small volume coffee service

[simbagottlieb]

My wife is starting a cake and cookie boutique bakery in Northern NJ. There will be limited foot traffic (my very rough estimate would be for 20-40 cups sold per day). We have no idea what direction to go in and would love some advice. Should we brew behind the counter and place carafe service at the station or should we put the brewing station where the customers will pour? Either way I would appreciate any recommendations in the way of coffee systems and brands. My preference is to keep the hardware purchase economical (based on the small volume) but would like to provide a \"premium bean\" at a reasonable cost.

 

[Alun_evans]

I think you should perhaps look at forgoing a brew system for a single group espresso machine. If you are budgeting for around 40 cups a day, this might be just a few drinks an hour. It would make sense to keep things as fresh as possible by offerring espresso based selection (Latte, Cappuccino etc) rather than having coffee quality issues from brewed coffee sitting around. Also with the selection of drinks you can offer from an espresso machine, you will probably find you can generate increasing revenue and covers from opting for an espresso option over a brew option.

 

[Coffee Guy]

Ditto, I totally agree with AE. This way you can keep your costs low in addition to providing your customer with a variety of drinks.

 

[CafeBlue]

I just noticed the double post, so copied my response to this thread:

You are projecting very small brew quantity.
"Brew to order" concepts will yield a fresh brewed coffee, can offeer higher cup quality and will minimize waste. Consider an espresso machine that will give you grind and brew to order luxury beverages, and tremendous range of beverage menu. Espresso coffee requires a higher equipment capital start-up, but yields luxury beverages that can merit higher revenue generation. Consider brewing at the customer's table using French Press brewers. The Melitta type of cone filter "pour-over" funnels can also brew a cup or two at a time...perhaps not as nice a brew as a French Press, but easy clean-up.
My first choice is espresso system - for versatility, menu diversity, quality, freshness, retail sales value, and brand strength (re-inforce your primary product as top quality, feshness focussed luxury brand).