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I guess "barista" is somewhat pretentious. But then charging £3 or more for a cup of coffee is also a little pretentious and some places use the term to "justify" their prices. It's easy to see why coffee lovers willing to pay higher prices would object to under-trained people giving themselves that title.

And should a frugal restaurant decide to combine the functions you may find yourself being served by their 'Smellier Barrister'

No it's not just you. I wasn't even aware of the term until somebody at work was reading from a menu of some description, and said "your latte will be served by a barista (except she pronounced it as "barrister") leading me to wonder what the hell a barrister was doing serving coffee. I think next time I visit Starbucks, I'll just snap my fingers and shout "waiter", when I want service. Barista just sounds pretentious.

God Peter that makes my early life flash in front of me... My late Father would give me a half crown if he wanted me out of his hair for the afternoon, and I would hang around in the small amusement arcade that was on the ramp down to Tenby Harbour, inside one of the arches set into the cliff. I would try and not incur the wrath of the arcade owner by watching for the penny waterfall to get ready for a big drop.....and yes, my faithful dog-eared copy of 'Check Your Change' was in my pocket.!