Aussie man's awkward dilemma after barista leaves 'secret' messages on his girlfriend's coffee cups
A boyfriend has spoken out about an awkward yet amusing dilemma after a barista started leaving 'secret' messages on his girlfriend's coffee cups.
Jake Craig, from Sydney, said he always makes his coffee using a French press at home - but his girlfriend Beth prefers an espresso from the cafe down the road.
Everything seemed fine until the cafe owner casually mentioned to his girlfriend that one of the baristas 'really missed you' after she hadn't come in for a week.
Then Jake noticed the tiny compliments the barista had been writing on Beth's coffee cups - including 'My love' and 'My secret love'.
'This guy's trying to steal my girl,' Jake said jokingly, laughing about the situation.
It all started when he moved in with his girlfriend just a couple of months ago where they both quickly learned about each other's coffee preferences.
'She doesn't like coffee at home. I like coffee at home,' Jake explained in his video.
'I offer to make her coffee every day like a loving boyfriend would but she doesn't want it because she would prefer an espresso coffee. I don't have that.
'So Beth has been going to this cafe for about three years. They know her, they know her order. She knows the main guy's name, he knows her name. Everyone knows each other.'
The co-host of the Relatables podcast said Beth stopped by the cafe the other day - the first time she'd been there in a week.
'She goes in... and the main dude says, "Oh Beth, it's been so long... we missed you" and then he looks over his shoulder at one of the baristas and he goes, "oh he really missed you",' Jake recalled.
'And Beth was like, "what?" And then he says to Beth, "don't tell Jack"... My name's Jake. He doesn't know me that well, he thinks my name's Jack.'
But things took an interesting turn when he noticed the barista had drawn a couple of hearts on Beth's coffee cup, along with the words 'My love'.
'It's from the one guy that missed her,' Jake pointed out.
'And I was like, ha ha he he whatever... Beth comes back all smiles and I was like, "oh you know, it is what it is, a nice compliment"... blah blah blah.
'But since then there has been two more messages, so three altogether.'
Jake explained that the first message was 'My love while the second had the words 'My secret'.
'The third message is today and Beth is about to show it to me. I have not seen it yet,' he said, as he asked Beth to hand him the coffee cup.
The latest message said: 'Beth, my secret love.'
'Oh my god, he's putting them together,' Jake said, suggesting that the barista was combining all the previous messages onto the new cup.
Taken aback by the barista's message to his girlfriend, Jake asked, 'What do I do about this? I don't know if they're joking or not, I don't think they're joking.
'Beth's all cheery about it as well.'
His girlfriend can be heard responding, 'So funny.'
Jake had an inkling the barista didn't like him - after he recently brought his dog Henry into the cafe for a puppuccino.
'So the main guy, he thinks my name's Jack but he's really nice to me, he still says hi... but the guy that's been writing messages to Beth, he wasn't giving me the time of day,' he explained.
'He took my order, he didn't smile, he didn't give a s***. He's like, "What do you want?"
'And I was like, f***, this guy full hates me.'
Jake concluded that he wasn't 'threatened' by the barista, but he still wanted to get advice from the internet on how to handle the situation.
'I do think it's crazy,' he said.
'She's not gonna go to a new coffee shop, it's the closest one and she likes the coffee there, whatever, it is what it is, but yes... I need advice.'
His video has been viewed more than 295,000 times - with many sharing entertaining advice on what Jake should do next.
'Looks like you're on pickup coffee duty under the name Beth from now on,' one said, laughing.
'You order one for Beth and tell them not to forget the hearts,' another joked.
'When he takes your order or hands you the coffee just say "Thank you, my secret love" and wink. Flip it. Make it fun,' one added.
'Well looks like you are proposing in a coffee shop now,' another hinted, laughing.
Many suggested that Jake should invest in an expensive espresso coffee machine and get barista training so he can make cafe-quality brew for Beth at home.
Meanwhile, many pointed out that Jake and Beth seemed to be in a 'healthy relationship' so they should just accept the compliments.
'Treat her beautifully and don't worry about it. It's actually a compliment to you and Beth,' one said.
'Can we just appreciate the healthy relationship. The fact you can all just laugh about it - me and my partner are the same. He always tells me "if you get a free drink, get me one too",' another added, laughing.
'The fact she's sharing it with you is green flags for sure,' one shared.
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