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It has become common practice for customers to use hacks when placing an order for food or drinks, but a Starbucks barista from Massachusetts was shocked by one customer's attempt at getting a drink for a much lower price.
TikTok user @sineadrobbins posted a video that has since been viewed nearly 900,000 times in which she showed what the customer ordered to try to get a strawberry frappuccino for just five cents.
@sineadrobbins told Newsweek in an email she's noticed that customers have ordered drinks that became popular on social media, like TikTok, and Market research firm Mintel reported that two in five consumers use social media to discover new restaurants.
"It is becoming more common for influencers to encourage consumers to be more adventurous in their away-from-home dining experiences," the organization said.
The practice of "menu hacks" is not new, but it has become more popular over time because of social media, and it's likely that they'll be used more frequently.
"Social media will continue to drive new menu trends, especially among digitally savvy Gen Z and Millennials," Mintel's report read.
@sineadrobbins said a customer placed a mobile order for a paper handle bag, which costs five cents. She also said there is an opportunity for customers to write a request while ordering.
"Hi, could I please have a grande strawberry creme frap with no whipped cream and a strawless lid? Thank you!" read the order request.
With a laugh, @sineadrobbins said buying a handle bag with the intention of adding a drink in the request section of the ordering process is not a hack.
"It was a little bit funny, but it didn't work," she said. "We just canceled the order."
@sineadrobbins said she initially wondered if it was not possible for the customer to order their drink of choice, but upon checking she noticed the drink was available to order.
"Making the drink never really seemed like an option to me, since giving someone a free drink is never really an option, but it definitely made me laugh," she said.
Viewers were just as blown away by the customer's attempt to get a free drink.
"I genuinely have to ask what goes through people's minds," a viewer wrote.
"That is hilarious," another viewer said. "Did they actually expect that to work?"
"Ain't no way," one viewer wrote.
Others shared what they would have done if faced with the same order.
"I would have dumped the frap in the bag," a viewer said.
"I would have put the bag in the cup and had it delivered," commented another.
Some said they've had to juggle odd order requests as well.
"Bro seriously, people keep putting orders in the comment section of orders and it kills me," a TikTok viewer wrote.
"People used to do this all the time when I worked at Subway," a comment read. "Order a small veggie and ask for a chicken bacon in the special requests."
This is not the first time a fast food employee's experience with a customer has gone viral.
A Subway employee advised customers to never tell his boss he deserves a raise but should instead thank an employee or leave a tip.
One McDonald's employee shared the odd order a customer tried to place in the drive-thru. Another McDonald's employee went viral for his customer service.
Update: 10/03/22 4:38 p.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from @sineadrobbins.
About the writer
Catherine Ferris is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Her focus is reporting for the U.S. Trends Team. She ... Read more