# Do you avoid using Starbucks' silly size names? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 26, 2006, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681 "2006-01-26T11:40:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![dogbutler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogbutler/32/428_2.png) [@dogbutler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dogbutler)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/41 "2006-01-26T19:33:57Z")
> [@Mr Bus Guy](#): > > The lady that works at the Starbucks I go to the most and I have a routine. > > I’ll say I want a Mocha, she’ll ask what size. I ask, what sizes are available. She recites the sizes, rolling the 'r" in Grrrrande. > > Then I make up whatever word I feel like making up that day for their biggest size. > > Today, I will have the Super-Duper. I’ll have a Mocha [ULCC](http://people.hofstra.edu/geotrans/eng/ch5en/appl5en/tankers.html) ---
**Author:** ![Malodorous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47774/32.png) [@Malodorous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malodorous)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/42 "2006-01-26T19:44:20Z")
> [@pseudotriton ruber ruber](#): > > They understand perfectly what a "small coffee’ is. If they want to pretend that their company’s stupid names are the only terms they understand, then I get harder to understand. That’s pretty simple. Has anyone actually had this happen to them? I’ve gone to many a Starbucks and asked for a “medium coffee” and yet to have the person behind the counter blink an eye. And after all, I can’t imagine the server gives a crap what you call thier sizes. Interestingly, before the age of supersizing, Starbucks used to just have two sizes: short and tall. When they decided to add a larger sizes, they understandably didn’t want to call them supertall, or some similar fast food sounding name, so they went with the classier sounding Italian “Grande”, which even to an American sounds like it means “really big”. American appetities continued to expand though, so they added an even larger size, and sticking with the Italian went with “venti” and dropped the “short” size since no one was ordering them anymore (and presumably they make more money off the bigger sizes). So thier names aren’t completely pretensious, they made sense at the time they started being used anyways. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/43 "2006-01-26T19:56:45Z")
Again with the Burger King references (I need to branch out more)…they had the Whopper Jr. and then for a while they had another name for it. But I couldn’t remember the new name, so I ordered the Whopper Jr. And they’d correct me every time. And make me acknowldege my mistake! Evidently I wasn’t the only one put off by the new name, because they switched it back. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/44 "2006-01-26T20:02:21Z")
> [@Malodorous](#): > > Has anyone actually had this happen to them? I’ve gone to many a Starbucks and asked for a “medium coffee” and yet to have the person behind the counter blink an eye. And after all, I can’t imagine the server gives a crap what you call thier sizes. Yes, at least twice at my bagel shop. I walk in, bleary eyed and hung over, wanting a bagel and a vat of coffee. I order bagel & and a large coffee. Inevitably I’m given the smallest cup they have. I’m with **pseudotriton ruber ruber**. They know what people mean when they order a ‘large.’ I can’t imagine I’m the only one who does this - it seems like the counter person could say “Our large is 10 ounces, did you want that, or the 24 ouncer?” “Large” is descriptive. It should be taken as such. ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/45 "2006-01-26T20:08:29Z")
> [@Malodorous](#): > > Has anyone actually had this happen to them? I’ve gone to many a Starbucks and asked for a “medium coffee” and yet to have the person behind the counter blink an eye. And after all, I can’t imagine the server gives a crap what you call thier sizes. Yeah, I’ve never had a problem and I just refuse to say tall, grande, or venti. It sounds stupid. Whatever they did with their sizes, they could have resized and kept the labels small, medium, and large to keep pace with American appetites, but instead they went with pretentious-sounding quasi-Italian, whatever their original motivation. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/46 "2006-01-26T20:14:15Z")
The handful of times I’ve gotten drinks at Starbucks (always apple cider, not coffee), yeah, I’ve refused to say their stupid, gimmicky names. I never go there on my own and feel a certain amount of ragey guilt that I’m in a Starbucks in the first place, so the last thing I’m going to do is speak another language just to fit in. ---
**Author:** ![Malodorous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47774/32.png) [@Malodorous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malodorous)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/47 "2006-01-26T20:37:45Z")
> [@wevets](#): > > Whatever they did with their sizes, they could have resized and kept the labels small, medium, and large to keep pace with American appetites, but instead they went with pretentious-sounding quasi-Italian, whatever their original motivation. They could. But chains like Starbucks like to keep things more or less the same since they feel that people shop there at least partley because it’s familiar. They want you to be able to order “tall” in any Starbucks in the country and know that you’ll get the same thing, even if “tall” is no longer the tallest size anymore. Anyways I mainly relate the story of Starbucks cup sizes becasue I find it interesting that a series of more or less logical steps led to such a weird system of size names: their smallest size is basically an english synonymn for large, their medium is Italian for Big and the large size is Italian for the number of ounces in the cup. Personally, I think that people feel rather pretencious themselves getting coffee in a Starbucks as opposed to the cheaper gas station down the street, and so take more umbridge at the funky size names then is justified. By “rebeling” against the hoity-toity Italian names, they’re proving their still salt of the Earth, even if they’re paying 2 bucks for a coffee. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/48 "2006-01-26T21:42:05Z")
> [@Malodorous](#): > > American appetities continued to expand though, so they added an even larger size, and sticking with the Italian went with “venti” and dropped the “short” size since no one was ordering them anymore (and presumably they make more money off the bigger sizes). They didn’t actually drop the short size, they just took it off the menu. But they still have the cups. If you want a short, you can order a short. They’re more than happy to sell it to you. Of course, I have no problem buying my usual “extra hot, tall, carmel macchiato with 4 pumps of vanilla.” ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/49 "2006-01-26T21:45:53Z")
I’ve never ordered a cup of coffee at Starbucks. I’m extremely picky about how my coffee is prepared. I don’t let anyone…not even Mr. K…fix my coffee for me. It’s personal. What can I say? Do they charge by the “pump?” ---
**Author:** ![Lionne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Lionne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lionne)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/50 "2006-01-26T21:59:27Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > Burger King is the one that pisses me off. I order a small fries and they say, “we don’t have small…only medium and large” Wait, how is it possible to have a medium and large without a small? Wouldn’t that be…a small and a large? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/51 "2006-01-26T22:16:37Z")
We bought an espresso machine about seven years ago and the question has become moot. Not only do we avoid the whole silly Starbucks experience, we make MUCH BETTER FARKIN’ ESPRESSO! Buck the system and become your own barista, too. In the long run, you’ll save money, even factoring in your initial outlay for the machine. ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/52 "2006-01-26T22:24:12Z")
I ordered a combo meal from Pizza Schmizza that featured a slice of pizza and a large drink. I get a 12 ounce cup. Turns out their sizes are “large” and “large”. :rolleyes: Oh, and they charge 50 cents for refills. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/53 "2006-01-26T22:35:43Z")
> [@LunaV](#): > > Wait, how is it possible to have a medium and large without a small? Wouldn’t that be…a small and a large? 😕 One would think. But in a parallel universe (_bizarro world_, as we refer to it at Kasa Kalhoun), such is not the case. Hence, the “11”. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/54 "2006-01-26T22:41:43Z")
> [@Neurotik](#): > > Yes - “Like It,” “Love It,” “Gotta Have It.” Their ice cream is positively wonderful, but their sizes (and the singing) have to go. Yeah–horrible names. I refuse to use them, and so far the counter people have not been traumatized by my asking for a ‘small.’ I hate cutesy names. 'Course, I don’t order those much anymore when I found out that the one I like (small chocolate with graham crackers, cookie dough, and chocolate syrup) is 18.5 Weight Watchers points, or around 900 calories. Yikes! And they won’t let you order the kiddie size unless you’re a kiddie. (Plus, even were I inclined to lie and say I had a kiddie sitting off somewhere, they don’t do mix-ins with the kid sizes. That’s the best part!) I even tried tasting the “sinless sweet cream” version, but it tasted like sweet spackle with the consistency of gummy toothpaste. No thanks! When I do indulge in my favorite, though, I’ve taken to sneaking tips into the jar when the servers turn their backs, so I don’t have to hear them sing. I once asked a guy, “So–if I tip you, are you gonna sing?” “Do you want me to?” he asked. “No, not really,” I replied. He grinned, I gave him a tip, and he didn’t sing. I think we were all happy. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/55 "2006-01-26T22:59:50Z")
One single short espresso in a grande cup with extra milk and foam please 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/56 "2006-01-26T23:14:05Z")
I use the names on the sign. It felt weird the first time or two, but after that I just didn’t give a crap. If the sign said “eensy weensy, wittle bit biggie, or ooo gweat biggie wiggie” I would without hesitation order an ooo gweat biggie wiggie with woom for cweam, pwease. I have neither pride nor shame, I will do your little dance, just give me some goddamn coffee. ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/57 "2006-01-26T23:56:15Z")
> [@winterhawk11](#): > > When I do indulge in my favorite, though, I’ve taken to sneaking tips into the jar when the servers turn their backs, so I don’t have to hear them sing. I once asked a guy, “So–if I tip you, are you gonna sing?” > > “Do you want me to?” he asked. > > “No, not really,” I replied. > > He grinned, I gave him a tip, and he didn’t sing. I think we were all happy. I hold money over the jar and tell them “50 cents for a song, or a buck if you skip it. Your choice.” Amazingly, they’ve never once chosen to sing. ---
**Author:** ![Manatee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/50afbb/32.png) [@Manatee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manatee)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/58 "2006-01-27T00:29:56Z")
> [@ShibbOleth](#): > > I also eschew cutesie names, regardless of venue. I do the exact opposite. If they give their products dorky names, then I use those names with great gusto: “Yes, I’d like an Astro Burger, a medium order of Moon Fries, and a large Jupiter Juice to drink, please.” By really forcing the phony enthusiasm, I make it clear how goofy such cutsie naming is. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/59 "2006-01-27T08:20:25Z")
Never been to Starbucks and I don’t expect I’ll do so soon. But I refuse to ask for a ‘regular fries’ at McDonalds. ‘Small chips’ is what I ask for and they know what I’m talking about. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681/60 "2006-01-27T13:52:51Z")
> [@Manatee](#): > > I do the exact opposite. If they give their products dorky names, then I use those names with great gusto: “Yes, I’d like an Astro Burger, a medium order of Moon Fries, and a large Jupiter Juice to drink, please.” By really forcing the phony enthusiasm, I make it clear how goofy such cutsie naming is. Which is an important thing to do, because the servers probably think the cutesy names are really cool and never heard anybody make fun of them. :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-avoid-using-starbucks-silly-size-names/341681.md?page=4)