Ram's Plaza Starbucks employees spill the tea about the Unicorn Frappuccino

If you drank it, but it doesn't exist, the 410 calories don’t count, right?

That’s probably what most people are thinking after they bought into the magic and ordered Starbucks’s latest limited-time offering, the Unicorn Frappuccino.

The drink contains a few scoops of pink sugar, a creme Frappuccino base, a couple pumps of mango flavoring and a drizzle made of white mocha and sour powder. 

What’s the magic behind the pink and blue powder sprinkles and the blue drizzle that has people seeing mystical creatures?

“I think it’s really funny that Starbucks probably knew it would be such a big phenomenon,” sophomore Sarah Albrecht, a Starbucks barista, said. “I can’t go on Facebook without seeing it or Instagram. YouTubers are trying it and making their own stuff.” 

First-year student and barista Princess Collins wasn’t surprised at Starbucks for creating this new unconventional drink. 

“I don’t expect anything less of Starbucks, so I didn’t really question why they did it or the purpose behind it,” she said. “It’s what I expect of Starbucks because when they make things, it’s pretty grand.”

While Collins and Albrecht aren’t fazed by the brief addition to the Starbucks menu, sophomore Starbucks barista Kyle Johnson finds it underwhelming. 

“I think it’s very underwhelming when you think about the amount of ad campaigning that they did for it and then what the drink actually ends up being for customers,” Johnson said. 

If you’re team underwhelmed or overwhelmed on this debate, there's no mistaking that this drink does have some ~surprises~.

When customers order the Unicorn Frappuccino, Johnson tries to prepare them for the magical sensation their taste buds are about to experience.

“I’ll tell them what’s in it and even then, they tend to usually just give me this sort of fake smile, I feel like, and then just walk away with it,” he said.

Collins can tell you what’s not in it: coffee.

“I personally do not like the Unicorn Frappuccino because in my Frappuccinos, I like the taste of coffee and that Frappuccino is very fruity,” Collins said. “It’s just really weird because a fruity Frappuccino just isn’t what I was expecting.”

She’s not the only one with this opinion about the unique drink.

“A lot of the customers that I’ve made it for did not like it, and we had to make them something else,” she said. “They didn’t like it because they were expecting coffee because that’s what Starbucks is known for.”

But there are some customers who have enjoyed the different taste that Starbucks has brought to the table, including Albrecht.

“I like it; it’s not absolutely spectacular, but it's enjoyable, and I like the sour drizzle a lot,” she said. “I think it’s a lot of hype, but it’s pretty, and it’s kind of fun to be a part of that.”

The secret is to know what a unicorn looks like before you go looking for one. In other words, know what to expect before you order.)

“Don’t expect a magical unicorn,” said Johnson. “It’s just another Frappuccino.”

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