Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

What is an almond latte?

160 replies

ShadowTiger · 15/04/2021 13:41

If you went for a takeaway coffee and asked for an almond latte, what would you expect to get? Assuming both options are available.

YABU: Dairy latte with almond syrup
YANBU: Almond milk latte

I asked for almond milk latte and (because of the screen and mask) the barista just heard almond latte. So she made a dairy latte with almond syrup. After one mouthful I realised it was dairy but it was already too late.

OP posts:
Beseigedbykillersquirrels · 15/04/2021 14:33

@TheSilence - I say 'al-mond' but I've heard many people say 'ar-mond' or even 'or-mond'

Original poster
ShadowTiger · 15/04/2021 14:34

why don't you double check that the person serving you has got your order right?
It was very hard to even get her to hear what I was saying the first time. As I said, I gave up trying to ask for a cake because we couldn’t understand each other.

OP posts:
IntermittentParps · 15/04/2021 14:34

I'd understand it to mean a latte made with almond milk, but I think it's an easy mistake for a barista to make. What does the menu say? I suppose to be on the safe side you could say it exactly as it's worded there.

It's all academic though because the cafe, regardless, should not insist that a customer was wrong, tell them it was your fault or expect you to queue and pay again. They should accept the mistake and make you another coffee at no extra charge. Where is this, out of curiosity? I'd write to them/head office and explain what happened and not go there again.

butterpuffed · 15/04/2021 14:35

Gone are the days when we used to order a coffee and were asked 'Black or white ?' . It was so simple Grin Grin

IntermittentParps · 15/04/2021 14:36

"Almond latte" is very clearly dairy with almond syrup. In the same way that a "gingerbread latte" is not made with milk from gingerbreads and a "caramel latte" is not made with milk from caramels.
False equivalence. You get almond syrup AND almond milk; you don't get gingerbread or caramel milk.

CeibaTree · 15/04/2021 14:36

I would always order 'latte with almond/oat milk' etc., as you can order stuff like almond black americano which obviously doesn't have milk but the almond flavouring. Unfortunately for those of us intolerant to things it's our responsibility to be really clear. It would have been nice for the barista to check though, but not entirely their fault if they misunderstood.

SchrodingersImmigrant · 15/04/2021 14:37

@butterpuffed

Gone are the days when we used to order a coffee and were asked 'Black or white ?' . It was so simple Grin Grin
It wasn't 😂 People usually answered simply "yes" and staff had to ask again, and maybe even again 😂
Pinkdelight3 · 15/04/2021 14:37

Well especially with masks and distancing and shields in busy noisy places, it's not enough to say "almond milk latte", it's on you to be really clear and say "latte made with almond milk". There's clearly a lot of confusion about what an almond/almond milk latte is and you need to ask for it in a different way to cut through that confusion. Also agree that no one ever asks for "xxx coffee with yyy syrup". Syrups are hardly mentioned. They're ordering the experience not the ingredient, whereas you're focused on the ingredient because of your allergy. And the poor barrista is just cranking out the orders. So however seriously they take it, help them out.

BarbaraofSeville · 15/04/2021 14:41

Wouldn't a flat black be a long espresso, or a normal espresso or something?

To answer the OPs question, I would have thought it was a latte with almond milk, but that might be because I never have coffees with syrups so they don't even really feature on my radar. But I can see the confusion and potential causes for serious error for the dairy allergic.

SoupDragon · 15/04/2021 14:42

@IntermittentParps

"Almond latte" is very clearly dairy with almond syrup. In the same way that a "gingerbread latte" is not made with milk from gingerbreads and a "caramel latte" is not made with milk from caramels. False equivalence. You get almond syrup AND almond milk; you don't get gingerbread or caramel milk.
That's irrelevant though as this is the accepted phrasing. In fact, it's the accepted phrasing for everything that's flavoured - almond biscuits, almond croissant...

If you want something made with almond milk you ask for it to be made with almond milk to be unambiguous.

violetmonster · 15/04/2021 14:45

It's a bit off they made you re-queue and re-pay over a miscommunication, I wouldn't be too pleased about that

AnExcellentWalker · 15/04/2021 14:46

It was poor customer service. But if you want a specific product you need to be sure they have heard /taken your order correctly. Get them to repeat it back to you if necessary. I do. I didn't used to, & someone got it wrong once. It's not dairy that I'm allergic to, & I can't tell from the taste so I drank it. I was seriously ill.

Take responsibility for your own food, don't assume other people will. It doesn't matter to them. Even in a worst case scenario, there's usually no proof of what you said.

JustDanceAddict · 15/04/2021 14:47

Almond milk, but now thinking about it dh orders a vanilla latte, which is vanilla syrup, so I’d have to say ‘almost milk please’.

AmazingBouncingFerret · 15/04/2021 14:48

I work in a coffee shop. If we sold almond milk and syrup and somebody asked for an almond latte I would double check exactly what they meant.

Hallyup5 · 15/04/2021 14:48

Almond latte is cow's milk with almond flavour syrup. Almond milk latte is made with almond milk. If it's a huge problem to you, double check that it's dairy free.

cordelia16 · 15/04/2021 14:48

To avoid confusion in future, just write what you want on a piece of paper and show it to the barista. That's what I do. I have a soft voice in the best of times, but the mask makes it even harder to understand me.

So, write down "regular latte with almond milk" or "regular latte made with almond milk" - that also proves you ordered the correct thing if they argue that you meant something else.

toolazytothinkofausername · 15/04/2021 14:49

YANBU: Almond milk latte

Thank you for this thread. I shall be very specific in future.

Enko · 15/04/2021 14:49

an almond latte would be a Dairy latte with almond syrup

A Dairly MILK Latte would be Almond milk latte

However, as you found out the milk is often missed so much better to order an latte made with Almond milk

As someone who avoids dairy due to IBS I do sympathise as I have this issue a lot myself.

MaryQuietContrary · 15/04/2021 14:49

Latte with almond syrup.
Same reasoning as caramel latte and hazelnut latte

Latte with almond milk or almond milk latte is what you should have asked for imo

BeastOfBODMAS · 15/04/2021 14:51

@ShadowTiger

why don't you double check that the person serving you has got your order right? It was very hard to even get her to hear what I was saying the first time. As I said, I gave up trying to ask for a cake because we couldn’t understand each other.
In that case I’d chalk it up to experience and if possible, go somewhere else that knows how to rectify a mistake graciously. I’ve been served all sorts that was supposed to be vegan and wasn’t, it’s a pain for me and it’s a pain for those that ARE careful about allergens as they still get interrogated!
WickyStizard · 15/04/2021 14:51

@ShadowTiger

Why was it too late, because you’d had dairy/ sugar or because it was too late to order another? I’d already swallowed it before I realised. The store insisted I asked for almond latte (I didn’t, I asked for almond milk latte). But either way I’d expect almond milk unless I specifically asked for syrup. They expected me to queue and pay again because they said it was my fault.

In a broader sense this made made me also wonder about hazelnut latte/hazelnut milk latte, coconut latte/coconut milk latte, etc. Dairy and nuts can kill people, surely it’s just a matter of time until this happens?

Irresepective of who's right or wrong here if I politely suggested I got the wrong drink (even through miscommunication) and a cafe told me to queue and pay again, I'd be leaving the cafe and politely never returning.
KVIIIlyne · 15/04/2021 14:52

@IntermittentParps

"Almond latte" is very clearly dairy with almond syrup. In the same way that a "gingerbread latte" is not made with milk from gingerbreads and a "caramel latte" is not made with milk from caramels. False equivalence. You get almond syrup AND almond milk; you don't get gingerbread or caramel milk.
😂 😂 😂

thank you for clarifying that for the rest of us. OMG.. 😂

AmazingBouncingFerret · 15/04/2021 14:54

Definitely! Even if I’m the one in the wrong, I still make it a priority to remake the drink free of charge

QuitMoaning · 15/04/2021 14:56

@Sandgrown1970

Why would anyone ask for a “milky latte”? Latte means milky coffee. The latter I have heard people ask for and in return been asked “do you mean a latte?” but I’ve never heard anyone ask for a “milky latte” that’s quite odd

The equivalent of “Please can I have a milky Milky Coffee

No, Latte means Milk. The name of the drink is caffe latte which means milky coffee. Milky latte means milky milk.

I have fallen foul of this and ended up with hot milk so I now order macchiato. Although I prefer tea 🤣

GreyhoundG1rl · 15/04/2021 14:57

I would have almond syrup.