Here's How To Order A Cold Cup Of Chocolate Milk From Starbucks

The Starbucks secret menu is a treasure trove of caffeinated beverages. You'll find everything from a latte inspired by Cocoa Puffs to a Candy Cane Cold Brew, thanks to creative customers who take the time to share their concoctions. But you don't always go to Starbucks looking for a beverage that will wake you up — once in a while, you might just want something rich and delicious like chocolate milk. In that case, the stores do sell Horizon Chocolate Organic boxes. But if your location is out or if you just want a hand-crafted drink, you can also order chocolate milk off the secret menu.

Here's what to ask for: A grande Cold Milk with two pumps of mocha sauce and one pump of vanilla syrup. Despite its name, Starbucks' mocha sauce only contains water, sugar, cocoa, and natural flavor, so it won't give you any caffeine. Besides just adding an extra-delicious taste, the vanilla syrup is necessary for the sweetness chocolate milk deserves, because the chain's mocha sauce is bittersweet. If you want a tall, go for one pump of each, and for a venti, opt for four of mocha and two of vanilla. This is less than the typical amount for each Starbucks drink size, but it prevents your drink from becoming overly bitter.

While you're at it, feel free to customize your Starbucks secret menu chocolate milk even more. The default milk is 2%, but feel free to swap it out for options like whole, nonfat, almond, coconut, oat, or soy. You may also want to specify if you'd like your drink without ice (or with it) since some locations will automatically include it. And if you do want to go full throttle with your pump amounts (meaning you'll include the standard for Starbucks drink sizes), ask for three pumps of each syrup for a tall, four for a grande, and six for a venti.

Of course, there are plenty of ways you can switch this drink up flavor-wise as well. Add syrups like hazelnut, macadamia, toffee nut, and caramel, or sauces like dark caramel and white chocolate mocha (which also doesn't have caffeine). Top your cup off with a cookie crumble topping (toasted or regular), cinnamon dolce sprinkles, a mocha drizzle, or plenty of whipped cream. And to get even more creative, order a creation based on your favorite hot chocolate flavor — like a Mexican-inspired beverage with white mocha syrup, cinnamon dolce syrup, the spicy chili powder blend, and cinnamon powder. You may never go back to the Horizon boxes again.