How to order Caffe Macchiato and be sure you get one? I think this question pertains mostly to the USA.

I travel often and like to stop at local coffee shops. My beverage of choice is a Caffe Macchiato. In the US, there seems to be the issue that a "Macchiato" at Starbucks is something different from an actual Macchiato. 

From Wikipedia, this is what I consider a Macchiato:


  Caffè macchiato, sometimes called espresso macchiato, is an espresso coffee drink with a small amount of milk, usually foamed.
  [...] The caffè macchiato has the highest ratio of espresso to milk of any drink made with those ingredients.


I have run into this a few times, even at coffee shops that seem to make a big deal about their coffee knowledge etc. I order a Macchiato, and receive a huge cup with mostly milk and some espresso. 

I would like to be clear as to what I want when I order, but I also want to avoid sounding like a jerk if I specify exactly what I want, or sounding dumb if I describe the drink rather than ordering by its name. What is a good way of achieving this?
The problem with ordering a "Macchiato" is that it's only half of the name of a traditional coffee drink.

"Macchiato" means "stained" or "flecked" and not more.

In Italy, you have either 


Latte macchiato: *Milk "stained" with coffee (more precisely caffè or espresso) or
Espresso macchiato: Espresso (or caffè) "stained" with a spoonful of milk foam.


If you order a "Macciato" without qualifier, you will either get what the chain defines as such (for Starbucks, a lot of milk and foam with one or multiple shots of espresso) or what your barista thinks of first - and that would often be a (latte) macchiato, i.e. a glass of milk and foam with an espresso layer inbetween. 

So my recommendation is:

If you want a serving of espresso with a bit of milk, order an espresso macchiato. I just double-checked with the Starbucks US website and yes, they do have espresso macchiato on the menu. Any decent barista from the (self proclaimed) high-end places you mention should be familiar with these terms anyway. The fine difference between "coffee" and "caffè" (see below) might be "lost in translation" and they will be using an espresso machine in 99% of all cases anyway.



Comment re. your Wikipedia link:

Please note the spelling: caffè is not the same as American coffee! The former is what you get when you use a stovetop moka pot, which creates a brew similar (but not identical) to espresso. Both are served in rather small serving units and for coffee drinks used somewhat interchangeably. Espresso shots in a bar or coffee shop, caffè often in a domestic setting (no need for fancy machinery).