Review: Starbucks Brings The Secret Menu Out Of The Shadows With 4 Refreshing, Summer-Ready Drinks
For some of us, Starbucks' regular drink menu just doesn't cut it. We want something bold, innovative — something that speaks to our personality. Enter the Starbucks secret menu: a hush-hush trend that has been going strong among the Starbucks fandom for years. The secret menu consists of a nearly-endless collection of fan-made drinks that can be crafted by your barista if you request a few tweaks and mods (and be sure to ask nicely and toss a tip their way). Some secret menu drinks were inspired by pop culture franchises, some are drinks specifically for the holidays, and others are funky flavor combos that found themselves thrust into viral internet stardom.
Now, Starbucks' secret menu is going mainstream. Customers can order certain secret menu drinks in the app, bringing their beverage fantasies to life. Does this take away some of the mysterious appeal of the secret drinks? Maybe. But it also comes with a contest, where Starbucks lovers can submit their fave drink for a chance at fun prizes — a fair trade off, if you ask me.
I got a chance to try the four new not-so-secret drinks to give an honest, unbiased tell-all. I'll uncover the unique flavors in each beverage, exploring what makes them stand out — or fall flat. So let's dive into these fruity, creamy, and caffeine-riddled concoctions and find out if they're worthy of a spot in the limelight or if they should have stayed hidden.
Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.
What are the new Starbucks secret menu drinks?
Starbucks' new in-app secret menu drinks include four unique varieties in wildly different flavors, all iced and ready for summer. The first featured drink is known as Cookies on Top: a creamy-sweet cold brew with vanilla syrup, Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Foam (easily the most iconic of all Starbucks' cold foam flavors), and cookie crumbles on top. Then there's the Dragonfruit Glow-Up, made just as whimsically as its name with a peach juice blend in a Mango-Dragonfruit Lemonade Refresher, topped with Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Foam.
Lemon, Tea, and Pearls is a refreshing Arnold Palmer-style mash-up of black tea and lemonade, complete with raspberry popping bubbles for a burst of berry flavor. And lastly, there's the Just Add White Mocha, which transforms the classic Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso with a few pumps of white chocolate mocha sauce and — you guessed it — a dollop of Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Foam, for good measure. Whether these new drinks have a chance at becoming permanent staples or will only last as long as the summer remains to be seen.
Price and availability
Fans of the Starbucks secret menu will no longer have to whisper their custom drink order to their barista while looking over their shoulder to prevent any prying eyes from exposing their secret. Okay, it's not really that dramatic — but as of July 14, 2025, the secret menu will be far less secret. Four new drinks that once existed as just online rumors for the brave few to try can be ordered on the app by Starbucks Rewards members, under the "offers" tab. Keep checking this tab, because new not-so-secret drinks will continue to roll out.
The prices of the new drinks vary, and ended up being a bit more than a standard Starbies beverage, but that's to be expected since they're loaded with fun add-ins. I snagged a Dragonfruit Glow-Up in a tall size for $5.35, a grande Cookies on Top for $7.50, a tall Lemon, Tea, and Pearls for $5.20, and a tall Just Add White Mocha for $7. These prices reflect those from my local Starbucks in Northeastern Pennsylvania, so prices in other locations will likely differ.
Not only are these secret drinks coming to the forefront of the Starbucks menu, but you can have a hand in their creation, too. Also starting on July 14, 2025, through July 20, 2025, Starbucks will host a contest where fans can submit their favorite customized drink to the brand's Secret Menu Contest page. Winners will have their custom drink featured on the app for all Starbucks customers to rave about, plus the chance at a $5,000 and a $25,000 cash prize.
Taste test: Cookies on Top
Most of us are already tossing add-ins into Starbucks cold brew to give it a sweet kick and infuse the coffee with our flavor of choice, but the Cookies on Top drink takes sweetened cold brew to the next level. If you're an Oreo-lover (guilty), then this drink is calling your name. Since it's made up of just coffee, vanilla syrup, vanilla cold foam, and a sprinkle of cookie crumbs, I didn't anticipate the unmistakable cookies-and-cream flavor that washed me in a wave of nostalgia with every sip.
There was plenty of sweetness and cookie flavor in this drink, but it never masked the taste of Starbucks' tasty cold brew, which packs a punch from rich, dark-roasted beans. There was virtually no bitterness in the coffee thanks to the vanilla syrup and the long steeping time typical of cold brew, which results in an exceptionally smooth coffee. Vanilla cold foam gave the drink an extra layer of sweetness and a mouth-coating texture that made it all the more decadent. I appreciated that even after letting the drink sit for a little while, the cookie crumbs were delicious and soft while blending into the drink, rather than grossly mushy.
Taste test: Dragonfruit Glow-Up
Of the four new drinks, I saw the Dragonfruit Glow-Up as the funkiest by a mile. There's a lot to unpack here — dragonfruit, mango, lemonade, peach, plus creamy cold foam seems like, well, a lot. Initially, I was a bit put off by the addition of cold foam, since lemonade and other tart fruits don't always mesh well with milky ingredients. However, the cold foam ended up being the (metaphorical) cherry on top of this drink that made it my favorite of the four.
I can't talk about this drink without bringing up the aesthetics. If you're aiming for an Instagram-worthy Starbucks order, this is your only option. The way the creamy foam blends with the vibrant pink hues satisfies the barista in me. This drink had a slightly thick consistency that allowed the foam to sit on top nicely and melt ever-so-slowly into the juice. Although the drink was somewhat thick, the intense fruit flavor and sweetness made it refreshing. However, this might not be the best drink to order if you've just eaten a meal, because it's much heavier than Starbucks' other fruit-focused bevvies.
The Dragonfruit Glow-Up is incredibly sweet, but the bold fruit flavors are potent enough that the sugar doesn't drown them out. I detected the peach, mango, dragonfruit, and lemonade (although the latter was mild) in every sip, and the creamy cold foam was the perfect touch to mellow everything out and ensure that the drink isn't too sour.
Taste test: Lemon, Tea, and Pearls
Of the four new drinks, the Lemon, Tea, and Pearls was the least impressive, but it is still worthy of a spot alongside its secret menu drink companions. It's a straightforward option that combines the sweet, tart flavor of lemonade with a slight kick of caffeine from earthy black tea, so it's a solid choice for those exceptionally hot days when you feel like coffee will just weigh you down, no matter how much ice you load it up with.
The lemonade flavor is significantly more prominent than tea, although the black tea cuts back on some of the sweetness. The crisp texture and only slight sweetness make the Lemon, Tea, and Pearls the most refreshing option of the four secret menu drinks. Raspberry-flavored popping pearls — otherwise known as popping bobas — are filled with tart, fruity juice that's candy-sweet and loaded with flavor. These little bubbles — normally reserved for Refresher drinks — are certainly the star of this lemonade-tea hybrid. They're smaller than average bobas, but biting into even just one or two unleashes a river of juicy berry flavor, giving this drink a bit of pizazz. However, make sure to grab a straw that's capable of sucking up the little bobas. Otherwise, they'll all settle on the bottom, and you won't be able to enjoy the full experience of sipping and popping simultaneously.
Taste test: Just Add White Mocha
I like to pretend that I'm strictly a sophisticated black coffee drinker, but secretly, I love the Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso at Starbucks. It's my go-to, and although I've never considered messing with the recipe since it's near-perfect as-is, I was pretty intrigued by this modification of the classic. After trying the version of the drink with white mocha added (known as the Just Add White Mocha on the Starbucks app), I have to say that I'll be sticking with the OG version. However, those who love their coffee drinks extra-sugary will fall head over heels for this creamy, decadent drink.
As you can probably imagine, this is a wildly sweet drink. The Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso is quite sweet to begin with, so adding a couple of pumps of thick, rich white mocha sauce ups the sugar factor. That being said, white mocha and brown sugar are a heavenly duo that play on each other's strengths; although together, they make a drink that's more dessert than it is coffee. The espresso is all but lost in this beverage, which was a bit disappointing, because — even in a sweet drink — it's nice to taste a hint of bitterness and robust flavor from coffee to give the drink a little oomph.
Final thoughts
After trying each of the four new not-so-secret menu drinks at Starbucks, I can say with near certainty that Starbucks fans will fall in love (hopefully not too in love, since they might not be around for long) with all four. Although I likely won't make all four drinks part of my regular Starbucks order this summer (save for the Dragonfruit Glow-Up — I'm already counting down the hours until I can snag another one tomorrow), they each offer something unique to this new, limited menu.
I went into this review expecting nothing to blow me away, but the Cookies on Top surprised me with genuine cookie flavor while the Lemon, Tea, and Pearls acted as an ideal cool-down with a bit of caffeine to boot. The Dragonfruit Glow-Up was perfect with that expert cold foam addition, and the Just Add White Mocha was rich and delicious, albeit exceptionally sweet — but hey, I knew what I was getting into. They all bring the flavor that they're quirky names promise, plenty of refreshing sweetness to beat the heat, and are made with the care and expertise that makes Starbucks drinks such a global sensation.