Starbucks is going straw-free, but what does that mean for ME?

Let’s take a trip to Starbucks together. [View this email in your browser]( [Bon Appétit Newsletter Banner Red]( Tonnato time Mmm tuna breath. I didn’t cook much this week, but on Sunday I had the three minutes of energy needed to blend up my favorite condiment, [tonnato sauce](. I used it on everything from chicken-and-rice bowls to uh, bowls of raw snap peas. It goes with all of the green summer veg because tonnato is simply: tuna, anchovies, mayo, olive oil, and lemon (optional: a chile, or red chile flakes). [Try it!]( Report back! A man without an Instastory This week, the entire staff of BA spared no expense making fun of associate editor Alex Delany, who lost his iPhone kayaking in Portland, Maine, in between visiting [every cool restaurant, bar, record store, and coffee shop in town.]( How did we know everywhere he went and everything he did? The man is a PROLIFIC [Instagram story user,]( whose tropes (cortado shot, Spotify screenshot, BeerMail™) have become so consistent sometimes I wonder if he’s become a meme of himself. But it’s all on pause this week because he can’t post! “I feel bad for Delany. But my heart is really with all of the forgotten cortados, records, old cars, beer cans, Spotify screenshots, and restaurant interiors,” said social media manager [Rachel Karten]( who crafted a spot-on “Delany takeover” in her story yesterday (the photo above, plus a Spotify screenshot: Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe.”). Delany appears to have grown as a human being from the harrowing experience: “It has been eight days since I had a phone,” he told me, “I’ve been making eye contact with people on the subway. Listening to other people’s conversations on the street (my phone was music device too). Stopping to smell the roses. Going to bed early. Sleeping through the night. It’s actually kind of relaxing. Turns out there’s a whole world out there. But I do miss my phone. It will be a joyous reunion.” For us all, I’m sure. Starbucks news By now you may have heard that [Starbucks is replacing its green straws]( with, well, lids that are the clear version of their hot coffee lids, pretty much (change will go into effect by 2020). This made me—person who brews her own coffee—realize I haven’t stepped inside a Starbucks since the last time I passed one in an airport. So I walked with a colleague to Starbucks this morning to see what was new, to reminisce on days as coffee-fetching interns whose lives were at stake when orders went wrong. I ordered one of every “sous vide egg bite” flavor, and asked the barista to recommend four new-ish drinks so I could catch up on lost time. And lo, what I found: Sous Vide Egg Bites: These are very good. Fluffy egg, satisfying smooth, buttery surface, that sous vide glow—all hubris and braggadocio and bacon. And it’s the bacon gruyere flavor you want. Mango Dragonfruit Starbucks Refreshers®: This is a bubbly, near-clear Refresher® (just wanted to use the ® again) that tastes like a liquid hard candy, not quite straight mango or dragonfruit, but more of this general, super-sweet soda. Wait a second, [why wasn’t it pink?]( It appears my order was something else entirely. Good thing I’m not an intern anymore. Iced Vanilla Bean Coconutmilk Latte: This was everyone in the office’s favorite. It tastes like dessert, because it is dessert, and there are beautiful flecks of vanilla bean. “Whoa! What is happening!” was one review. Ginger Cold Brew: I was at a Roastery location, so not sure if ginger cold brew is nationwide, but it’s presented unmixed, a lovely two-toned thing (actually, all of the drinks were like this 🤔). Iced Cold Foam Cappuccino: VERY INTRIGUED by the cold foam technology, and while it was served with a wispy head of foam, by the time the drink hit the great outdoors, it had melted away. Speaking of foam, that brings us to the... Unnecessary food feud of the week Talk of cold foam soon turned to a raging discussion of why Adam Rapoport likes hot foam in his iced espresso. Wait, what? “One day in the Test Kitchen,” Rapo said, “I was making an iced espresso, and someone had steamed milk with the wand,” so he poured some in. It created this “dense creamy marshmallow milk,” that he found to be “a revelation. 100 percent different than cold milk. It didn’t fully mix in with coffee, it cascaded down, like a layer cake.” This horrified Mr. Cortado Delany: “This is quite literally a lose-lose. Not to get nerdy here, but the reason cortados and cappuccinos are so lovely is because the espresso and the milk mix while they’re at the same temperature. Pouring the steamed milk over ice immediately changes the milk’s texture and mutes the flavor you created by steaming it.” Rapo stands by his take, adding, “Whether or not it’s worth it is another question.” You have to steam milk, which requires using more than you’ll pour in, a waste, plus time and energy. Sort of like where this paragraph is goin— Sour cherries aren’t that sour I am a freak for sour cherries when they’re in season, which is NOW. They’re not as sour as they sound, more sweet and tart and especially great for baking. Get this cheap [cherry pitter]( and go to town, people. A simple [clafoutis (like custard-meets-crepe)]( with whole cherries is one of summer’s greatest pleasures, other than realizing your coworker has Teva tan lines. Zsa Zsa, 2009-2018 Zsa Zsa, [who you may remember from this newsletter]( as the Slim Jim-snarfing winner of the World’s Ugliest Dog contest, [passed away at the age of 9]( (human years.) Let’s have a moment of silence for Zsa Zsa, who was given a second chance at life, and boy did she take it and thrive, held back not by her floppy tongue and severe underbite. Zsa Zsa was also fond of Chipotle burritos, so I hope she’s greeted by the heavenly Chipotle in the sky, where there’s no line. Have a good weekend! Alex Beggs Senior editor What do you think of the BA newsletter? Send us your thoughts at staff.bonappetit@gmail.com. [Advertisement]( [Powered by LiveIntent]( [Ad Choices]( Get The Magazine [Bon Appétit] [SUBSCRIBE]( This e-mail was sent to you by Bon Appetit. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, [bonappetit@newsletters.bonappetit.com]( to your address book. View our [Privacy Policy]( [Unsubscribe]( Copyright © Condé Nast 2018. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.