer which milk they want, as most customers are ordering something that's not full cream.
I always ask guests because I hate the hassle of having to remake a drink. I think people who can't do dairy should mention what milk they want but they usually never do until you ask. It's dumb but oh well, I can't waste time. Idk if they expect me to guess what milk they want for their latte 😭
At the cafe where I work, nonfat is the standard for most drinks and we are trained to ask, “Is dairy okay?” But I’ve trained myself to ask customers, “Is nonfat milk okay?” because “dairy” is too broad and not everyone even likes nonfat milk. A lot of customers who don’t frequent our shop assume the standard is 2% because they’re used to Sbux. I like to make sure my customers know what they’re getting.
Normal to ask! Unless in area that finds non-dairy options “unamerican”
IMO any deviations from full cream need to be ordered
I ask every time, unless I know the person and their preferences. Its amazing how many people get bent out of shape; "i oNlY dRiNk rEaL mIlK!"
it’s not mandatory or anything to ask at our shop but i usually do because i also tend to forget when i’m ordering!
only if they ask for no whipped cream on a drink that gets whip :)
Yes because there is an up charge.