I had to work this morning so I decided to treat myself to a little Starbucks drink and bite.   I got my normal venti vanilla rooibos tea and in a moment of weakness ordered a very non-vegan and unhealthy pumpkin bread.   The cashier asked me if I was getting the items for here or to go, I told her to go and she told me the total was $5.08, then quickly changed the total to $4.90 because “I’m not eating there.”

Huh?

There was a line of people behind me so I didn’t want to pester the cashier about the price differences but I was definitely curious.   I’m not a daily Starbucks customer but I usually wander in once or twice a month.  I’ve never had anyone mention the price difference for eating in vs. eating out.   I was genuinely curious so I called the Starbucks later and asked the manager about the price difference and he confirmed that, yes, if you order a food item and you eat in it needs to be taxed.   If you order an item to go it is not taxed (or maybe it’s taxed differently, it’s taxed like a grocery store would.)   Groundbreaking news?  No, but a new piece of info to keep in mind when ordering at Starbucks.