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How I would run the coffee in a coffee shopThe standards in coffee shops often have room for improvement. Improving the coffee standard in a coffee shop is not as difficult as some shop owners may think. Setting up some basic rules and techniques can seriously improve the coffee that is beingQuality The margin on coffee is extremely high, you can expect to reach margins of 90% to 98%. Therefore I believe that you should go for the best quality possible. Do not go cheap on beans! Pay those extra few pennies more per cup and you will see result. I also believe that it is a good idea to invest in good looking quality cups. Have your company logo printed on these cups to create a professional image. Have the option open for your customers to make a choice between skimmed, semi or full fat milk. Also make sure that you offer soya milk. Offer the customer milk or pouring cream on the side with Americano's and chocolate sprinkles with cappuccino's. Remember that it's usually a small thing that makes the customer happy. Freshness Always think fresh when Grinding beans is a different issue. Ground coffee goes stale quicker and should be used as soon as possible. The maximum time that you can keep ground coffee is only a few hours but I recommend that you use ground coffee straight away. I recommend the new 'Grind On Demand' grinders. These grinders grind only when you ask for it hence the name. This means that you have no ground coffee laying around. If you do not have a 'Grind On Demand' grinder then grind only small amounts of coffee at a time, or grind only what you actually need. Espresso should be served as soon as possible and at the end of the order. The same thing counts for every coffee actually, try to serve the coffees at the end of the order. Milk should be kept cool and in a dark place like a fridge. Try to minimize to steam milk twice and always add fresh milk when you steam. Use the right amount of milk when you steam to minimize the amount of milk left overs in the pitcher. Consistency Train your staff the same way. Everybody should be using the same technique. This is important because customers like to know what they can expect. I recommend that you train your staff according to the rules of the Barista Championships. Making coffee in a coffee shop according to these rules does not slow anything down. Obviously you have to relax the rules a little but base the technique on them. Use only hand tamping. Make sure that your staff are all tamping with the same pressure. Focus with the tamping on levelling and pressure, these are the most important factors to think about. Steaming and pouring of milk should also be very consistent. Try to get the same amount of foam on each drink. There should be no bubbles in any pitcher or in any cup. A cappuccino for example should only have around a centimeter of foam. Tip: try to get a little competition going amongst your staff. It can be great fun to see who is the most consistent and you can set up little Latte art competitions as well to motivate your staff. Rosetta - Latte ArtLatte Art Latte art can blow the mind of your customers away. A beautiful heart on top of a Cafe Latte or Cappuccino can have a great impact on your business. It gives the customer that extra little joy that might just make them come back every single day. Latte art is great fun for your staff. It motivates them to perfect-ionize their technique and there is always room for improvement. You can even take pictures of the best Latte art and place them on your website for example. Cleanliness A clean working area shows that professionals are at work. It is not only a good image for your business but most employees enjoy working around a clean and tidy coffee machine. My suggestion is to have the pitchers on the side of the machines. Have some space in front of the machine to pour the drinks. This space can be used at busy times to leave the milk. But remember, keep the milk cold! Have a clean cloth at each steam wand. Keep the cloth folded up so it looks nice and tidy. Have a dry black towel to clean the porta filters. Also make sure that your pitcher are clean throughout the day. Milk and ground coffee should be cleaned straight away. Especially milk on the steam wand should be removed as quickly as possible. Try to get your staff in to a 'clean up after yourself' attitude. This way no one else has to clean up anybody's mess´and things are kept clean and tidy. And don't forget to only serve coffee in clean cups. SizeCoffee Cups Personally I would go for a small size as a regular drink (5 to 6 oz for latte's and cappuccino's with 1oz espresso). This gives your drink the best flavour and maybe even gets your customer back for a second round. Most coffee shops have a large size as a regular drink, usually around 12oz. I believe that it would be a better idea to have a smaller regular size and make it a slightly cheaper drink. Obviously you should also offer the larger sizes. It is a good idea to offer 2 or 3 different sizes, the same thing for take out drinks. Just remember that it's not only the coffee that makes your business a success. Your staff make or brake your business so keep them happy! And always serve the coffee in a pleasant way :) Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com Article written by Youri Vlag, a professional barista trainer, team member of Coffee Info Permalink: http://expert-talk.com/tips/118/how-i-would-run-the-coffee-in-a-coffee-shop-51118.htm Related Tips and Advices
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