the worst Caramel Macchiato…ever

it’s a miss…a big fat, disappointing miss for *$ stores

yesterday, after our cool little outing to the city, I had a craving for some coffee. We were driving back to Berkeley and we thought we could stop at the Starbucks in Emeryville….we should have kept driving.

The parking lot was sooooo crowded…plenty of bad drivers about – but you can’t blame Buckie’s for that.

Mark had to hit th restroom, so I waited in the long long line. It was a busy day – but you can’t blame Buckie’s for that.

Mark came back, thoroughly disgusted with the bathrooms. It was dirty, lacked toliet paper, and you could see they were cutting corners – instead of soap in the dispenser, there was water. Since I use to work at the store, I know it’s not acceptable or even sanitary to leave your facilities in such a disarray – but I can understand how difficult it is to maintain them, with a small Sunday crew.

I wanted a toffee nut latte – but they ran out of syrup. It’s a new drink and it’s popular. You can’t blame Buckie’s for that.

So, I ordered a triple grande non-fat Caramel Macchiato. Before I ordered it, I read the sign – “you will be charged extra for extra carmel”.

When I got my drink back – it tasted HORRIBLE

at first thought since they were a carmel conservation kick – that the drink lacked the syruppy sweetness. I took a few more sips as we drove back to Berkeley. Then, my Starbucks training from last year kicked in – I realized that the barista pulled a very long shot. Argh! I was pissed. I wanted to drive back and demand they re-make it for me. Then I remembered the parking lot and I let it go – it wasn’t worth the additional frustration of parking. But I vowed to never step foot in that starbucks again.

What’s a long shot? Well, here’s a little lesson –

Next time you’re at a Starbucks, make your way over to the espresso bar – position yourself as close to the barista’s vantage point as possible. After she pulls the grounded espresso and pops it into the machine, to brew it with hot water – notice the timer ticking off seconds as the espresso brews into the shot glass. Then remember this table:

• 0-13 seconds = Ristretta (sp?) – some people want a 1/2 shot of espresso in their drinks – a very light tasting thing
• 13-18 seconds = a short shot and a weak drink. It doesn’t taste good and it looks light brown in the shot glass. give it back! tell them to make you another one!
• 18-23 seconds = a good shot – the espresso taste nutty and bold, with a slight carmel aftertaste (from the crema). in the shot glass you can see the three different colored layers, the lightest one being the creme.
• 23-beyond = a long shot – it taste bitter, like old coffee and it’s nasty. it’s the one I got. I wasn’t able to see the shot glass, but it pours out a dark, almost black, gucky substance – give it back! tell them to make you another one!

I could have went to the Starbucks at Barnes and Noble – but I didn’t want to pay a dollar for the damn parking structure….now I realize, I should have forked over the Washington, because I wasted more than $3.00 on a lousy drink.