For your convenience, I've numbered the comments to correspond to your article.

4. Don't blame me for ordering a blended drink if your shop offers it; talk to the manager if it really bugs you that much. Otherwise, shut up and make the frappuccino.

2. A buck tip for taking five minutes to make a coffee drink? Get out of here! Unless you're making the same $2-something an hour that wait staff makes in the valley, don't start whining about tips. And if you are only making $2-something an hour, find more productive work. I'm not against dropping the silver from my change in a jar, but you ain't getting folding money.

... Oh, and if you're really looking for a tip, stop calling yourself a "barista." You're a part-time coffee slinger in the Roanoke Valley; the term hardly applies. When you use an overly pretentious term to describe mundane work, it seems as if you're ashamed of what you do.

-- Rob Miles

I really, really hate it when I order a large, skim-milk cappuccino and I get the rolling of the eyes, the deep sigh and the tone of voice when the barista asks, "Do you mean a grande [or venti] skinny cap?" Baristas, keep the secret code language to yourselves. I am not interested in the lingo or the attitude. I just want my cappuccino, large and with skim milk.

-- Diane Stavola

I enjoyed your offering today of 10 things baristas hate. One thing listed was "Why Decaf?" There are those of us who LOVE the flavor of coffee but must avoid caffeine for medical reasons such as fibrocystic breast disease (ouch!), heart arrhythmias and so forth. So, we order decaf and make the most of it. Mmmmmmm.....coffee........

-- Georgia Chapman, Bedford

I was reluctant to reply at all to the article. But, the degree of negativity articulated and directed towards customers of coffee shops requires a response. First, it is presumptuous, perhaps even arrogance, to assume that the typical customer is even familiar with the word "barista." I was unfamiliar with the word until I saw the article in the newspaper, and I have earned bachelor's and master's degrees. In addition, I have pursued continuing education opportunities in various disciplines every year for the past 22 years, and I have traveled in four foreign countries and still never came across the word. The word is not even to be found in my copy of the Oxford Encyclopedic English Dictionary, which is barely 10 years old. While I am not exactly a "regular" customer of coffee shops, I have frequented such establishments more than a few times and still I have not heard this word.

... Regarding tipping, if Bruce Henry wants tips, then he should go wait tables at Applebee's or ask his boss for a raise! Tipping has gotten out of hand when workers who stand behind a counter expect a tip. The next thing we know, employees at the local McDonald's will be expecting tips, too.

-- Michael Copeland, Covington

I love coffee shops, but frankly, I don't get a chance to frequent them often. Therefore, I'm not always familiar with all your concoctions. I may take more than three words to describe what I want, and I may have to ask some questions before I order. I won't know your name, I am not a regular, and you won't automatically know what I want to order. I won't be one of your favorite customers because of that. I guess my tip for a surly barista would be: Don't be so picky about who your customer is. A customer is a customer, and if you give me attitude, I won't be back to see you. I'll go somewhere else. You are there to serve me, not the other way around.

-- Carolyn Engers

To the loyal Mill Mountain Coffee customers:

Mill Mountain Coffee would like to thank Roanoke for its loyal support for the past 16 years. Last Thursday's article ... in no way involved the views of Mill Mountain Coffee. The [writer] is not an employee of Mill Mountain Coffee, and we do not condone or promote his views. We strive daily to create an environment where everyone feels comfortable and welcome while visiting our stores. After all, our customers determine our level of success. Thank you once again for your support and our baristas look forward to serving you.

-- Hunter S. Johnson, vice president of operations,

Mill Mountain Coffee