As you know, I'm visiting family in the Houston area. Well, when I woke up this morning, I needed a nice warm chai tea to start my day. So, while my sweet sister (who's a fabulous hostess) made banana pancakes for my kids and hers, I plugged in the address for the nearest Starbucks into my new GPS. (I am having too much fun playing with this thing!)So, after finding it no problem, I procede through the drivethru. I ordered two chai teas, made the special way I like them. However, then the coversation took a different turn...
Hopped-up-on-caffeine Starbucks guy: If you sing your order, it'll be free.
Me (sleepy and confused): Um, no thanks. (is he nuts?)
Hopped-up: Your total is $8.64, are you sure you don't want to sing for it? It'll be free!
Me (waking up slowly. I did hear the word FREE): Ok, wait, if I sing my order, you're really going to give me the drinks for free?
Hopped-up: Yep.
Me: You promise?
Him: Yep.
Me: I don't have to sing well, do I?
Him: Nope, if you sang well, then you'd be rich, and it wouldn't matter if you got a free order. The worse the better.
Me: Ok. There are no recording devices involved, right?
Him: Nope.
Me: Ok, you know what, I need you to sing first.
Him (way too willing): Grande and venti soy, no-water chai's!! (he sang really well)
Me: Ok, I'll do it. It's really free?
Him: Yep.
And, yes, I sang. In a psuedo-opera voice. My Starbucks order. Humiliated but figuring this was good blog material.
And, my order was free.
As he handed me my drinks, he said that he couldn't talk most people into singing for their drinks. I was kind of surprised. I shouldn't be though, after all, my initial reaction was not to sing either. I'm a shy person, not outgoing, and I never, ever, ever sing in front of people. We as a people are suspicious of a good deal, aren't we? I figured there were strings attached. There may have been, ones I didn't know about.
Who's covering these free drinks? It is a promotional deal? A dare among employees? I love it.
So, that's how I sang for my supper, I mean, my Starbucks.
40 comments:
1st order of business...where's the camera at and who's punking me?
I also may just be an experiment by management to see what lengths people will go to to get a free drink, as long as it's all in fun.
Sadly, I'm not in Texas anymore. I lived in Richardson and am currently have an extremely bad case of homesickness. When my cell phone rings, it blares out "I can't see Texas from here"! I'm hoping to visit sometime next month. I miss my friends, and I need a Pappasito's fix! I'd sing for fajitas! Great blog piece! BJ
That's a riot! You sure there wasn't a hidden camera? You said you were groggy... you could have signed a release and not remembered... how I would love to see some footage of that!!
Good for you.. I would have totally done it! I'm too cheap not to!
LOL they'd have given me the drinks just to shut me up!
WTG you!
Hope you are having fun in H-town! I lived there for 8 years--hated it at first and then grew to love it.
You got quite a deal with those drinks! Don't you wish you had ordered more?
That is too funny... wonder if they had you on a speaker so everyone could here you!? Who cares... you don't live there anyway.
$8 for 2 coffees? Almost as bad as Norway!
Singing for your Starbucks? No wonder they had to close 600 stores. Shy people came out of the woodwork for free chai. That is too funny. And you sang opera?
what store in houston? i need to go there! being in h and all
Rhea - YOU RUN INTO THE STRANGEST PEOPLE EV-AH! And you don't even live near Hollywood or Venice (???)
:) M&M
That's awesome! If my starbucks did a promo like that, I would sing in their drive-thru everyday for free drinks!
Oh how I wish you had a recording of that to share with us.
I just took the family to Outback for dinner last night. I wish they'd of had that deal!
BTW, break out the oats and put down some fresh traw in the barn cause there's a horse headed our way!
oops, that was supposed to be straw.
Wonder if they'll do that at our Starbucks...you know, that you posted pics of???
I'll try to sing for free....
I'm gonna try singing for my Decaf Grande Skim Latte next time I go. Gotta love those drive-thru Starbucks--I'll bet your voice gets broadcast to the entire store!
OMG, I would be sooooo torn between how terrible I sing and not wanting to be totally embarrassed and wanting a free drink! I've sure spent enough at Starbucks!
Ooh! Congrats on your award at Jeff's. I got one too!! :)
I would sing for free coffee anyday!! You got a free award over at my place and you don't even have to sing for it!
How hilarious would it have been if you were singing on that new show "The Singing Office" or whatever it's called. With Joey Fatone and Scary Spice, I think. So there you are, singing with your little Starbucks self, with former members of *Nsync and Spice Girls off camera. AWESOME.
I'd sing anything for free Starbucks. Yep.
I would TOTALLY SING! Starbucks... HERE I COME!
;-) That will give them a chance to duck and run!
Yay Rhea!! A small price to pay for a free drink or two... :-)
You wanna bet the employees have a little friendly wager going thru-out the day??? Who can get the most customers to sing.... ? (or drop and do sit-ups, recite a nursery rhyme, tell an embarrassing story.... the scenarios might be endless)
Are you sure Ashton Kutcher wasn't hiding in the bushes somewhere? Not sure that was a Starbucks sanctified promo...but you got tea for free, a blogworthy moment, and we got a hearty laugh!
That is way funny! And cool that you actually did it!
I've seen you on goodandcrazy and sevenclown, just thought I say Hi:)
I would have loved to have heard that!!! LOL!!!
Are you kidding me?! If I had sung my little heart out, Ashton Kutcher would've been there to punk me and my order would STILL be wrong.
You are my hero.
Awesome! You keep your eye out on YouTube for the lady that sang for her coffee. You might be famous.
You can't beat free drinks! That made me think of a drive thru I used to go through and one of the guys that worked there always sang your order back to you, it was hilarious!
I LOVE that!!!!!! You gotta give props to anyone who wants to just put a smile on people's faces. We could all use a little amusement in our day.
That is awesome! The funny part is I would never sing in public and hence I'd lose out on free drinks. Bummer.
That would be so cool! I could make a deaf person scream at me to shut up with my singing, but I'd do it anyway!
I'd like to add that women get free drinks regardless...and there usually by the same individuals that do google searches with questionable content only to find Rhea's blog.
*singing the Money for Nothin' song*
(No) Money for Coffee cause she sang for free....
I see a video, old style MTV happening right there in that drive thru.
Jen
That's awesome! I would have totally done it. I love eccentric Starbucks people. The barrista at my local Starbucks is like 8 feet tall, 300 lbs. and flamingly gay. He's fantastic - and he always says, "Have a delicious day!"
That is so fun! I don't know if I would be able to do that. :)
Now, let's see if your blog and Starbucks addiction can intertwine as you ask the Starbucks guy to tape you getting your starbucks for free. You can punk yourself for our amusement. Or not.
You Go Girl!! A girls got to do what a girls got to do for her coffee !!
too funny!
I canNOT sing worth a darn... but for some free coffee/tea from starbucks I just might do it. :)
Next we will be seeing Rhea in a commercial for Starbucks, the tea that is so good you sing for it. :) lol
xoxoxo
The starbucks employees are so hopped up on caffeine and free drinks that they're all wild! I love it.
I am NOT recording myself singing. It's bad enough I sang period. lol I am not humiliating myself any further.
One of the last times I went through, they told me not to tell anyone else about this....oops. I didn't mention it was on my blog...for EVERYONE to read. hehe
That's hysterical. I wish my Starbucks would do that.
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