By Olivia Martin | Social Media Editor
Every time I go to a coffee shop I am faced with the option to either pay extra for non-dairy milk such as almond milk or oat milk, or say a prayer for myself and hope my body doesn’t hate me when I order a latte with regular milk. This just doesn’t seem fair to me when I am already spending around $5 on a latte. A lot of times non-dairy milk is an extra dollar, which in the grand scheme of things may not sound like a lot, but paying $6 every time I go to a coffee shop adds up.
Let me preface my argument by telling you that I am not the type of person to drink oat milk simply because I want to. I just wouldn’t do that to myself. The thickness, texture and taste of whole milk makes it a true delicacy, and I would never purposely not want to drink it. However, I have unfortunately found that not only do dairy products not sit well with me on the inside, but they also affect my skin and cause other unpleasant feelings that make dairy just not worth it to consume. Due to this true tragedy, I am left with no other option other than to pay the extra $1 for non-dairy milk every time I order coffee.
Coffee shops aren’t the only place where dairy substitutes cost extra. However, because the majority of my money is spent buying coffee (I’m working on it), I feel very passionately about this topic. I also understand that non-dairy milk is more expensive to produce and buy, and trust me, I know this, because I always buy oat milk at H-E-B, but I still believe that coffee shops should not charge extra for alternatives.
There are a few coffee shops that I know of that don’t charge extra for non-dairy milk, and they truly have my whole heart. A coffee shop I used to work for back at home called Philz Coffee didn’t charge anything extra, no matter what kind of substitute the customer wanted. Same with Magnolia Press here in Waco (which honestly surprised me). It is the best feeling ever when I’m ordering at either of these places, knowing I won’t be charged extra for my uncontrollable and undesirable intolerance. The guilt I feel whenever someone offers to buy my coffee, knowing my order will be more expensive, is real. I have legitimately ordered normal milk before, because I felt too bad making the person pay extra for my inconvenient digestive system.
Most people who are ordering non-dairy substitutes in their coffee are doing this for health purposes, and I don’t think people should be steered away from that because of the extra expenses. Coffee is already pricey enough without the additional charge for alternative milk. So please, coffee shops, if you’re hearing this, I’m begging you not to make me pay extra for my oat milk latte.
