Starbucks

I love this Starbucks! Quick service (if you wait too long your drink is free!), always friendly, and get my order right every time. I go once a day, and this is definitely my favorite location.

Got there at 6am… so they are supposed to be open. We saw over the course of about 5 minutes 3 baristas who never once looked our way to serve us. The windows were all closed so we had to wave and knock on the glass. One lady glanced our way and we thought, «finally!» But, no. She looked at us and just walked to the back. When we finally decided to drive away, then they looked at us… confused, like they didn’t understand why we were leaving. Awful, awful customer service. If they wanted us at another window, they could have directed us. Instead, we were completely ignored.

I was driving to work from Everett, and made near record time (only 30 mins to Ballard, what?!). In an effort to delay my arrival at work I made an impromptu visit to this shipping container of a Starbucks. For real, it’s made inside a retired shipping container and is perfect for the hipster-​ish Ballard area.
Usually when I pass this location, it’s a gong show in the drive thru with the various commuters stopping to get their morning caffeine fix. Somehow I got lucky and there was nobody in the line — score! The staffer took my order — SUPER friendly in the AM which was actually nice compared to some of the AM zombies one might encounter. I needed a minute before deciding on my drink — and she jokingly (but nicely) said «Don’t worry, you can take your time — I’m here until 12:30!». Maybe I was tired, but I genuinely found her to be funny and a nice way to start my morning.
By the time I pulled around to the window, she warmly greeted me and we chatted for a bit while the other Starbucks staffer concocted my chai latte. I’ll say this chai latte was pretty stellar — just the right temperature (not too hot, but warm enough to drink and stay warm for 30 minutes after I ordered it!) and the spicyness of the chai was on point.
While I wish Starbucks would use real chai tea & spices, rather than a flavored syrup to make their drinks, this one still satisfies my craving.
Can’t wait to try their pumpkin spice latte with REAL PUMPKIN this fall!

Entered the drive-​in at 8:28am on a Saturday morning and received my drink at 8:40am.
This is the longest I have ever had to wait at a Starbucks! :(

As a loyal gold card customer of Starbucks for the first time I have truly been let down. I sat in a long line (July 20, 2015 around 9:15 a.m.) with a baby in the back seat at the 5221 15^th Avenue NW Ballard, WA location only to be told that they would not honor the coffee refill policy because they have no lobby. I was not able to drive off because of the drive thru barricades so I was forced to wait in the drive thru traffic. When I approached the window after a long wait time I asked them if they could make an exception and the blonde female barista said, «absolutely not.» I asked where this policy is listed for the public to see and she said,” it’s told by the word of mouth.” I said,“that is unfair.” She then said «well I’m sure it’s listed somewhere but I’ve just been told that’s a Starbucks rule.» I said «can you make an exception?» and again she said «no». I replied, «This is poor customer service.» I have always remained loyal to Starbucks because of their customer service but now this respect has been tarnished by this location’s treatment.

The line was looong and the cars piled up behind me as soon as I pulled in but the line moved fast.
The coffee (caramel macchiato) was decent. Foam was eh. Flavor was good. Barista was friendly.
It’s pretty cool that the store is made from a reclaimed shipping container.
They have a walk up window, too. At first I was against the idea of a drive-​through only SBUX but now I think it’s pretty cool.

This is my local Starbucks, and I love it!
For starters, since this is my local Starbucks, the staff typically anticipates my drink and will usually get it right. It’s always nice to see familiar barista faces when I pass through, which is honestly 1 – 2 times a day. They are always very friendly and patient with my high-​maintenance orders.
The location is great but a bit on the small side for a drive-​thru (but, thank GOD for the drive-​thru), so it can cause some anxiety on the way in and out, especially if the line is backed up. It’s located on a very busy street, so just always have your eyes peeled when pulling in and out.
I love that this location has a walk-​up window, too. On the off-​chance that they have gotten my order wrong, it’s nice to be able to hop out and get it fixed without having to go through the drive-​thru line again.
Thanks for being so awesome, Ballard Starbucks!

Some places get your order wrong once in a while. Others — 50% of the time. This Starbucks location takes it to a level of performance art. They can f*ck up orders small and large, even a simple no-​nonsense drip coffee. And they do it stealthily, even repeating your drive through order back to you as if they are actually listening to it.
Sometimes the art isn’t in what they give you, but what they don’t.
You get to work and realize you’ve got the wrong sandwich, or more often, none at all! Or you reach into the Starbucks bag and have to tell a car full of crying toddlers the cake pops they wanted aren’t there. Several times I’ve actually turned around, even when I was 5 miles down the road, just to return and have them correct my order. I still haven’t learned my lesson, I guess, because I keep going back for more pain. And they couldn’t be more happy to keep bringing it.
Bravo, 15^th Ave NW eco-​friendly Starbucks container store! Your commitment to terrible service with a vacant smile brings tears to my eyes.

These guys were super sweet to me. I got into a car accident and managed to get my car into their lot to wait for the tow truck. I was pretty shaken, and they were patient and nice, and gave me a croissant. Definitely one of the better Starbucks locations in Seattle.

It is 9:30 pm and this location is not open. It is posted that it is open until 10 pm. Fail.

this has to be the worst starbucks I ever been too. Every time I come here they get my drink wrong or the drive thru person is rude.

I’m not sure what good it does to write a review on Starbucks, but just in case you want to avoid one of the slower ones… this would be the one to avoid. The only other naggy thing I have to say is, when I order «iced» I don’t mean lukewarm with no sight of actual ice. I hate that!
The crew is super friendly :)

Dying… death.
*Sips Starbucks very berry hibiscus tea (with no berries please)*
Ahhhhh… I’m ALIVE.
back to work.

When SBUX put this location in, I wondered if they’d read my mind regarding wanting a drive thru I could easily access on my way to work. THAT IS WHAT THIS LOCATION IS. Easy access, quick service (generally), and a great team.
When the line is looped all the way around, I usually make it through in 12 minutes (which seems okay considering the number of cars that go through here). They’ve made a couple of drink mistakes which is annoying for a drive thru — nothing grates my cheese like getting a tea instead of a tea latte.
Sometimes people do crazy things in the tiny space they have for parking and getting in/​out of line. So, watch out of the gynormo SUVs who think they’re in a Smart Car.
I haven’t walked up to this location but it doesn’t seem like many people do that anyway.

I noticed this drive thru/​walk-​up Starbucks from the Ballard Brother’s parking lot and decided to give it a try. First off, it’s one of the most unique Starbucks I’ve ever visited. The entire place is designed from old trucking containers. They stacked the containers together, painted it, added windows and awnings, and voila… a cool new design for a Starbucks.
I ordered a grande caramel macchiato, which tasted great. I went off peak (mid day) so there was no wait and service was good.
Warning: The Walk-​Up window parking looks like it would be hard to get out of during peak hours (there is hardly any room to back up and get out).

Finally, a Starbucks on 15^th and a drive-​thru! Makes life a lot easier for those on the run, which is basically everybody driving through this corridor.
Building is cool, drive-​thru is fast, and workers here are so friendly. Only issue is that I’ve come here a lot and they are either out of a food item we’re ordering or make a drink wrong /​bad a good chunk of the time. It’s so funny that they always repeat the orders back correctly, but whatever gets printed on the drink tag and made is not what the person repeated back to you when you order. :/​Half the time the «bad» drinks that are served could have been solved if they’d just stirred it to mix everything together instead of having all the syrups just sitting at the bottom while you get a mouthful of a burnt-​tasting latte. You just have to pull over and stir it yourself and it’s usually fine.

Looks real pretty, drive thru is fast, employees are nice, drinks are pretty consistent. The parking was not well designed for Seattle drivers so if you value your car, you probably shouldn’t park in the lot. It will be nice to sit on the grass with a tasty beverage and watch people try to leave the lot.

Seattle’s Coffee Unilocal Recognition Award:
Best Coffee from a «Tin»
Wow! I have been eyeing this new Ballard Starbucks location for the last 2 months. Along with the introduction of Starbucks Evenings store locations across the nation, this new Starbucks is a Drive-​Thru/​Walk-​Up Window store (I love the latter part!). I despised the Ballard Starbucks in Safeway due to the inability to use my iPhone Starbucks card app, while walking to the downtown Ballard location isn’t always very convenient. If it weren’t for the cars constantly going through the round-​about Drive-​Thru, I wouldn’t have known this location was open… Reason being: It’s constructed solely out of shipping containers! Truly a Ballard look! The shipping containers have a fun story written on the side of the store: «Why did we build this? Starbucks relies on shipping containers for transportation around the world. We also rely on the planet we all share, and we believe in doing things that are good for each. This means finding solutions that keep things like old shipping containers out of the waste stream. So we’ve found a way to reuse them to make stores like this. Learn more at
; (
) The industrial containers have an etched Ballard Bridge above the Walk-​Up Window (
) and a map of Seattle and the Puget Sound on the façade (
). There is no café like most Starbucks, but simply outdoor benches and bike racks. Other than the Drive-​Thru, you also have the option to park in one or three spots out front. However, beware while leaving since getting out can be a bit tricky with a lack of space to maneuver with cars pulling through the Drive-​Thru, let alone hopping back on busy southbound 15^th Ave. It appears that a car has already bumped into the new sign while pulling out of the mini lot. Bummer! This Starbucks To-​Go offers all your favorite coffee drinks, Boulange goodies and virtual card scanner. Besides being new and working out some kinks (like running out of Venti plastic cups), I enjoy the accessibility of the new location!