Information Please: Espresso Machines and Generators

[hfears]

Hello all! I looking into starting a espresso cart company and have questions on what machine and generators would be best to use. Id appreciate any and all help. Thanks! :grin::grin:

 

[sidg]

Hello all! I looking into starting a espresso cart company and have questions on what machine and generators would be best to use. Id appreciate any and all help. Thanks! :grin::grin:

How big of a cart are you looking at? Espresso machines take a lot of power but if you have a cart you probably won't want or need one that takes 240v . A number of makers have lp machines now I believe so that would be a good place to start looking.
What is your intended audience?

 

[hfears]

Intended audience would be street walkers/college universities. I do not have a design for the cart down yet because i figured id need to get the machine size first. i have an engineering friend that is making the cart for me. id prefer 2 group heads but i think i could get by with one. it'll run of a generator but i need to know the power of the machine first though, right?

 

[hfears]

Intended audience would be street walkers/college universities. I do not have a design for the cart down yet because i figured id need to get the machine size first. i have an engineering friend that is making the cart for me. id prefer 2 group heads but i think i could get by with one. it'll run of a generator but i need to know the power of the machine first though, right?

 

[sidg]

Are the places you are wanting to target open for sales? Can you get a permit to sale there? What size will your area codes allow?
It wont matter what size of cart and machine you have if it stays in your garage because you cant get permits. Sorry, if you already know these things, but others reading might not. I run a coffee van and while there are places I could sell coffee the lack of access because of city code or the unreadable fees expected from private areas (college campus) means that my sales are focused in particular areas.

 

[hfears]

I have all that figured out, ill need permits and university permission and fees to sell where i will be selling. the cart will be attached to a bicycle. i just wanna know what machine will be good for 50-350 + cups a day.

 

[sidg]

Glad you have done your homework. I consult with a lot of people who want to do a food truck and haven't so thus the questions.
I'm guessing you are going to want something like the Honda 2000 for generating power. It's small and quiet. You will probably need 2 of them, one for your espresso machine and one for grinder, refrigerator, etc. As far as espresso machine goes you will be limited to a 110v machine so you will be limited to one or maybe 2 group machine. I won't recommend a particular brand as I sell machines as well. Get a sturdy machine that is going to stand up to being bumped around. Your limiting factor in volume is going to be the recovery time for a 110v machine so ask how many shots it can pull in an hour.
Good luck

 

[hfears]

If i ask you to recommend a brand will you?

 

[sidg]

Well I use and sell WEGA espresso machines and have never had an issue. But there are other options. Find a roaster you want to work with and or an espresso machine repair person and there is a good chance they will either sell machines or know someone locally who does. If you can't find someone message me and I can see what I can do to help you out.