Unacceptable Incident at a Starbucks Store
Location: Starbucks, Prahladnagar, Ahmedabad
Date: 7th September 2026
Subject: Formal Complaint regarding Store Staff Conduct
Registered Email: vivek7405@gmail.com
Today was a beautiful evening, so I grabbed my laptop, took my car keys, and headed to my favorite place, the nearest Starbucks store (Prahladnagar, Ahmedabad). While at the store, I was in a great mood, listening to Country Radio on Apple Music in my AirPods. I was getting work done, enjoying the music, and taking in the smell of great coffee and food being prepared. It was the usual Starbucks vibe. Regardless of which store, city, or country I visit, I have always had a wonderful experience at Starbucks.
About 10 to 15 minutes in, an awful experience unfolded in the form of an order manager named Jitesh. For the first time in my years of visiting Starbucks, someone walked up to me and demanded that I must order something. I already had a Pumpkin Spiced Pastry sitting in my cart on the Starbucks app, so I told him in a firm voice that I shall place the order through the app. What followed was completely uncalled for.
He refused to leave until I placed the order right in front of him and started arguing with me. His attitude was basically that I should either place an order right now or leave the store. I told him I am a regular customer and that he could easily check my order history on the app, but he remained extremely rude, argumentative, and kept escalating the situation. He simply would not drop it.
The store manager, Bhagwati, then stepped in to try and de-escalate things. But by that point, I felt so humiliated by the hostility that I walked out of the store, got into my car, and called customer care. The support agent was very helpful and wanted to resolve the issue directly with the store.
I walked back inside and tried to hand my phone to Jitesh since the agent wanted to speak with him, but Bhagwati intervened and offered to speak first. After a brief conversation with Bhagwati, the agent spoke with Jitesh. I was asked to wait on the sofa while Jitesh took the call on my phone, and Bhagwati stayed with me. After a few minutes, Jitesh walked back, handed me my phone, and had already hung up. I asked him why he ended the call, as I would have liked to wrap up the conversation with the agent myself.
All in all, Jitesh’s behavior was completely unacceptable. He should have done his job professionally and walked away the moment I said I was placing an order on the app. I always order via the app at every Starbucks I visit, and I even had a balance loaded on my Starbucks card. Even after everything that happened, he did not offer a single apology.
I really appreciate Bhagwati’s efforts to calm the situation. Because of him, I went ahead and ordered the pastry that had been sitting in my cart the entire time, though I changed it to takeaway since the atmosphere had been completely ruined for me. Bhagwati personally brought the order to where I was sitting and even added a complimentary pastry to my order as a kind gesture.
I truly hope none of your loyal customers ever have to go through an ordeal like this. I also hope this is the first and last time I face such humiliation at my favorite coffee place. You can do better, Starbucks, and I hope you address this with the staff.
Thanks for hearing me out.