Why Did Luckin Coffee Face an Ice Cube Backlash Again?

Luckin Coffee returned to Weibo trending topics over ice. On March 25, a woman in Heze, Shandong posted a video saying her full-price coconut latte was nearly gone after three or four sips, with the rest mostly ice. The complaint echoed widely, less than two weeks after a similar dispute over drinks left half-full once ice was removed.

A store employee told Jimu News that the iced coconut latte is itself only half a cup, with the other half ice, and said ice carries a cost. Luckin customer service said the drink follows a unified recipe but did not directly answer whether the ice amount meets regulations. The episode highlights how recipe standards and customer expectations can diverge.

Luckin Coffee once again hit Weibo's trending topics due to an ice cube issue, just over ten days after the previous controversy over "half a cup left after removing ice or getting less ice." On March 25, a woman in Heze, Shandong, posted a video claiming that the original-price coconut latte she bought was gone after three or four sips, with the rest being all ice cubes, sparking widespread resonance among netizens. Many netizens shared similar experiences, joking that "half a cup of Luckin is ice." A Jimu News reporter contacted the store involved, and an employee said that the iced coconut latte itself is only half a cup, with the other half being ice, emphasizing that ice also costs money. Luckin customer service responded that it is made according to a unified recipe but did not directly address whether the ice amount complies with regulations. This article will outline the incident and the responses from various parties.

This morning, Luckin Coffee was once again thrust into the spotlight due to an ice cube issue, and related topics quickly climbed onto Weibo's trending list. Just over ten days ago, Luckin had already been criticized for "only half a cup left after removing ice or getting less ice," marking the second similar controversy in just half a month.

On March 25, a woman in Heze, Shandong, posted a video on social media, claiming that she bought an original-price coconut latte through the Luckin Coffee mini-program and it was nearly finished after just three or four sips, with the remainder in the cup being mostly ice cubes. Once the video was posted, it immediately triggered a lot of resonance and discussion among netizens.

In the topic discussion, many netizens shared photos of the Luckin "coffee" they bought. From the photos, it can be seen that if you drink a little too quickly, half a cup of ice cubes will remain. Some complained, "The ice is absurdly plentiful; a 20-yuan cup of coffee is gone after a few sips." Others joked, "Half a cup of Luckin is ice," and "This isn't selling coffee; it's clearly selling ice with coffee thrown in."

Some netizens also pointed out that "Luckin has always been like this," and that "ordering iced products at Starbucks or similar coffee shops is the same situation," and offered advice: "You can note less ice or no ice when ordering."

According to Jimu News, Ms. Zhang in the incident hoped the staff could remove some ice, but the employee responded, "If you remove the ice, there might only be half a cup left." This left Ms. Zhang quite helpless, saying, "I only took three sips, and it was all ice."

The video taken by Ms. Zhang shows that after she quickly finished the latte, a large amount of ice cubes remained in the transparent plastic cup. Some netizens commented under the video suggesting to wait for the ice to melt before drinking, and Ms. Zhang replied, "The third sip was like drinking water, let alone waiting for the ice to melt completely."

On the 28th, a Jimu News reporter contacted the Luckin store. The employee explained that the coconut latte in the store comes in two types: iced and hot. Among them, the iced coconut latte itself is only half a cup, with the other half being ice cubes; the hot coconut latte is close to a full cup. The reporter asked: If so, buying hot drinks is obviously more cost-effective, so who would still be willing to buy iced drinks? The employee replied, "You can't calculate it that way; the ice cubes in iced drinks also cost money."

Regarding this matter, the reporter also called Luckin Coffee's national service hotline. Customer service stated that after placing an order, the store will make it according to a unified recipe ratio, and both cup volume and ice amount have fixed standards. If problems arise after ordering, you can communicate with the store or contact customer service for handling. As for whether half a cup of ice in a coconut latte complies with the recipe and process, the staff did not directly respond.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.