10 Common Starbucks Myths That Should Be Debunked

It probably goes without saying that a coffee company that derives its very image from the mythology of the ancients sparks its own fair share of cultural myths. We’re speaking about Starbucks, of course, the brand behind the double-tailed woman set against a backdrop of green. Given that there is an overabundance of social media accounts in the world, anything that’s said about the coffee company — or anything else, for that matter — has the potential to inspire a myth, whether what’s said is true or not. That’s the way all cultural myths get spread. They’re a story that catches fire and starts to burn hot before anyone can stomp out the flames.

As for the myths about Starbucks, they run the gamut. Some deal with the validity of some fan favorites on the Starbucks’ menu. Others concern themselves with the type of people who work at the local Starbucks counter. Still others have something to say about the meanings behind partner uniforms. All of these myths are worth examining because they have the potential to influence not only your experience at the local Starbucks but also your buying behavior, potentially. The following cliché Starbucks myths rank among the most prevalent. Read ’em with your eyes open and then toss ’em in the trash once you’re done because they’re just that — myths.

Like the secret societies of adventure movies, the Starbucks’ secret menu is something that nearly everyone thinks exists but really doesn’t. There is no vault of recipes in the back room of your local Starbucks, no hidden menu, no secret instructions list for coffee so good you can only access it if you can supply the right password and know the members’ handshake. This isn’t to say that people haven’t learned to hack the Starbucks’ menu. They have, and some of them have made a number of videos and blog posts about it. Because of this, they know how to jimmy rig the ingredients that Starbucks already has in its stores and turn them into something really delish.

The belief in a secret menu can be problematic. Imagine what happens when customers come into a Starbucks and order an item off the so-called secret menu. What happens if the baristas waiting on them have no idea what they’re talking about? If there’s a so-called secret menu item you learned about on TikTok, it’s not that you can’t order it when you’re at the local ‘bucks. However, you should come prepared with an ingredients list for the drink just in case. That way, your baristas can replicate the drink even if the beverage isn’t something that’s normally in their wheelhouse.

If you’ve ever doubted that a well-placed social media post has any power, consider this: A Starbucks in the U.K. posted a sign telling patrons that it would no longer be taking cash. Very quickly, pandemonium among cash-loving Starbucks lovers ensued. Many of the chain’s patrons suggested that they would take their cash elsewhere if the coffee giant refused to take their cash at the local Starbucks stores. As turns out, the sign that was heard around the world wasn’t meant for the whole world. It was only meant for a small part of it. And as some people on the social-media-o-sphere have pointed out, it’s not logical to think that Starbucks as a whole would actually, you know, turn down money.

Aside from that, there are many states in the U.S. that require businesses to take cash, so no matter how much an establishment like a local Starbucks may want to rid itself of those pesky Benjamins, in reality, this may not be an option. It’s also the case that while some Starbucks stores may not be taking cash, most, if not all of them, do. Think of it this way: Some McDonald’s franchises around the world have some hamburgers you can only try abroad because those burgers fit those local cultures. Starbucks’ policies and menus fit the local culture and laws. That’s all it is, so feel free to bring your cash to your local Starbucks. Your store will probably take it.

This one’s complex. True enough, many English majors work as baristas while they’re pursuing their college degrees. However, graduating with an English degree doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re bound for a career as a Starbucks barista. Additionally, while it may be the case that those who have English degrees may take slightly longer post-graduation to find a job in their career field, many do eventually go on to high-paying professional jobs in education, law, and even the C-suite, according to Inside Higher Ed. In other words, they trade coffee scoops for a desk or gavel.

Interestingly enough, however, those baristas who do have a bachelor’s degree tend to make more than those who don’t have a four-year degree. According to Zippia, coffee pros with a bachelor’s degree earn just over $31,000 a year on average. By comparison, baristas with a high school diploma earn just over $29,000, while those with an associate’s degree earn just over $30,000 a year.

Aside from this, such a myth asserts that a life in coffee isn’t a viable career option. Being a Starbucks barista is often where things start for these industry professionals. There are barista certification programs that can ultimately mean more money for the would-be coffee professional and which provide them with the training they need to advance a career in the java industry. For Starbucks baristas, the certification program they want to take part in is the Coffee Master program, which gives participants a deep dive into all things coffee. Those who go on to become Coffee Masters can eventually earn anywhere from $4,336 to $7,896 per month, according to Glassdoor.

With sustainability being such a hot topic in consumer culture nowadays, it’s no wonder such practices as reusable to-go cups have become such a thing at gas stations and mini marts. And given that Starbucks has a commitment to sustainability, it’s also no wonder that the idea of the coffee giant not allowing people to use their personal cups inspires such vitriol. The short of it is, Starbucks does allow customers to bring in travel mugs. They can also drink out of glass and ceramic mugs in their local stores rather than getting their java in a paper cup if they feel strongly about sustainability. Despite putting the personal-cup program on furlough during the COVID-19 pandemic, the coffee giant hasn’t been shelved the program permanently. It would be difficult for Starbucks to reach a key sustainability goal by 2030 – to reduce waste by 50% — without implementing programs like this one. You know, considering that Starbucks currently burns through roughly 7 billion disposable cups per year and all, per CNBC.

Customers who want to take advantage of the program need to come prepared. They must bring a clean, empty mug to Starbucks. It’s even good in the drive-through. The baristas are not allowed to clean the mugs for them. The mugs must also be no bigger than 40 ounces. As for fans of the coffee chain, the company’s sustainability program isn’t the only thing that benefits from the program. Customers do, too. Customers who take advantage of this genius Starbucks ordering hack get a $0.10 discount on their coffee and 25 stars toward the company’s rewards program.

There’s an old saying that reminds us that there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch. However, under the right circumstances, there is such a thing as a free drink, and one of the places you’ll find it is at your local Starbucks. This myth probably got its start because, in the past, there was some truth to it. Unless you had a Starbucks Rewards membership, there were no free drinks for you.

A couple of factors played into Starbucks offering free refills. The world-stopping, 6-feet-between-us rules of the COVID-19 pandemic reduced foot traffic in Starbucks stores by 51% and knocked sales down 40% worldwide in 2020, according to National Restaurant News. There was also an incident in 2018 which saw two Black men get arrested for sitting in a Philadelphia Starbucks without buying any of the store’s wares. Both incidents prompted Starbucks customers to drink coffee elsewhere.

The revised free refill program was meant to perk up foot traffic by offering free refills on coffee and tea. The change also brings back the Starbucks’ creamer bar, so while you may not be able to enjoy a refill on a frou-frou drink, you can give your coffee a flavor boost. The catch is that you have to order and drink the beverage in-house and abide by the company’s code of conduct. This basically means you can take advantage of this Starbucks ordering hack as long as you’re a good human to other humans, don’t panhandle or use drugs, including alcohol, and avoid disruptive conduct while you’re sipping on your MacGyvered pseudo-latte.

Starbucks boasts one of the most famous logos in the world. The woman with the double tail set against a green screen is a beacon for all who need a little coffee to perk up their morning commute. Most people say she’s a two-tailed mermaid. However, the truth about the woman on the green is a bit more complicated. To put it plainly, she’s not a mermaid; she’s a siren.

In 1971, when the company was establishing itself at the seaport in Puget Sound, one of Starbucks’ founders, Terry Heckler, came up with a sea-themed logo as a nod to the company’s position on the waterfront. Since the sirens of old were known to lure sailors into the sea (and to their deaths) with their voices, the logo was meant to be a visual metaphor. Like the siren’s song of old, the double-tailed woman called out to coffee drinkers — except this siren’s song called them away from the sea and into Starbucks’ doors.

Incidentally, the characteristics of the siren have changed over the centuries. In most modern depictions, she is half fish, half woman, mermaid with an attitude. However, in the oldest pieces of literature, like “The Odyssey,” sirens were half woman, half bird. Their form morphed from bird to fish over the centuries, (which is a tale for another time). This makes sense. Birds sing. Fish don’t, so how could lure men to their demise? As for sirens at Starbucks, a woman with a bird’s tail probably wouldn’t be as enticing as a symbol as the double-tailed woman is, so the logo image stays.

If ever you’ve drank a cup of joe that has sat in the pot for six hours, then you know what burnt coffee tastes like. It’s a flavor that’s just this side of burnt timber after a forest fire. People who are not fans of Starbucks coffee claim that the chain’s java also tastes burnt. However, unlike the coffee that’s been sitting in your coffeemaker for many hours, to them, Starbucks coffee tastes burnt from the get-go.

Blame this peculiarity on the fact that Starbucks uses dark roast coffee in many of its drinks. The process to create a dark roast coffee brings out certain characteristics, which lend themselves to the java tasting a bit crispy. For one thing, dark roast coffee sits in the roaster for a longer period of time than other lighter roasts do. The natural sugars in the coffee change as a result of this: They caramelize. And if that weren’t enough, the oils in the coffee beans break down during roasting. This is where the smoky log flavor comes from.

For another thing, Starbucks baristas are taught to adjust with the coffee-and-water ratio during the brewing process (on purpose). For those who love the coffee chain and bitter coffee, it wouldn’t be Starbucks without that burnt-ish taste. However, for those who want to meet up with friends at Starbucks but who haven’t warmed up to the dark roast, there is good news: Starbucks doesn’t just sell dark roast coffee. It is possible to get a cup of light- or medium-roast coffee, like a Sumatra or a Blonde Roast. You just have to order it.

Everyone knows that Starbucks has just three sizes of cups. The 12-ounce coffee, the smallest one, is ironically called a “tall.” Its 16-ounce medium earned the title of the “Grande.” And its Venti, the large, comes in at 20 ounces. For most people, these are enough sizes to choose from, though for some Starbucks patrons, keeping the names straight can be a bit of a chore, and for those people, simply ordering a small, medium, or large suffices.

But those aren’t Starbucks’ only sizes. There’s also a Mini Me version called the “short.” There’s also a whopper of a cup, called the Trenta. At over 30 ounces, it delivers coffee in the convenient economy size. The problem is that most people don’t know about the other two sizes because in many stores, those two sizes don’t get displayed in the stacks of cups.

The Trenta is the size of a bottle of wine and not on the menu, making it even more elusive for most customers. There’s also a catch with this drink. It’s a cold-drink only cup. Order a large iced tea, and this is likely the cup you’ll get. As for the Mini Me, it used to be the chain’s smallest drink way back in the day — read pre-1990s. It’s not a waste, though. It’s a good candidate for kids’ drinks and for Starbucks’ Puppuccino, that tasty snack of whipped cream that the coffee giant is only too happy to pass on to your pooch.

At Starbucks, the green apron is ubiquitous, so when you encounter a barista wearing something other than the color of leprechauns, you tend to take notice. Rumor has it that an apron of a different color at Starbucks denotes achievement. And as with most of the rumors that myths are made of, there is, of course, an element of truth to them. First off, it is actually a big deal if a barista is wearing a black apron. That does signify that the wearer of said apron has gained some level of achievement in the barista world. Baristas clad in black have earned the title of “Coffee Master,” an honor which indicates that they have taken coursework in all things coffee and passed with flying colors.

However, there are more than just black and green aprons at Starbucks. Take, for example, the aprons with the American flag on them. They honor the military spouses and veterans among us. Green aprons decorated with ASL fingerspelling tells you that the partners in question are deaf. Their primary way of communicating with you about your java order is via American Sign Language. A mortarboard on the apron signifies someone who’s a part of the coffee chain’s college achievement program. Red aprons — unsurprisingly — are for the holidays. And those tan aprons? They’re set aside for partners who boast the Reserve and Roastery partners designations.

Who would’ve thought that a simple red cup with the two-tailed siren on it would stir up a kettle of controversy, but that’s the reality at Starbucks come Christmas time. The firestorm got started in 2015 when an evangelist, Joshua Feuerstein, suggested — rather forcefully — that the coffee chain had declared a war on Christmas. And why? Because the simple design was inclusive. It embraced all people celebrating the winter holidays, regardless of their faith. And while red has long been a color associated with Christmas, the lack of other holiday season signifiers, like, say, a big star in the sky, meant that the java giant had declared a war on Christmas. Except it hadn’t.

Things weren’t much better for Starbucks’ white holiday cup, which was decorated with the markings of winter on it. Think snowflakes, gift packages, and cozy mittens, and you have the right idea. The change of color was meant to encourage people to be creative and color in the spaces any hue they wanted, but that riled up the ire of some, too. Yep. A cup that was also basically a coloring book that could be marked up with anything a person chooses (including symbols) sparked controversy, too. Go figure. There is one thing to be said about all of this cup controversy, though. Given that the coffee giant started introducing holiday cups in 1997 and has continued to do so over the years, it’s likely that the coffee-drinking public will continue to hear about this “issue” for some time to come.