Starbucks Coffee Company — Restaurant in Mesa

Complaint About Customer Service at Starbucks – 1939 S Val Vista Dr #104

Dear Mr. John Howard,

My name is Tracy Nguyễn, and I am the owner of Valley Nails at 1939 S Val Vista Dr right next to Starbucks at the same address.

On the morning of March 13, 2025, at 11:00 AM, as usual, I went to Starbucks to get my coffee before starting my workday. I have had the habit of drinking coffee every morning for over 20 years, and Starbucks has always been my preferred choice. I frequently purchase coffee from two specific locations: one near my home and the other near my nail salon. When I have time, I walk into the store to order; otherwise, I place my order through the app and pick it up later.

However, this morning, I accidentally ordered the wrong coffee instead of my usual drink. When I arrived to pick up my order, I politely apologized and asked to have a new coffee made to match my regular drink. The barista, Courtney, took my original cup, but instead of making a fresh one, she simply added more milk—too much heavy cream, in fact—turning the coffee almost white. I informed her that this was not the same as what I usually drink, but I was willing to try it. However, the taste was awful, and I couldn’t drink it, so I requested a completely new cup.

At this point, Courtney visibly showed her frustration. She did not respond immediately but instead stared at me with an irritated expression. When I repeated my request, she sighed loudly, shook her head in annoyance, and coldly replied, “It’s the same thing.” At that moment, there were three other employees standing nearby. I continued explaining that the coffee was not right, but she completely ignored me, turned away, and made no attempt to resolve the issue.

Her attitude was not only unprofessional but also downright disrespectful. A simple mistake on my part could have been easily resolved with proper customer service, but instead, I was met with rudeness and reluctance to help. I eventually had to ask another employee to remake the second coffee, for which I had to pay again. Even then, when Courtney placed the new cup in front of me, she did so with unnecessary force, her facial expression filled with clear frustration, as if she was angry at me for simply wanting my coffee made correctly.

I fully paid for both drinks and even left a $20 tip, but this experience left me feeling extremely disappointed and disrespected. As a loyal customer who purchases coffee daily for years, I have never asked for anything free or unreasonable. Yet, when I simply requested a properly made drink, I was treated with blatant disregard. No customer should ever feel this way when visiting Starbucks.

I am requesting a formal response from Starbucks regarding this matter. Is this how Starbucks trains its employees to handle customer requests? If not, I expect Starbucks to take appropriate action to improve the service at this location. Additionally, I believe that I should be compensated for today’s experience, as I paid twice for what should have been a simple, hassle-free order.

I look forward to your...

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Never coming here again! They were so rude. The girl with long brown hair in a pony tail working drive thru closing shift today was the most rude person I've ever met. I was ordering with another girl and the ponytail girl butted in asking what I wanted so when I told her how I needed my drink made, she rolled her eyes and started arguing with Me about how the drink is originally made, like I care? I didn't ask for anything special and if I did, I would be more than happy to pay for it. All I asked was for no moca sauce in my frap and this girl threw a fit, insisting that i didn't make any sense with what i was saying. At that point, I complained to the manager on shift, and she was just as rude. Needless to say, i will NEVER bring my business back here again, nor do i recommend this location to anybody. Its bad enough to get mistreated as a customer from a cashier/team member but to get the same treatment from the manager? Way to take care of your customers... Especially when they didn't even take their time to...