By Riley Thorning
Menlo Oak Staff
Once you have worked at any coffee shop for any amount of time, you can’t walk around town without being noticed. It doesn't matter if it's a Starbucks that everybody goes to, or just a small town coffee shop where a few regulars visit every day for their caffeine fix, your face becomes known.
I know because I'm your coffee guy. You know, the one behind the counter. The one you talk to about the same time every day.
When making a beverage for someone in the early morning you might not realize how vital your skills are for their day. A coffee prepared right with a nice smile can really start the morning off correctly.
"When those baristas make the perfect vanilla latte for my early mornings, work is that much better,” says Menlo College alum Ben Summers.
After the morning shift, when your friendly barista is off work, or out grabbing lunch and groceries, they are often met with with the same greeting: “Hey! You’re my coffee guy," or "Hey! You're my coffee girl!”
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| Author Riley Thorning at work. |
I know because I'm your coffee guy. You know, the one behind the counter. The one you talk to about the same time every day.
When making a beverage for someone in the early morning you might not realize how vital your skills are for their day. A coffee prepared right with a nice smile can really start the morning off correctly.
"When those baristas make the perfect vanilla latte for my early mornings, work is that much better,” says Menlo College alum Ben Summers.
After the morning shift, when your friendly barista is off work, or out grabbing lunch and groceries, they are often met with with the same greeting: “Hey! You’re my coffee guy," or "Hey! You're my coffee girl!”
This can be OK at times, but not every barista wants to chat it up with "the dailies" outside of work.
Say you’re tired and its late, and making a quick run to Safeway, but you run into Mr. "Grande Triple Mocha." Maybe you don’t feel as friendly as he does, but you don’t want to make an awkward impression the next time you see him at work. Figuring out what to day can create a funky situation.
So you just smile and create small talk as if you are on the job. I guess that’s what you get for working at a coffee shop.
I've worked at two different coffee shops and I'm currently employed at Starbucks. It’s a great job with friendly environment, but I can’t begin to explain how many times I run into regulars outside of work. Just the other day I was getting a hair cut at Golden Shears Barber shop about four blocks from my store's location. All the barbers knew me, so we were able to chat it up. I have trouble wondering around town going unnoticed
Say you’re tired and its late, and making a quick run to Safeway, but you run into Mr. "Grande Triple Mocha." Maybe you don’t feel as friendly as he does, but you don’t want to make an awkward impression the next time you see him at work. Figuring out what to day can create a funky situation.
So you just smile and create small talk as if you are on the job. I guess that’s what you get for working at a coffee shop.
I've worked at two different coffee shops and I'm currently employed at Starbucks. It’s a great job with friendly environment, but I can’t begin to explain how many times I run into regulars outside of work. Just the other day I was getting a hair cut at Golden Shears Barber shop about four blocks from my store's location. All the barbers knew me, so we were able to chat it up. I have trouble wondering around town going unnoticed
In most retail or food service jobs you are just a face. But the coffee business is different. You see so many different people and get to know their drinks. You play a crucial part of the morning for everybody you serve. People get to know you. They depend on you. It's one reason coffee guys and coffee girls never go unnoticed.
This is part of an occasional series reflecting opinions of Menlo College students who have part-time jobs while they are full-time students. Let us know if you would like to write for "Learn, Earn" by sending an email to themenlooak@menlo.edu
This is part of an occasional series reflecting opinions of Menlo College students who have part-time jobs while they are full-time students. Let us know if you would like to write for "Learn, Earn" by sending an email to themenlooak@menlo.edu
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