Starbucks Coffee Company — Restaurant in Burnaby

I’ve been to this location many times. Non of the experience was bad. This afternoon there was a buy one get one free promotion. I used the mobile order on the app. The app shows it needs 20+ mins. However after I make the order it shows 7-9mins and I couldn’t cancel. Unfortunately, was waiting at the bank for too long. When I finally arrived the shop it’s over 30 mins. The shop was packed of people. I asked the lady with glasses(she looks like manager) I told her I was late. Even though it was extremely busy, she was still kind and professional. She asked me to check the counter, I turned around and saw 30-40 cups of drinks on the table. A staff (his name was Louis) checked with my order, he explained to me my drinks were stolen. He explained that the system was not functioning, they couldn’t shout down the mobile order function, so the order was overloaded. He went to the manager and tried to help me out. 2mins later he came back and he asked me to show the order details. However my order was complicatedly customized, I felt extremely sorry for making issues for them. He wrote down the order on a paper bag and give it manager. 5mins later he hand the two cups of drink to me with smile and gentle attitude. I leave some tips and walked out of the door. During the whole visit, I was served by a wonderful team with perfect customer service. It’s Friday afternoon, I really appreciate I can enjoy a cup of drink after the long week....

I witnessed a really upsetting situation at this station square Starbucks recently that I want to share. A woman who was clearly feeling unwell asked only for a cup of water. She even said it was okay if it was just tap water and had her own water bottle. She was willing to buy something, even a bag, so it was still a purchase.

However, the first man working at the till told her that buying a bag is not considered a purchase and refused to give her water, even though they were charging for the bag. He said she needed to at least buy a cheese stick for $1.75. The woman explained that she was still a paying customer and only needed some tap water because her mouth was dry.

Then another man named Mike got involved, and instead of helping, they started arguing with her over the water. She kept begging politely, but they would not provide even a simple cup of water.

It was terrible to watch. I could not believe what I was seeing with my own eyes. I ended up going to a nearby store and buying her water myself.

I have been a loyal Starbucks customer for years, but this experience has left me disappointed, and it is likely the last time I will step into...

Since most of the baristas have been changed recently, the service quality is not as good as before. I understand that some Starbucks policies may also have changed, such as no longer providing water cups and trays for pickup customers.

Today, My friend placed a mobile order through the Starbucks app for two drinks, which I went to pick up for her and requested two-cup trays instead of a four-cup one, as I didn’t want to waste materials and even brought my own shopping bag. However, the barista, JJ, told me that two-cup trays are only for delivery orders, then handed me a four-cup tray and added that I actually wasn’t supposed to take that either. She walked away smiling, only after I realized this was part of a new policy.

While JJ may have been following company policy, she was not trained to communicate this in a polite and professional way. Instead, her attitude came across as dismissive, and even laughing at customers is unprofessional. Beyond making drinks, good customer service is an important part of her role, and in this instance it did not reflect well...