I've got a complaint (1 Viewer)

[Lutherf]

I was going to let this slide but it seems to be a problem that just keeps getting worse now that we're getting into a time of year with cooler temps. It's about convenience store coffee and other hot drinks. See, my "go to" stop in the morning is a QT store. For those that don't have a QT the place has kind of a buffet for drinks. There are at least half a dozen machines pumping out various coffee styles and hot chocolates. There are at least 10 varieties of iced tea to choose from and I won't even get into the options for fountain sodas, ice drinks and other stuff. I mean, there's more than 20' of wall space on each side of the store dedicated to beverage options!

For most of the year all these options aren't a problem but now that more people seem to be drinking hot drinks I'm seeing a trend. I'm seeing more and more people come in and spend what seems like 15 minutes "fixing" their coffee or hot chocolate. They'll pump in a full shot of Hazelnut flavor, half a shot of Vanilla, two shots of Caramel, add 2oz of Cappuccino, add another half a pump of Pumpkin, draw out a little Espresso, throw in 1 sugar, 2 sweet and Low and top the whole thing with Mocha Frappe something or other.

Then they'll taste it.

Then they'll toss it all out and start over.


Meanwhile, all I want is my damned iced tea and I can't get to it because Barista Bob needs the whole ****ing counter to play Coffee Alchemist! He's running back and forth so much I can't even get down the aisle!

 

[Skeptic Bob]

I just take my coffee plain and black. I’m not sure if it is because I prefer the taste that way or I am just too lazy to put all the other crap in it.

 

[beancounter]

I was going to let this slide but it seems to be a problem that just keeps getting worse now that we're getting into a time of year with cooler temps. It's about convenience store coffee and other hot drinks. See, my "go to" stop in the morning is a QT store. For those that don't have a QT the place has kind of a buffet for drinks. There are at least half a dozen machines pumping out various coffee styles and hot chocolates. There are at least 10 varieties of iced tea to choose from and I won't even get into the options for fountain sodas, ice drinks and other stuff. I mean, there's more than 20' of wall space on each side of the store dedicated to beverage options!

For most of the year all these options aren't a problem but now that more people seem to be drinking hot drinks I'm seeing a trend. I'm seeing more and more people come in and spend what seems like 15 minutes "fixing" their coffee or hot chocolate. They'll pump in a full shot of Hazelnut flavor, half a shot of Vanilla, two shots of Caramel, add 2oz of Cappuccino, add another half a pump of Pumpkin, draw out a little Espresso, throw in 1 sugar, 2 sweet and Low and top the whole thing with Mocha Frappe something or other.

Then they'll taste it.

Then they'll toss it all out and start over.


Meanwhile, all I want is my damned iced tea and I can't get to it because Barista Bob needs the whole ****ing counter to play Coffee Alchemist! He's running back and forth so much I can't even get down the aisle!

I blame both Starbucks and Peet's Coffee for starting that mindset/trend.

 

[Rexedgar]

Coffee and Irish cream........make it @ home, no need to mix with the riff-raff!

 

[Lutherf]

I just take my coffee plain and black. I’m not sure if it is because I prefer the taste that way or I am just too lazy to put all the other crap in it.

When I first started drinking coffee I drank it like a milkshake. However, after a few weeks on graveyard shift I just stopped caring. From that point on it was black, no sugar. As long as it's hot I just don't need all that other stuff.

 

[OrphanSlug]

I blame *everyone* for this matter.

 

[Lutherf]

Coffee and Irish cream........make it @ home, no need to mix with the riff-raff!

Bourbon works better than Irish Cream. It also makes your clients easier to deal with during the day.

 

[ttwtt78640]

I have my girlfriend make Crystal Light (or some other similar brand) by the gallon, keep it handy in the refrigerator and have Yeti (knock-off) cup to keep it cold for to-go purposes. For on the job use I take plenty of bottled water (in a cooler) and have some 24 serving flavor squirt vials (assorted flavors and brands) in the tool bucket to flavor it up when I'm in the mood for something other than plain water.

 

[lurchadams]

I was going to let this slide but it seems to be a problem that just keeps getting worse now that we're getting into a time of year with cooler temps. It's about convenience store coffee and other hot drinks. See, my "go to" stop in the morning is a QT store. For those that don't have a QT the place has kind of a buffet for drinks. There are at least half a dozen machines pumping out various coffee styles and hot chocolates. There are at least 10 varieties of iced tea to choose from and I won't even get into the options for fountain sodas, ice drinks and other stuff. I mean, there's more than 20' of wall space on each side of the store dedicated to beverage options!

For most of the year all these options aren't a problem but now that more people seem to be drinking hot drinks I'm seeing a trend. I'm seeing more and more people come in and spend what seems like 15 minutes "fixing" their coffee or hot chocolate. They'll pump in a full shot of Hazelnut flavor, half a shot of Vanilla, two shots of Caramel, add 2oz of Cappuccino, add another half a pump of Pumpkin, draw out a little Espresso, throw in 1 sugar, 2 sweet and Low and top the whole thing with Mocha Frappe something or other.

Then they'll taste it.

Then they'll toss it all out and start over.


Meanwhile, all I want is my damned iced tea and I can't get to it because Barista Bob needs the whole ****ing counter to play Coffee Alchemist! He's running back and forth so much I can't even get down the aisle!

I'm in AZ about 2-3 times a year. I love QT's F'Real smoothie machines except they're constantly breaking down. My favorite hot beverage is half latte, half strong coffee because the latte alone is just too sweet. I haven't experienced the "barista bob" situation like you have but that would piss me off as well!

 

[OlNate]

First sign you're in the wrong place: Drink Buffet!!

You need a place that serves what you want, and ONLY what you want. Too much choice leads to too much decision making, and that is something very few people have the patience to watch in others, when standing in line behind them... lol

 

[Lovebug]

I'm in AZ about 2-3 times a year. I love QT's F'Real smoothie machines except they're constantly breaking down. My favorite hot beverage is half latte, half strong coffee because the latte alone is just too sweet. I haven't experienced the "barista bob" situation like you have but that would piss me off as well!

I mixed my sweet tea like that. Straight up is just too sweet.

 

[ttwtt78640]

First sign you're in the wrong place: Drink Buffet!!

You need a place that serves what you want, and ONLY what you want. Too much choice leads to too much decision making, and that is something very few people have the patience to watch in others, when standing in line behind them... lol

I call that (very special) place home.

 

[Lutherf]

First sign you're in the wrong place: Drink Buffet!!

You need a place that serves what you want, and ONLY what you want. Too much choice leads to too much decision making, and that is something very few people have the patience to watch in others, when standing in line behind them... lol

QT is actually a pretty good outfit. Their hot dog buffet is also pretty impressive but I don't see as much decision dementia on that end.

The places are always clean. The staff is always friendly and the restrooms are always open, clean and stocked. As far as a convenience store goes it's pretty good, right up there with Maverick.

 

[Xelor]

I was going to let this slide but it seems to be a problem that just keeps getting worse now that we're getting into a time of year with cooler temps. It's about convenience store coffee and other hot drinks. See, my "go to" stop in the morning is a QT store. For those that don't have a QT the place has kind of a buffet for drinks. There are at least half a dozen machines pumping out various coffee styles and hot chocolates. There are at least 10 varieties of iced tea to choose from and I won't even get into the options for fountain sodas, ice drinks and other stuff. I mean, there's more than 20' of wall space on each side of the store dedicated to beverage options!

For most of the year all these options aren't a problem but now that more people seem to be drinking hot drinks I'm seeing a trend. I'm seeing more and more people come in and spend what seems like 15 minutes "fixing" their coffee or hot chocolate. They'll pump in a full shot of Hazelnut flavor, half a shot of Vanilla, two shots of Caramel, add 2oz of Cappuccino, add another half a pump of Pumpkin, draw out a little Espresso, throw in 1 sugar, 2 sweet and Low and top the whole thing with Mocha Frappe something or other.

Then they'll taste it.

Then they'll toss it all out and start over.


Meanwhile, all I want is my damned iced tea and I can't get to it because Barista Bob needs the whole ****ing counter to play Coffee Alchemist! He's running back and forth so much I can't even get down the aisle!

My solution suggestions:

• Make your own iced tea, put it in a "go cup" and be rid of whatever irk "Barista Bob" engenders in you.
• Find a different fast-food/convenience purveyor of iced tea. McDonald's sweet tea is alright. The Brisk brand of teas isn't bad as mass produced tea goes. Grocery stores carry a variety of pre-made bottled teas that are also decent.

 

[Spartacus FPV]

This is why I use Dunkin's On The Go app. My drink is ready for me when I get there. No line or getting stuck behind some basic pleb and their questions about pumpkin spice sugary garbage.

 

[Skeptic Bob]

I just take my coffee plain and black. I’m not sure if it is because I prefer the taste that way or I am just too lazy to put all the other crap in it.

Hmmm, maybe that is why I prefer my Scotch Whiskey to be “neat”. It isn’t that I am a purist, I just don’t like refilling ice trays.

 

[lurchadams]

I mixed my sweet tea like that. Straight up is just too sweet.

Same here, and IMO, McDonald's, hands down has the best sweet tea.

 

[Lutherf]

My solution suggestions:

• Make your own iced tea, put it in a "go cup" and be rid of whatever irk "Barista Bob" engenders in you.
• Find a different fast-food/convenience purveyor of iced tea. McDonald's sweet tea is alright. The Brisk brand of teas isn't bad as mass produced tea goes. Grocery stores carry a variety of pre-made bottled teas that are also decent.

But QT tea is good! Way better than Lipton. They also have really good styrofoam cups that keep the ice frozen most of the day even when it's 110° out.

 

[Lovebug]

Same here, and IMO, McDonald's, hands down has the best sweet tea.

We stop by there when we are on the road and want a tea. Just beware of traffic jams after one of those big jugs. It makes you sweat your sweet tea through your eyeballs.

 

[OlNate]

I call that (very special) place home.

Nah...you need to find it somewhere where you don't have to do the work to make it. That's the magic.

QT is actually a pretty good outfit. Their hot dog buffet is also pretty impressive but I don't see as much decision dementia on that end.

The places are always clean. The staff is always friendly and the restrooms are always open, clean and stocked. As far as a convenience store goes it's pretty good, right up there with Maverick.

Not filthy with it, being a filthy Canadian, we don't have that up here. But sounds like some places we do have, which I won't go into for the exact reasons you are getting salty about.

No, you need a gas station, or a hole in the wall convenience store, that's where the best coffee is, because they know that's all they have going for them... lol

Not sure about sourcing ice tea, you guys have a different definition of that down there. But I guarantee, there's a place somewhere near you that you would NEVER normally enter that has the best you ever had.

 

[Mach]

I feel your pain, that's rage-inducing. I frequent public places as little as possible, but that's just me, not judging. As you noted, QTs aren't bad as convenient stores go. I think I got lured in recently by their huge vanilla ice cream cone for like 49 cents. That was our big "dessert out instead of frozen yogurt". The guy was double checking with the manager, is it 4 or 5 twists? I gained from that loss-leader

Personally I'd try one of those electric kettles for $20 and turn it on when I get up, and making tea after that is a snap.

 

[Rexedgar]

Hmmm, maybe that is why I prefer my Scotch Whiskey to be “neat”. It isn’t that I am a purist, I just don’t like refilling ice trays.

I used to take Scotch over ice until I started drinking a better Scotch. The missus got some “cold stones.” Put them in the freezer and then in the drink; they never won me over, gotta remember not to crunch them!

 

[Xelor]

My solution suggestions:

• Make your own iced tea, put it in a "go cup" and be rid of whatever irk "Barista Bob" engenders in you.
• Find a different fast-food/convenience purveyor of iced tea. McDonald's sweet tea is alright. The Brisk brand of teas isn't bad as mass produced tea goes. Grocery stores carry a variety of pre-made bottled teas that are also decent.

But QT tea is good! Way better than Lipton. They also have really good styrofoam cups that keep the ice frozen most of the day even when it's 110° out.

Red:
I'm sure it is. It's clearly not so good that it's goodness dissuades you from being irked over having to wait for "Barista Bob" to finish preparing his cup of coffee.

FWIW, business owners, MBAs and economists are well aware that customers will only tolerate so much irk, whereafter they seek substitutes and my very well move on.

Blue + Red:
Be that as it may, there are many brands of bottled tea. Lipton is but one.

Pink:
Does it take you all day to drink a cup of QT iced tea? Regardless of whether it does, my suggestion of using a "go cup" is nonetheless viable, no matter the source of the iced tea you put in it.

 

[Lutherf]

I feel your pain, that's rage-inducing. I frequent public places as little as possible, but that's just me, not judging. As you noted, QTs aren't bad as convenient stores go. I think I got lured in recently by their huge vanilla ice cream cone for like 49 cents. That was our big "dessert out instead of frozen yogurt". The guy was double checking with the manager, is it 4 or 5 twists? I gained from that loss-leader

Personally I'd try one of those electric kettles for $20 and turn it on when I get up, and making tea after that is a snap.

I've got the Keurig at home for coffee and it gets used pretty much daily. I've also got tea at home and could certainly make my own but, for some reason or other, this stop has become habit. The crushed ice is just right, the styrofoam cup keeps everything icy cold all day long, they have plenty of pumps so I never have to wait for gas...it's just convenient, like a "convenience store" should be. Heck, if there's a line they always call another cashier up to ring people through. If it wasn't for Barista Bob the place would be perfect!

 

[JasperL]

Same here, and IMO, McDonald's, hands down has the best sweet tea.

I agree they have really good tea - that's where I stop when traveling - but their "sweet" tea is disgustingly sweet as is, and I like sweet tea, with lemon of course. If it's cut half and half, it's good, better for me is about 2/3 unsweet to 1/3 sweet.

What I don't understand is how many restaurants can't get tea right. It's so simple - Lipton/Luzianne Ice tea bags, put in hot water, steep, remove bags. Or run it through a machine. How is it half the time outside McD what you get is stale or old or bitter? What does it cost - maybe $1 per big container of tea?