‘My McDonald’s babycino wasn’t what I ordered - parents should be warned'

“I opened the lid and the burning hot liquid went everywhere and burnt my leg,” the upset Mackay grandmother reveals. “A very big error was made.”

Josephine Agostino

2 min read

July 11, 2023 - 4:05PM

Family Life

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When Christine pops into her local McDonald’s to buy herself a coffee, one of her favourite pleasures is to buy her granddaughter, Amelia, her very own babycino.

Countless times, the grandmother-of-three has done just that without any issues - even when ordering oat milk for the dairy intolerant three-year-old.

But in January this year, Christine got the shock of her life after she picked up her drive- through order at her local McDonald’s in Mackay.

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“I went to check the drink, as I always do, before taking it out of the car and before I even took the lid off, I felt it was filled right to the top and it spilled all over the car and me,” the 63- year-old tells Kidspot.

What spilled, however, wasn’t warm frothed milk and chocolate powder, as she expected the babycino to be.

“I screamed,” she remembers.

“It was piping hot black coffee and it actually burnt my legs. And that was still after having driven 20 minutes to my son’s house. I was disgusted and shocked. It just shows you how careful you have to be with drinks for children.”

The babycino that Christine ordered her granddaughter Amelia turned out to be a regular coffee. Picture: Supplied

"I’ve been back a few times and they actually use cold milk for the babycino now"

In the ordering process, it appears the lines of communication became crossed, and the babycino - which appeared on Christine’s receipt, proving that she had made the correct order - somehow became a standard hot coffee.

Christine has since complained to the McDonald’s outlet, and a few days later received a response by phone offering her a free cup of coffee and iterating that the incident would be dealt with at an upcoming training session.

Ever the loyal customer, Christine hasn’t let the incident prevent her from returning for her usual order.

“I’ve been back a few times and they actually use cold milk for the babycino now,” she says.

The receipt for Christine's order showing a babycino. Picture: Supplied

Christine left a message at the bottom of her receipt. Picture: Supplied

McDonald's responds to error

Kidspot has contacted McDonald’s Australia and a spokeswoman said it had “contacted the customer in January to apologise and offer a replacement product”.

“We also retrained employees on processes, as part of our ongoing commitment to improving our customer service,” she said.

“At McDonald’s, we are committed to giving our customers a great experience every time they visit one of our restaurants.”