When it comes to coffee equipment, we understand that there is no, one size fits all answer. With the vast array of professional quality equipment in the market, the choice can sometimes be daunting. But before recommending any piece of equipment, including coffee machines, we firstly need to look at a business’ ambitions, staff knowledge, and their customer demands to understand which equipment will be most suited to them.
Before choosing any equipment, there are a few types of machines to consider to understand which could be best suited to your business’ needs.
Traditional Coffee Machines
Traditional coffee machines are used by trained baristas who are knowledgeable about grinding coffee beans, steaming milk, and pulling espressos. The machine itself is designed to pull the espresso and steam the milk separately, so there’s a lot of skill that goes into crafting the perfect espresso. In an ideal world where there are no setbacks on costs or practicalities, traditional coffee machines would be suited to businesses that focus on high quality, speciality coffees.
Our Top Pick?
One of our favourite traditional machines would be the SanRemo F18 SB. Sanremo have designed this machine with restaurants, coffee shops and roasters in mind. They’ve made the process of creating that perfect espresso as simple as possible with a multifunctional interface which allows any that enables any trained barista to produce great espressos time after time.
Super Automatic Bean To Cup Machines
Simply put, these machines are able to create your espresso at the push of a button. They have a built-in grinder that grinds your coffee fresh, and an automatic steaming function that steams and pours a perfect milk type. These machines do not require a lot of skill or knowledge to work, which makes them ideal for businesses with limited staff, limited counter space, or a grab and go style of coffee shop, for instance.
Our Top Pick?
Our ultimate favourite would be the Eversys Cameo. Thanks to the incredible technology within this machine, it takes coffee creation to the next level. Not only does this machine perfectly grind and brew the coffee, it also has a great temperature control system froths your milk perfectly and consistently. Anyone with very limited knowledge of making coffees could create a great espresso with this machine, which makes it ideal for many businesses.
Bulk Brew and Filter Coffee
Another popular method is bulk brew and filter coffee, which is otherwise known as drip coffee. This method involves pouring water (manually or from a machine) over your ground coffee which then seeps through a filter paper, creating fresh filtered coffee. There are lots of great bulk brew and filter coffee machines on the market, and we recommend them to clients who need lots of coffee, quickly. For instance, hotels and conferences would benefit from these machines over a traditional or super automatic bean to cup as some bulk brew and filter machines can make circa 15 cups in 6 minutes from one batch. Compared to a traditional and super automatic bean to cup machine, this sheds off a significant amount of time. Whilst speed is one great feature of these types of machines, and another the delicious aromas the coffee produces whilst it’s being brewed. People really do wake up and smell the coffee when bulk brew and filter coffee is involved.
Our Top Pick?
One of our favourite bulk brew machines is the Bunn ICBA. Bunn are the pioneers of high-quality batch brewing equipment and renowned as the manufacturers of the best filter coffee machines in the UK. Their commercial filter coffee machines provide unrivalled build quality, precision control, ease of use and great quality coffee, and Bunn ICBA is just one example of their many great machines.
If you’re interested in taking your coffee shop, bar, or restaurant to the next level with a new machine, speak to one of our team who are more than happy to help you choose the right machine for your ambitions and consumer needs. Send an email to us at coffee@bridgecoffeeroasters.co.uk or call us on 0800 092 8992.