Our theme for the month of October is “haunt.”

It might seem like Starbucks is just a place to buy coffee, but most people don’t know some of the truly terrifying stuff that goes on there, especially during Halloween season. Here are some of the spookiest, hair-raising tales from the Starbucks where I work:

The Phantom Sticker Sound

As of a few years ago, Starbucks no longer uses the once iconic writing-on-cups system for keeping track of orders. Instead, drinks are organized and made based on stickers that print out with a distinctive sound. As a barista, it’s important to be able to recognize the sound, so you can know to stop whatever else you’re working on to come back to the bar and make a drink. But sometimes, you might hear the sound, turn around to look at the printer, and see no sticker at all. Some baristas have even reported hearing the sound at home or in their sleep… .

The Door of Forgetting

Separating the cafe from the store’s back room is a doorway like any other. Except, it’s not like other doorways at all. It is said that when you pass through this door, you forget entirely what you came to the back room for. It’s unknown what exactly causes this to happen, but legends say angry Starbucks spirits live there and interfere with your psyche as you walk by… .

Altered Sandwiches

All our sandwiches come pre-packaged and frozen, which means they tend to be very consistent. But sometimes, you’ll come across a sandwich that seems…a little different. A Bacon, Gouda, and Egg Sandwich will come right out of the wrapping with gouda, egg, and no bacon at all. We never serve these to customers, but it’s unsettling to know that something  accursed might be happening to these sandwiches in the production process that leaves them incomplete… .

The Peeing Man

The Peeing Man is a local cryptid that has haunted our store for some time now. As the tales go, he appears in the store, uses the bathroom, and then doesn’t flush. He’s only been seen once, a long time ago, when a barista walked into an unlocked bathroom to find him standing there, facing away, doing his dark business. But evidence suggests he still frequents the store to this day. And the scariest part? The tales say The Peeing Man looks just like a normal customer, so you’ll never know it’s him, until it’s too late… .

The Manager Curse

Our store is a little over three years old, and in that time we have been through a whopping eight managers, a number that averages out to only about five months per manager. At this rate, some are starting to suspect that there is a curse on the manager position itself at our store, such that it can’t be held by anyone for more than a few months. It’s impossible to say what the origin of this curse might be, but it seems to be getting worse, because for the last few months the store has had no manager at all… .

Ghosts of Partners Past

It’s well known that turnover is high at a place like Starbucks. Partners (Starbucks’ term for employees) come and go and are eventually forgotten. But sometimes, evidence remains, like years-old nametags or ancient stickers; small souvenirs through which the presence of past partners is still felt to this day. Some even say the aprons that perpetually hang from the hooks in the back room used to belong to these baristas, and have been long since abandoned by their owners… .

Derek the Fly

Derek the Fly is another local cryptid whose presence is sometimes felt at our store, despite our best efforts to keep him away. The story goes that Derek the Fly is the ghost of a banned customer who inhabited the body of a huge, noisy fly to perpetually pester baristas at the store that offended him. One day, a barista valiantly stood against him in the bathroom, spraying him down with a bottle of restroom cleaner, and it was thought that he had been defeated. But it was too late. Derek’s ghostly influence continued on in his absence, and more flies took on his spirit, buzzing around in the food case or taunting baristas from the top of the espresso hoppers. To this day, huge flies continue to intermittently haunt the store, especially in the summer months… .

The Lid Void

In between the cold bar and the window behind it, there’s a small gap. In the rush to make drinks quickly, stray cups and lids can go anywhere, but a disproportionate amount of them seem to make their way into this gap, where it becomes nearly impossible to retrieve them. Much like the Bermuda Triangle, there must be something about this mysterious zone that draws in so many casualties, yet nobody seems to know what it might be. Allegedly, even the most resilient of baristas could be driven insane simply by looking for too long into that void… .

Philip Rienstra

Philip Rienstra (‘21) majored in writing and music and has plans to pursue a career in publishing. They are a recovering music snob, a fruit juice enthusiast, and a big fan of the enneagram. They’re currently living in St. Paul with their spouse, Heidi.