Essential Tips for Getting the Most from Your Commercial Coffee Machine

☕ Essential Tips for Getting the Most from Your Commercial Coffee Machine

 

Introduction

Running a café or restaurant means that the quality of your coffee can significantly impact your reputation. At Shado Coffee, we offer a range of powerful and reliable commercial coffee machines that are built to handle high demand and deliver excellent results. In this blog, we’ll share some essential tips to help you get the most from your commercial coffee machine, ensuring every cup is brewed consistently and that your customers keep coming back for more.

1. Choose the Right Commercial Coffee Machine

A busy café or restaurant requires a machine that can handle high demand while delivering consistent, high-quality coffee. When selecting your machine, consider factors like brewing capacity, milk frothing capabilities, and ease of maintenance.

For high-volume environments, it’s wise to choose machines that offer automatic settings to ensure that the coffee is made with precision, even when different staff members are operating it.

2. Invest in Fresh, High-Quality Coffee Beans

No machine, regardless of how advanced, can overcome the challenges posed by stale or low-quality beans. To ensure you’re serving your customers the best, consider the following:

  • Buy Whole Beans: Grinding fresh beans for each brew preserves their natural flavours. Invest in a high-quality burr grinder to achieve consistency in your grinds.

  • Store Properly: Store beans in an airtight container in a cool, dry place away from light and heat to keep them fresh for longer.

  • Match Beans to Machine: Darker roasts often work best in espresso machines, while lighter or medium roasts may be more suitable for drip or filter systems, depending on your machine’s capabilities.

3. Perfect Your Grind

For commercial machines, consistency is key to ensuring the best results. Here’s a simple guide to perfecting your grind:

  • Espresso Machines: A fine grind is essential for extracting the full flavour from the coffee. However, be cautious—if the grind is too fine, it may cause clogging.

  • Drip or Filter Machines: A medium grind works best for smooth, balanced extraction, ensuring no bitterness.

Using a grinder with precise settings is crucial in a commercial environment where consistency and quality control are important.

4. Get the Coffee-to-Water Ratio Right

In a busy café, consistency is non-negotiable. Ensuring the right coffee-to-water ratio for each batch is vital. A good starting point for commercial coffee machines is a 1:16 ratio (1 gram of coffee for every 16 grams of water). Using scales and measurement tools can help ensure each brew is on point and consistent.

5. Use Filtered Water

Water quality often goes unnoticed but plays a crucial role in the flavour of your coffee. For commercial settings, filtered water is essential for ensuring a cleaner, more consistent cup. It also helps prevent the build-up of limescale, which can damage the machine over time.

6. Regular Maintenance is Key

To ensure your commercial machine remains in good working order, regular maintenance is essential for optimal performance and flavour. Here’s how to keep it running smoothly:

  • Descale Regularly: Depending on your water quality and how often the machine is used, descale your machine every 3-6 months to avoid limescale build-up.

  • Backflush Daily: Commercial machines require a daily backflush to remove coffee oils and residue, which can affect the taste and performance.

  • Deep Clean Weekly: Make sure to thoroughly clean all removable parts each week and replace filters or seals as needed to maintain hygiene and efficiency.

7. Froth Like a Pro

For cafés offering milk-based drinks, mastering milk frothing is essential:

  • Use the Steam Wand: Position the steam wand just below the surface of the milk to create microfoam. Move it deeper as the milk heats to around 60-65°C for the ideal smooth, silky texture.

Conclusion: Consistently Serve Great Coffee with Your Commercial Coffee Machine

By following these straightforward tips, you can ensure that your café or restaurant consistently serves up delicious coffee that will keep customers coming back. At Shado Coffee, we offer a variety of commercial coffee machines designed to meet the needs of any business. Explore our collection today and enhance your coffee service!

Back to blog