I don't know how these things are in America, but I guess capitalism is alike in every part of the world. Here in Europe, you will NEVER EVER see the word "small" next to anything for sale.
Most pizza/drinks/hamburger companies serve "individual", "regular" and "large". Others serve "regular", "large" and "very large". "Small" seems to be a forbidden word. Lately, it seems forbidden even in clothing! Traditional S, M, L and XL clothes are slowly being substituted by M, L, XL and XXL; or even just L with a variable number of X's. What happens? Are small people bad or something? Will I end up being XXXXXL?
Well, at least we will always feel better thinking that now we can buy a super-hyper-mega-extra-large pizza or hamburger for the price of a "small" one some years ago. I guess that's one of the great achievements of capitalism!
Originally, in their "home town" of Seattle, they offered Short and Tall, but as tastes for their excellent coffee grew, they introduced Grande, and then Venti, and removed the original Short from the menu. I think Short is still available from under the counter, and used for things like to-go espresso.
In other words, the lowest advertised size denomination at Starbucks is referred to by a terminology that implies "large". They've shifted the scale completely up! There isn't even "medium" any longer! Surely the apocalypse is nigh...
Why can't Starbucks sell "small", "medium", and "large" drinks? Well, in China they do! The three sizes are called 小，中，大 (xiǎo, zhōng, and dà) or small, middle (sized), and big. Close enough! Not that I am defending these global purveyors of mediocre coffee, but the reason for sticking to SML in China is interesting.
One of the biggest deals in Chinese culture is the system of guānxi or connections, and just below that on the chart is the idea of face or miànzi. Many Chinese will literally walk twice as far, spend twice as much, take twice as long, to avoid losing face. Losing face can be saying the wrong thing, arriving early, arriving late, offering to pay, not offering to pay - there are myriad complex rules that interface with the rest of the wonderful, fascinating, ancient thing that is Chinese culture. And so any restaurant or coffee house which required people to know a set of codes to order up standard variations like the size of your cup would be doomed to commercial failure. The risk of not knowing what to call the food you wanted, and losing face, would simply be too great.
This makes it very easy, once you can describe food, or at least rattle off the main ingredients in Mandarin, to get fed in China. You can go to literally any restaurant and say the Chinese equivalent of "Waldorf Salad" (Pāi Huánggua - Smashed Cucumber, and that's exactly what it is) and it comes just as you expect. So rocking into Starbucks for a "S/M/L cup of coffee" works fine, in China at least.
And you know what they call a Big Mac in China? No, not a Royale with Cheese you cheeky thing! It's actually called a Tyrannosaurus Rex (in Mandarin that's Jùwúbà). If anyone knows why, this writer, for one, would be fascinated to be let in on the secret, as everything else in your local Chinese golden arches is called exactly what it is! I only want a small Coke with my chicken burger thanks, and hold the suggest sell.
Thanks again to tongpoo for the list of ascii codes for pinyin.
Starbucks started with "Short", and "Tall" coffee cups. It probably made sense in the context that they were just a few local cafes in the beginning. The problem, of course, is the ever-increasing American appetite. To slake that appetite, a new, 16 oz. size was offered: Grande. Furthering the trend is the 20.5 oz. size, Venti.
"Venti" conveniently skirts the fact that it's bigger than "Grande", but with increasing cup sizes, a "Short" cup just didn't seem to cut it anymore. However, it costs less to the company to continue the size, rather than potentially lose customers, so "Short" remains as a secret, much like the "Misto" (cafe au lait), which also is not on the menu.
The partner (that's what Starbucks baristas are called) that loquacious encountered seems to be an exception to the rule. Most people are rather laid back if working at Starbucks. I let people ask for just about any sizing, and give them what they want. The customer should come before some stupid corporate gimmick.
I work at a local chain of coffee shops in New Orleans. Our drink sizes are "small," "medium," and "large." However, as one might expect, a significant number of customers, used to their Starbucks, order using the Starbucks sizes. This confused me for a while, as I'd only been to Starbucks a few times and was unfamiliar with their size scheme.
Luckily, one of my roommates is a Starbucks barrista (or "partner" or whatever), so I sat him down and had him lay out the counterintuitive meanings of "Tall," "Grande" and "Venti."
The next day: a revelation! Most Starbucks customers have no idea what the Starbucks sizes mean!
"I'd like a Tall dark roast." --I bring them a small dark roast.-- "No! I wanted a Tall. A big one."
"I'd like a Tall dark roast."
--I bring them a small dark roast.--
"No! I wanted a Tall. A big one."
How does Starbucks not explode from all the confusion?
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