A woman’s friend got her a protein matcha latte from a Starbucks in Toronto. She was confused when she tipped the drink upside down, and nothing spilled out of the cup.
In a video with over 18,900 views, TikToker Victoria Merkin (@victoriaamerkin) calls what she found in the drink “disgusting.”
“I feel like there’s something hard in the center, and I’m like shaking it down at my mouth. Nothing is coming out,” she says.
At first, she thought the whipped cream at the top of the drink blocked the mouthpiece on the cup. However, she couldn’t believe the culprit when she finally opened the lid.
“What is this?” she asks, showing the inside of the drink. A large, jelly-like green blob sits inside the cup. When she squeezes the drink, the material squishes but immediately bounces back to its original shape.
“Starbucks, I love you. But can I have some answers?” Merkin says at the end of the clip.
In an email to BroBible, Merkin says she’s previously ordered the coffee chain’s protein drinks but hadn’t experienced this issue before.
“They’ve been fine previously, normal drink texture!” she writes.
What Happened To The Protein Matcha Latte?
Items made with Starbucks‘ new protein milk contain higher levels of whey protein mixed into 2% milk. Whey protein typically comes as a dense powder, which could affect the texture or thickness of the drinks. Plus, the protein milk must be heated to a standard hot temperature, otherwise the texture may change. Starbucks doesn’t offer extra-hot customizations for protein beverages for this reason.
On the r/starbucks subreddit, other customers show their protein lattes with bizarre textures.
One customer opens their hot protein latte only to find a thick blob at the bottom, similar to the TikToker.
“To my horror, it was thick and chunky and basically a solid mass at the bottom of my cup. Heating it up again made it worse,” they write. The customer states they previously had an iced protein latte with no issues.
A second says they tried to drink their protein latte quickly, but felt it curdling with about 40% of the beverage left.
BroBible previously reported that another TikToker received a “completely solid” protein latte.
In the comments on Merkin’s video, viewers suggest that the Starbucks barista may have improperly prepared the hot version of the protein drink.
“That was probably made 100% with protein milk and not cut with anything, yikesss,” one says.
Another writes, “IM SO SORRY. Our protein milk curdles if we steam it (make it hot) it’s soo nastyyy u have to drink it right away or it goes so bad. Get a refund at any store LOL.”
What Should You Do If Your Starbucks Looks Like This?
Starbucks workers in the comments suggest Merkin take advantage of Starbucks’ refund policy.
According to the coffee chain’s website, customers can request a remake of their beverage in-store. Some commenters even suggest that Merkin could go back to a different Starbucks to receive the remake.
Customers can also reach out through the Starbucks app or website to request a refund for an unsatisfactory drink. Plus, Starbucks customers on Reddit suggest the chain is pretty flexible about issuing refunds.
“I hit up chat support and got my money back, which took about 30 seconds. No drama. They didn’t even question it,” one shared on r/starbucks.
Merkin tells BroBible her friend ultimately didn’t decide to reach out to Starbucks about the solid drink. She also says Starbucks hasn’t reached out to her since posting her now-viral TikTok.
In an email to BroBible, a Starbucks spokesperson said, “We always want customers to enjoy their Starbucks experience. If a beverage doesn’t meet expectations, we encourage customers to let their barista know so the drink can be remade. Our goal is to make it right every time.”
@victoriaamerkin starbucks ily but wth… #fyp #starbucks #drinkfail #foryou #starbucksdrink @starbuckscanada idk why it’s not letting me tag the actual starbucks account but…