Drive-thru dispensary etiquette.
A dispensary drive-thru is somewhere between a fast-food window and a pharmacy pickup. It's not complicated, but a few small habits will get you in and out faster — and keep the line moving for everyone behind you.
Before you pull in
Order ahead.
This is the single biggest thing. Drive-thru is fastest when you've already picked out your stuff online and gotten a confirmation. You roll up, hand over your ID, pay, leave. Maybe 90 seconds.
If you order on the spot, the budtender has to take your order through the speaker, ring it up, walk to the shelf, walk back. That's 5–10 minutes — and if there's anyone behind you, they're stuck while it happens.
You can order online for Lettuce drive-thru pickup in about 2 minutes. Most orders are ready within 15.
What to have ready
- Your driver's license or state ID (must be 21+, must be valid)
- Cash or a debit card with PIN — we don't accept credit cards
- Your online order number, if you placed one
- Window down before you reach the speaker
- Music low enough to hear the budtender
At the window
1. Hand over the ID first
Every Michigan dispensary has to verify ID before any cannabis transaction. Doing this first thing helps expedite the process.
2. Don't try to negotiate prices
The drive-thru window isn't a flea market and the budtender doesn't have authority to discount. If something is on special, the price already reflects it. (At Lettuce we publish all flower prices openly.)
3. Don't consume in the lane
Michigan law requires cannabis to stay sealed in the original packaging while in a vehicle, and you cannot consume it on the property or on the road.
4. Cash > card if you can swing it
Debit transactions usually carry a small ATM-style fee (it's the debit card processor, not the shop charging you). If you've got cash, you avoid the fee and the line moves faster.
5. Tip the budtender
They're doing service work. A buck or two in the tip jar at the window is the move, especially if they were quick or helpful with your order.
Common mistakes
- Pulling up without ID in hand. Please have your ID ready in order to expedite the checkout process and to be courteous to the people behind you.
- Forgetting you ordered for pickup at the wrong location. If a chain has multiple shops, your online order is locked to one. Check.
- Driving off without the product. Please wait for the bag.
After you leave
Michigan law: keep cannabis sealed in original packaging in your vehicle, ideally in the trunk. Open packaging in the cabin can land you a violation that's not worth the trouble. If you've got passengers, the same applies — nobody opens it until you get where you are going.