Obligatory "Not A Staff Member W/ Caribou" mention before i talk/ask my question.

As someone familiar with SOP and this "new" STAR program (that other *restaurants* have been implementing since 2020), I just wanna ask why stuff like that can be thrown out of the window when store stats are low in some way?

Was gonna order a little Caramel High Rise Cooler with a Lumberjack when a woman walked who looked in a hurry, she had two dark roast canteens I guess, and she didn't know how their system for that worked and was upset when a staff member told them it was beyond her or Caribou's control. No big deal, i get it, stuff happens and I've encountered some app errors recently so that lined up in my head.

So tell me why that same staff member is telling her coworker to fuck up her order by brewing "dark over light" (i guess she meant to say mix them? idk caribou speak like that) and that they "didn't have time" to brew her right order because "you know drive thru is backed up right now." She already had to wait anyway, why not just give her the right order *the first time* instead of setting your coworker up to fail like that? I'm sure she would've made a review about it and idk about the other three people with us but hearing that threw me and her for a loop cause....what?? I ended up going to a Dunkin's instead cause i just couldn't believe a staff member was telling her coworker to mess up an order like that, and all for the sake of store stats? Pretty lame honestly, I hope that location can figure some stuff out in the next couple weeks or so before I try again.

But yeah, why is that something you can just throw out when store stats are low? You'd think if your industry depends on a satisfied customer base that you'd make sure the order is, *at the least*, accurate but idk I'm no business owner so maybe there's something I'm missing

I never thought I would post on this subreddit but here I am. Long story short I’m waiting to hear back from my GM because she’s waiting to hear back from HR. I had to explain in an email to my GM of why I was terminated from Caribou previously. I told her the truth of course. I guess I’m just getting impatient since I was supposed to start training on Monday and I was excited because I’ve been unemployed since March. I guess I’m asking how long will this take for HR to get back to my GM to go ahead and rehire me?

If anyone really wants to know what happened here is the story: This happened back in 2016 when I was still in high school. Because of personal things that happened at home, my mom cut me off of her phone plan without my knowledge which caused me to miss calls from my boss at the time. I came in at the scheduled time that I knew about and was informed of these phone calls when I came in which caused the termination. The reason why my boss called me at the time was because the store was really busy and asked if I could have came in sooner. It was all an abrupt change that I could not control. This caribou was located inside the Mall of America on the second floor in a hallway that connected to the Radisson Blu hotel. This store no longer exists by the way.

Thanks for reading if you got this far.

Hello, I’m a fairly new employee, and I am confused on where I am supposed to be finding the employee specific reviews? My GM has told me that someone has complained saying I “had to remake the drink multiple times.” I am new to Caribou, but I am not new to coffee and would definitely remember if I had to remake a drink more than once for a customer.

Where would this be? I cannot find it in the store reviews. I didn’t see the review, just was told it. I wasn’t even told what drink it would have been.

I would like to voice my opinion here as someone who works at a caribou which is not in Minnesota, I’ve been working at caribou for around a year and i definitely don’t recommend working here. The pay here for Caribou (at least in my state) isnt worth it for the bullshit the workers have to go through. 🫩🫩 I’ve had another team member be a creep to me and another one of my co-worker like inviting me into his car, it was excused because literally NOBODY cared.

My manager deadass scheduled me on every holiday possible this year, like I had the day of 4th of July marked as not available because it happened to be on the day I ALWAYS have marked unavailable but they still ignored it and scheduled me anyways.. Not to mention Caribou hiring individuals who refuse to work correctly, I’ve had co-workers who genuinely don’t know how to wash dishes or sweep.. while refusing to learn as well which causes managers unable to fire them because of Minnesota law.

Lastly for some reason at least at my store the racism here is crazy work, the store I work at there’s a lot of people who don’t speak English. some of our coworkers are rude AS HELL to them / disrespectful which is so odd because we are supposed to have “core values“ with that when I was working with my old management, one of the coworkers would enforce that my black manager was “mean & aggressive“ when she was literally just assertive..

Anyways, hopefully Caribou will fix what’s going on with the businesses outside of Minnesota because we are SUFFERING.

my store got a new manager this year and since then the joy of working at caribou got sucked away lol. also if you don’t mind sharing how much do you get paid? i get 12 an hour in minnesota

I’m trying to create the Carmel espresso shaker at home. What brand of oatmilk do you guys use?

Thanks

Only answer if there are no legal implications but does anyone know how is the XL Hot Mocha Milk Chocolate made?

I have been a huge fan of CC and that is my way to go drink. If I buy it in MN it tastes amazing, but if I buy in other locations out of state it does not taste the same way. As I am traveling often for work I am wondering what makes this drink so good that no other place can replicate. Thanks

How popular is Caribou in North America / Europe compared to the Middle East?

It’s one of the biggest coffee shops in the gulf countries and directly competes with Starbucks in the region AFAIK.

Went to my local Caribou when I saw the 25% off in the app and they didn't appear to know anything about it and I certainly didn't get. This seems to be a new trend with Caribou, I recently had enough points for a free drink and had to make a point out of the cashier looking at my account and they told me they aren't allowed to look or acknowledge any rewards unless directly asked. I don't know what has changed at Caribou but this isn't worth my time if they are going to institutionally antagonistic toward their regular customers.

Hello everyone!

This is a quick progress update on how the initial first day went. I happen to be a new hire that just started. Thank you to the users who responded to my last post about tips and insider opinions!

To be completely fair, I was driven with the modest expectation that I would take on a lot all in one sitting, in which when it came to day met half of that expectation alone. There is a ton of information to take inside with the prepare courses they set you with, so I took the initiative to go over them tonight to take various notes on them even after completion. I'm not one who remembers things on the spot, so I am doing my best to religiously soak everything that I can before my second day tomorrow.

The team members I have met thus far within today are all extremely nice and caring with one another. There are no "this person is a little niche" or, "this person is seen as uncertain or rude". they cooperate as the would a true family. They have fun on shift, and share their positivity heavily. Very amazing! :)

I haven't yet quite got the syrup amounts down yet, and by that I mean the small/medium/large/xl large quantities, although I'm sure that will take a few days to get narrowed down.

I'm open to questions or feedback! :)

What's the 411 on Starbucks not making good tasting Caramel Macciotos haha

Do we get time and a half for July fourth? My GM previously said only for thanksgiving however July fourth is a federal holiday so you’d think we would get that holiday pay right?

Caribou's perks system used to be customer-centric. 150 points would get you a free drink. Loyalty was heavily rewarded. And you could use your points to get a beverage size upgrade.

Over the last three years, they've made significant changes to take more of your money and provide you less.

1. Increase the price of their beverages drastically - pushing iced beverages at nearly $8 for a cup when most of the drink is actually ice.

2. Moving the point system to receive a free drink from 150, to 175, and NOW it is 200 points coming August 4th. Meaning they literally acknowledge they want to reward you LESS frequently.

3. Taking away reward milestones like the free beverage size upgrade. So not only is it more expensive, and increasingly less frequent to get a freebie... I can't even get a decent perk.

Guess it's time to make coffee at home. How. Sad.

I whipped up a quick spreadsheet in case anyone else wanted a comparison chart

Hey everyone! Just got hired at caribou coffee and my first shift is Wednesday. super excited but a little nervous. I've been a customer for years but the other side of the counter is obviously a whole different thing.

any advice from current or former team members and what to expect the first few shifts, drinks that are trickier than they look, how to survive the rush, anything you wish someone had told you on day one.

appreciate any wisdom!

Will pay be early due to 4th of July weekend? It usually is prior to a holiday, but since Independence day is on Saturday and not being observed Monday?

Hi, I am a newer employee at Caribou, but have been in the “industry” for over a year and a half. I am curious about whether watches are actually ok or not. I ask because I have seen employees wear watches and it seems to be more or less a thing that depends on the store you work at? I also noticed that the people in the training videos are wearing watches.

I have a Garmin that I wear regularly, but I have been taking it off for work. This is fine, but I would definitely prefer wearing it so I can monitor my heart rate (I have POTS and I am trying to keep an eye on the day-long heart rate ranges).

At my old place, it didn’t matter at all. I don’t know if it’s different because this place was local? Same state and all, just one is corporate and one was local.

Thanks in advance <33

Anyone notice when you dump out cooler base it has that thick disgusting sack of slimy grossness oh my god it makes me so nauseous please stop ordering coolers you have no idea what you’re ordering

I've tried making the honey lavender latte at home and it isn't the same. I get a large hot.

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How much lavender syrup do they use? And is it honey or honey syrup??

I opened a new box of caribou blend medium roast coffee and the taste is completely different!! I’ve been drinking this coffee for years! So disappointing. What happened? Why the change? Tastes like all the others that I got away from. Definitely not a medium roast anymore! Lost my business!

Is Caribou bringing back their summer energy drink flavors this summer? This means their Ice-pop, Rainbow Sherbet, and Cotton Candy ones. I love them! While I enjoy their other ones, of course, it's nice to have more flavors to choose from. I feel like they would've advertised for them already, if so.

I used to be a caribou barista in a kiosk with no order ahead so I don’t completely understand why it seems the baristas are annoyed when I order ahead? Usually I’m 5ish minutes away. I’m a bit of an anxious person so I prefer to order ahead. I just had my order messed up (wrong cream cheese forgot to add cream) and the barista was very monotone even though I tipped I’m not asking for a conversation but at least don’t look at me like I shot your puppy man

I moved recently away from a Caribou and really miss the mint condition. I've purchased the Monin syrup but can't seem to get the ratio correct.

Thank you!

Anyone have any cold press recipes they enjoy that are low cal? Typically a crafted press girly but I also love cold brew, just not the calories.

Additionally, is there anyway to calculate it ourselves since the app doesn’t show how changing recipes changes calorie counts, any cheat sheets for the splash’s of milk or foam or syrups, or a dupe website like I know Starbucks has (although I don’t get coffee from there ever)