Starbucks announced its 2025 summer menu — with one ‘controversial’ drink returning

Starbucks is getting into summer mode.

The coffee giant revealed its 2025 summer menu — and customers will be able to get it sooner than they think.

Launching in May, Starbucks confirmed two seasonal drinks will be returning to the menu, as well as some new food and drink items.

One new menu item will be an oatmilk shaken espresso “inspired by” a Horchata, a Mexican drink typically made of rice, milk, vanilla and cinnamon.

There’s no official description yet for the Starbucks drink, called the Iced Horchata Oatmilk Shaken Espresso, but one alleged employee shared on Reddit that there will be an all-new horchata syrup to be used for the drink.

The other new treat to the menu is a food item: the Strawberries & Cream Cake Pop, which Starbucks employees on Reddit said would be a strawberry cake base with buttercream.

Coming back to the coffee shop for the summer are the Summer-Berry Lemonade Refresher and Summer Skies Drink, which first debuted last year, featuring juicy raspberry-flavored pearls, inspired by the popular East Asian beverage boba tea.

The Summer-Berry Lemonade Refresher is mixed with lemonade, of course, while the Summer Skies Drink is combined with coconut milk.

Typically made with tea and chewy tapioca pearls, Starbucks’ unique take on boba tea has been described as tasting like “blueberries, blackberries and raspberries picked at the height of summer.”

While the drink quickly became a fan favorite and the boba was met with excitement from both customers and baristas, it was also met with some criticism, making it a controversial addition to the menu at the time.

Some outlets also made the argument that by calling them “pearls” rather than “boba,” the company took away from the cultural history of boba and capitalized on the trend without acknowledging the cultural context.

“By renaming them ‘pearls,’ Starbucks avoids a direct association with boba tea culture, and thus, Asian culture at large,” Eater wrote. “And intentional or not — like all brands, a renaming is likely just a way for it to sound new and creative — it erases the history of boba drinks, positioning Starbucks as an innovator when it’s really a follower.”

“Starbucks choosing the name ‘pearls’” for its launch is a missed opportunity. It avoids the connection with boba tea culture and avoids creating a stronger connection with AAPI Heritage Month,” AdWeek wrote.

Others just simply didn’t want to get boba from a chain.

“Nobody wants Boba from Starbucks,” one person declared after it first debuted.