Hotel coffee has a reputation problem.
You’ve probably heard the complaints. Maybe you’ve even made them yourself when travelling.
If you're in charge of a hotel, you’ve likely had that moment where you know your coffee could taste better… but you’re not quite sure where to start.
Perhaps you've even tried to improve things in the past, upgrading your machines and swapping your coffee supplier, but again once again you've hit a wall.
Hotel coffee is a challenge. So, in this article, we’re going to break it all down. Why hotel coffee so often misses the mark, what’s really causing the issue behind the scenes, and most importantly, what you can actually do about it.
Let’s get into it.
Why do guests think hotel coffee is so bad?
If you Google this question (and we have), the top search results are written for hotel guests, not you.
They’re full of suggestions like “bring your own coffee bags” or “pack a travel-sized French press.”
But that’s not helpful for you, the person responsible for guest satisfaction and, ultimately, the success of the business. You’re not looking to survive your own hotel. You want to improve it.
So, here’s the key message we want to get across.
A hotel's coffee is only bad because no one is helping them get it right.
Coffee is hard, and it's just not something a lot of hotel's have the capacity to fix by themselves.
That’s not a dig, it’s just the reality. The problem isn’t that you don’t care. It’s that you’re busy, your team is stretched, and coffee tends to get left behind when compared to bigger things like room quality, staffing, or cost control.
But when done right, coffee is one of the easiest wins for improving the guest experience, retention and repeat stays, and spend per head....
11 Reasons Why Hotel Coffee Misses the Mark
Time and time again, we see the same problems coming up that get in the way of hotel's serving great coffee for their guests. These most often include:
1. High staff turnover
Hospitality has one of the highest churn rates out there, and relying on barista-level skills just isn’t realistic for most hotels.
2. Espresso machines that are too complicated
Manual machines are great, but only if your team knows how to use them. Some categories of machines, like traditional espresso machines, require a basic level of knowledge and training to get good results.
3. Dirty pod machines
You’d be shocked how many in-room pod machines haven’t been properly cleaned in weeks. Old coffee oil, gunked-up internals, it’s no wonder the drink tastes burnt.
4. Low-quality bean to cup machines
Not all bean to cup machines are created equal. Cheap ones look nice but deliver weak, inconsistent drinks, and break down far too often. Modern bean to cup machines have come a long way in terms of drink quality, performance, and reliability.
5. Commodity coffee instead of specialty
There’s a big difference between coffee that’s been sourced for quality and traceability, and beans bought in bulk for a good price-per-kilo. One elevates your brand. The other’s just filler. The difference in price, per cup is actually minimal, and a premium drink can command a premium price.
6. Stale, dark-roasted filter coffee
Cheaper coffee beans typically require a greater amount of roasting in order to have any kind of flavour at all. Unfortunately, this often means serving bitter and harsh coffees that leave an unpleasant taste.
7. Coffee machine breakdowns
If your machine goes down at 7am on a weekday, that’s a serious operational headache. You don’t just lose coffee, you lose time, service flow, and goodwill. Low quality machines and a lack of engineer support is a recipe for disaster.
8. No barista training
Without support, your team ends up guessing. And when they guess, guests notice. A lack of ongoing training makes it almost impossible to manage a knowledgable team of coffee professionals.
9. Hard, untreated water
Over 90% of your coffee is actually made up of water, and it's chemistry has a large impact on your coffee. Hard water leads to limescale buildup that can quickly block inside your coffee machines, and leads to dull, harsh tasting drinks.
10. Free on loan machines
The “free” coffee machine. Which usually means: no flexibility, no choice, and no real quality. You’re stuck with whatever coffee comes with it, and you'll pay extortionate amounts for it.
11. Lack of support from your coffee supplier
Too many suppliers drop off coffee and disappear. If they’re not helping with training, maintenance, and menu support, what exactly are you paying for?
Three Areas where Hotels Most Often Struggle
One of the reasons why hotel's struggle more than other business when it comes to coffee, is because of their complex needs and the many multiple locations where coffee needs to be served on site. Here are three areas where we usually find problems, and how these can avoided:
Bedroom Self-Serve coffee
Hotel bedroom coffee is tough to get right. Sachets are convenient for housekeeping but usually taste bitter and low-quality. “Premium” options like coffee bags or pourover pouches often confuse guests, while filter machines are messy and rarely cleaned properly.
Pod machines work well for ease of use, but most standard pods deliver a stale, underwhelming experience. The best results come from specialty-grade pods that offer convenience and quality.
Breakfast High Volume Coffee
This is peak volume service, and it needs to be fast and consistent. Bulk filter coffee brewers are common but usually rely on pre-ground, low-grade coffee that goes stale quickly.
Older bean to cup machines often produce poor-quality drinks, lack flexibility (like decaf or non-dairy options), and are prone to breakdowns, which can throw off the entire breakfast service.
Espresso bar or café setup
This should be your premium setup: the lobby or café space that competes with the local high street coffee shops. Espresso machines can help you deliver exceptional drinks here. But without regular staff barista training, quality and speed can suffer.
The solution isn’t to scale back, but to support better: regular training and smart automation (like super-automatic machines, milk systems, tampers, and grinders) allow any team member to serve great coffee consistently.
What Hotels with Great Coffee Do Differently
If you’re wondering how some hotels just seem to get coffee right, here’s what they’ve figured out:
- They invest in equipment that works for their workflow, not against it.
- They use specialty coffee beans that align with their brand, values, and premium guest experience.
- They don’t overcomplicate things, leaning on automation and simplicity when needed.
- They partner with a high quality hotel coffee supplier who helps, not just delivers
Where Should you Start?
Improving your hotel’s coffee offering doesn’t have to mean a complete overhaul. Most of the time, it starts with asking a few simple questions:
- Where are guests currently getting their coffee, and what are they saying about it?
- What equipment do you already have, and is it helping or holding you back?
- Is your team confident in making and serving good coffee?
- Do you have a supplier who’s genuinely helping you improve?
You don’t need to fix everything overnight. Start by identifying the weakest link, and tackle that one area first. Often, a few smart upgrades to your equipment, coffee quality, or team training can make a noticeable difference without overcomplicating your day-to-day operation.
Work With a Coffee Supplier That Knows Hotels Inside Out
At Bridge Coffee Roasters, we help hotels serve better coffee in a way that actually works behind the scenes: for housekeeping teams, breakfast staff, baristas, and everyone in between.
We work closely with our hotel partners to match the right equipment to each service area, provide hands-on training, support smart automation, and improve consistency, efficiency, and profitability across their coffee offering.
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