MK Starbucks with Allergies

[SMorgan711]

I know Starbucks just recently opened on Main Street but I was wondering if anyone with allergies has visited yet?

I'm allergic to milk so I loved being able to go to Starbucks and get a soy latte. However, I'm trying to stay away from soy now so I was wondering if the MK Starbucks has other milks besides soy. Seeing as it's at Disney, I figured it would be the most likely spot to offer other milks. I loved that Starbucks started the train with the soy milk but I wish they would have stayed on! A lot of other milks are gaining in popularity so I wonder why Starbucks didn't join in?

I'd love a vanilla almond milk latte or coconut milk latte. I make them at home but it would be very neat to get it out!

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I know Starbucks just recently opened on Main Street but I was wondering if anyone with allergies has visited yet?

I'm allergic to milk so I loved being able to go to Starbucks and get a soy latte. However, I'm trying to stay away from soy now so I was wondering if the MK Starbucks has other milks besides soy. Seeing as it's at Disney, I figured it would be the most likely spot to offer other milks. I loved that Starbucks started the train with the soy milk but I wish they would have stayed on! A lot of other milks are gaining in popularity so I wonder why Starbucks didn't join in?

I'd love a vanilla almond milk latte or coconut milk latte. I make them at home but it would be very neat to get it out!

I think the main reason why starbucks doesn't have other milks othern then regular cows milk and soy milk is storage. They may not have the space to store more then those ones.

 

[SDSorority]

My best guess is no, they would only have soy or cow milk. You could bring an almond or coconut milk in your backpack- one of the individual size shelf-stable ones? From the pictures, I've actually only seen cow milk out at the condiment counter, but I'd assume they'd still have the soy milk behind the serving counter.

 

[mistysue]

Cross contamination would be a huge factor at a place like that. If you have a severe dairy or soy allergy, milk and soy cross contamination is basically on everything in the place. I am surprised they will even make you a soy latte. Have you ever told them you have an allergy? If so, that's scary that they are ignorant enough of allergies to even suggest it would be safe. Behind an espresso bar can be messy, milk explodes, spills, gets on their hands. Traces of milk are on the espresso shot glasses, on the syrups, in the soy steaming pitcher milk forms a film on the steam wand which they are sticking into your soy milk... A place like that can accommodate lifestyle milk selections and intolerance issues but there is way too much liability for them to seriously attempt the allergy set. They would need a separate espresso bar all together, then who gets to pick which milk is allowed on the separate bar?

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

Cross contamination would be a huge factor at a place like that. If you have a severe dairy or soy allergy, milk and soy cross contamination is basically on everything in the place. I am surprised they will even make you a soy latte. Have you ever told them you have an allergy? If so, that's scary that they are ignorant enough of allergies to even suggest it would be safe. Behind an espresso bar can be messy, milk explodes, spills, gets on their hands. Traces of milk are on the espresso shot glasses, on the syrups, in the soy steaming pitcher milk forms a film on the steam wand which they are sticking into your soy milk... A place like that can accommodate lifestyle milk selections and intolerance issues but there is way too much liability for them to seriously attempt the allergy set. They would need a separate espresso bar all together, then who gets to pick which milk is allowed on the separate bar?

they use separate pitchers for soy milk. I've even seen some that use separate ones for 2 % and skim milk. They also clean of the machine after every use.

 

[clanmcculloch]

How the heck can you get allergens out of the inside of one of those steaming wands/tube/whatever that metal thing that shoots out the steam is called that insert into the milk to heat and froth it? Don't they use that (I don't order lattes so I've never paid attention but I thought that's how the steam the milk)? Sounds like a cross contamination nightmare to me if that's what they do unless they have a completely separate steaming wand.

 

[mistysue]

they use separate pitchers for soy milk. I've even seen some that use separate ones for 2 % and skim milk. They also clean of the machine after every use.

Have you ever worked in a coffee shop? They use separate pitchers, but it's not like they have a bright red one that everybody knows not to ever put milk in. It's not washed separately and in a pinch, they can and will get the "wrong" milks put into them at some point. Also, they do "clean" the steam wand after use, but they do so by wiping it off with a damp cloth that they use dozens or even hundreds of times before replacing the cloth... so you are essentially taking a cloth soaked in milk, wiping off a metal wand that was just submerged in milk and calling it clean. There will be milk particles not only in grooves on that wand, but in a thin film coating it as well as occasionally just inside the lower tip. They also use the same cloth to wipe it after dairy milk and soy milk... so again, for most people it's not going to cause an issue, but any claim to be good with allergies or adding any sort of nut/coconut milks to the whole process is a huge recipe for disaster.
As for cleaning the entire machine, an espresso machine is most likely cleaned at the end of the day, so if any milk gets splashed onto various components (such as into a shot glass or onto the actual dispenser for the espresso... on older models potentially right into where the grounds go) it likely may be shaken or wiped off, with that same milk soaked cloth they are using, but they aren't taking the parts and separating them.
Coffee shops don't train employees to even know what an allergy means. Picture somebody with an severe nut allergy, ordering a latte and never thinking that they would have steamed almond or coconut milk with that same wand right before their milk.

It's similar to the whole thing with the dole whips- they mix in the same vat and rinse it. Some people can trust that, some people can't. It's not worth pretending it's fool proof and safe because it's not. The coffee shop situation is much less safe than the dole whip vats.

Adding more milk varieties to the mix is 1)putting a chunk of their existing customer base at risk and 2)eliminating the very group that is most likely to drink the alternate milks anyways.
Could you imagine if starbucks put up a sign that ALL of their dairy products were actively at risk for nut contamination?

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I'm not sure why you quoting my reply i was just stating what I have seen at all of the coffee shops I have visited, be it a starbucks , second cup, or some other place that makes Lates. and all of them have pictures labeled for different milks, does it happen that they mix them up yes, but I have usually seen them wash them out quickly. The ones i have seen them mix up more are skim (1%) and 2% milk.

As for the cloth and the wand having some milk on them if you are that sensitive to it don't go there as no coffee shop can guarantee about that level of cross contamination.

 

[mistysue]

I'm sorry if you did not like my response. I didn't mean to single you out, I was just quoting you because that was what I was responding to.
My response was addressing the issues of allergies because the OP's question involved her having a dairy allergy. If it were a mild intolerance, the wand and pitchers probably wouldn't be worth worrying about. The issue with the cloth if you think about it isn't even a cross contamination thing, it's equal to directly putting dairy milk into the other milk, as you are wiping milk onto an object and then submerging it. Most people with allergies, even if they don't watch for cross contamination, aren't ok with putting a few drops of their allergen into their drink. That's not a sensitivity issue, that's an issue of understanding what an allergy is.

Back to the original question, I still think they would avoid adding more milks because the largest audience for the expanded milk selection is the same group that gets booted out with each new type of milk. Milks that are tree nut derived would alienate those with peanut/tree nut allergies who have a little bit of a leg up on other allergens when it comes to items a CEO might consider. Even though they aren't, people think coconuts are tree nuts so they have that stigma. I don't think anybody wants a rice milk latte.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I'm sorry if you did not like my response. I didn't mean to single you out, I was just quoting you because that was what I was responding to.
My response was addressing the issues of allergies because the OP's question involved her having a dairy allergy. If it were a mild intolerance, the wand and pitchers probably wouldn't be worth worrying about. The issue with the cloth if you think about it isn't even a cross contamination thing, it's equal to directly putting dairy milk into the other milk, as you are wiping milk onto an object and then submerging it. Most people with allergies, even if they don't watch for cross contamination, aren't ok with putting a few drops of their allergen into their drink. That's not a sensitivity issue, that's an issue of understanding what an allergy is.

No worries I was just saying what I have seen at every starbucks i have been too. I understand cross contamination can be a big issue for everyone, but the rags they wipe the nosole for the steam down with usually appear to be in some sort of sanitizing solution. I know that Disney is very good with food allergies when they can be from reading this board, but in this case it isn't always possible to cater to everyone, just like at every other starbucks.

Back to the original question, I still think they would avoid adding more milks because the largest audience for the expanded milk selection is the same group that gets booted out with each new type of milk. Milks that are tree nut derived would alienate those with peanut/tree nut allergies who have a little bit of a leg up on other allergens when it comes to items a CEO might consider. Even though they aren't, people think coconuts are tree nuts so they have that stigma. I don't think anybody wants a rice milk latte.

That and finding place to store all of that in a limited space.

 

[wilkeliza]

I know Starbucks just recently opened on Main Street but I was wondering if anyone with allergies has visited yet?

I'm allergic to milk so I loved being able to go to Starbucks and get a soy latte. However, I'm trying to stay away from soy now so I was wondering if the MK Starbucks has other milks besides soy. Seeing as it's at Disney, I figured it would be the most likely spot to offer other milks. I loved that Starbucks started the train with the soy milk but I wish they would have stayed on! A lot of other milks are gaining in popularity so I wonder why Starbucks didn't join in?

I'd love a vanilla almond milk latte or coconut milk latte. I make them at home but it would be very neat to get it out!

When I worked for Starbucks the first time we were told we don't have almond milk because in our machines it doesn't steam properly for some reason.

 

[mistysue]

That and finding place to store all of that in a limited space.

That is likely also a concern. You would be amazed at the amount of crap they store in those places though. My "home store" when I worked at Starbucks was basically in the leftover space in a shopping center between two shops, it was tiny and oddly shaped. There were little hidden stock places all over. The back room was it's own tetris puzzle.

 

[Sparkly]

Have you ever worked in a coffee shop? They use separate pitchers, but it's not like they have a bright red one that everybody knows not to ever put milk in. It's not washed separately and in a pinch, they can and will get the "wrong" milks put into them at some point. Also, they do "clean" the steam wand after use, but they do so by wiping it off with a damp cloth that they use dozens or even hundreds of times before replacing the cloth... so you are essentially taking a cloth soaked in milk, wiping off a metal wand that was just submerged in milk and calling it clean. There will be milk particles not only in grooves on that wand, but in a thin film coating it as well as occasionally just inside the lower tip. They also use the same cloth to wipe it after dairy milk and soy milk... so again, for most people it's not going to cause an issue, but any claim to be good with allergies or adding any sort of nut/coconut milks to the whole process is a huge recipe for disaster.
As for cleaning the entire machine, an espresso machine is most likely cleaned at the end of the day, so if any milk gets splashed onto various components (such as into a shot glass or onto the actual dispenser for the espresso... on older models potentially right into where the grounds go) it likely may be shaken or wiped off, with that same milk soaked cloth they are using, but they aren't taking the parts and separating them.
Coffee shops don't train employees to even know what an allergy means. Picture somebody with an severe nut allergy, ordering a latte and never thinking that they would have steamed almond or coconut milk with that same wand right before their milk.

It's similar to the whole thing with the dole whips- they mix in the same vat and rinse it. Some people can trust that, some people can't. It's not worth pretending it's fool proof and safe because it's not. The coffee shop situation is much less safe than the dole whip vats.

Adding more milk varieties to the mix is 1)putting a chunk of their existing customer base at risk and 2)eliminating the very group that is most likely to drink the alternate milks anyways.
Could you imagine if starbucks put up a sign that ALL of their dairy products were actively at risk for nut contamination?

I agree. It would be impossible for them to accommodate everyone in that situation.

Thankfully the Main Street Starbucksery does soft drinks so I don't HAVE to have a coffee if I want to eat there.

 

[CarrieR]

Just wanted to note that I have a mild (non-anaphylactic) allergy to milk and can tolerate various amounts of it with corresponding amounts of discomfort. The fact that coffee shops offer soy as an option is a Godsend, as I am a coffee addict and losing my frou-frou coffee altogether would send me over the edge. :/ Whatever cleaning/precautions are done are enough that I don't notice any sort of reaction. Like the OP, I wish they would offer almond or coconut milk as I try to limit my soy - I use almond milk in a Nespresso Aeroccino and it froths okay. I hadn't considered a cross-contamination reason as the reason why they wouldn't. Seems most people are okay with coconut, though... I hear of more soy allergies than coconut allergies, anyways.

 

[mistysue]

Just wanted to note that I have a mild (non-anaphylactic) allergy to milk and can tolerate various amounts of it with corresponding amounts of discomfort. The fact that coffee shops offer soy as an option is a Godsend, as I am a coffee addict and losing my frou-frou coffee altogether would send me over the edge. :/ Whatever cleaning/precautions are done are enough that I don't notice any sort of reaction. Like the OP, I wish they would offer almond or coconut milk as I try to limit my soy - I use almond milk in a Nespresso Aeroccino and it froths okay. I hadn't considered a cross-contamination reason as the reason why they wouldn't. Seems most people are okay with coconut, though... I hear of more soy allergies than coconut allergies, anyways.

What I think is the strangest thing about coconut as far as allergies are concerned is the number of people who avoid it "because it's a tree nut" - but it isn't! There are even people allergic to almonds whose doctors tell them to avoid coconut in the list of tree nuts to avoid... Hence there are people with peanut allergies who *think* they can't have coconut because of a misunderstanding. I have had people tell me my son can't have coconut trying to be helpful.

 

[wilkeliza]

Just wanted to note that I have a mild (non-anaphylactic) allergy to milk and can tolerate various amounts of it with corresponding amounts of discomfort. The fact that coffee shops offer soy as an option is a Godsend, as I am a coffee addict and losing my frou-frou coffee altogether would send me over the edge. :/ Whatever cleaning/precautions are done are enough that I don't notice any sort of reaction. Like the OP, I wish they would offer almond or coconut milk as I try to limit my soy - I use almond milk in a Nespresso Aeroccino and it froths okay. I hadn't considered a cross-contamination reason as the reason why they wouldn't. Seems most people are okay with coconut, though... I hear of more soy allergies than coconut allergies, anyways.

Froths ok and froths to Starbucks standards are the two differences. It has be a very specific way to meet standard. I'm sad that in some Starbucks there is lactose free but not in any I've been in. I prefer lactose free milk since I have mild lactose intolerance but I can live with soy.

 

[SMorgan711]

I was just wondering since Disney already has these milks available in the park - soy, almond milk and rice milk, that maybe they'd be able to use these for some lattes!

I have a milk frother and almond milk makes the BEST lattes! Even awesome cappuccinos too! Way, way better than soy milk. Rice milk failed miserably. Coconut milk was good, however, I didn't like the coconut-y flavor it gave me. However, I would totally settle for an iced vanilla rice milk latte if need be!

and yes, Starbucks will make me a soy latte because I only have a reaction whenever I ingest milk. They have a special soy milk only pitcher and they clean everything relatively well. Cross contamination is not a concern because my allergy is non-life threatening.

 

[disney david]

Disney has to comply with Starbucks so even if they have the milk or other products in other stores they can't use it unless Starbucks is okay with it. Starbucks trained the cms on how to do it and they have to make it like you get it at any Starbucks. You have to treat the Starbucks in disney parks like you do at any other location with the only difference is they have Disney cms working it and that all.