Cafes are one of the popular meet-up spots across the world. Groups of friends have a catch up over brunch and academics use cafes as a place to write their essays while sipping on a hot cup of coffee.
If you are thinking about opening up a cafe in the near future, it’s best to start planning as soon as you can. Opening a cafe takes a lot of time and effort. It’s not as simple as finding a location and making coffee!
Your planning needs to involve every aspect of your future cafe. You’ve got to consider the layout and design of your cafe, the kitchen equipment, and the food and drinks menu. And that’s not to mention the name and branding of your cafe.
To make things less overwhelming, it’s best to think about one thing at a time. But if we were to cover every single aspect of opening up a cafe, this article would be a book!
So, let’s cover one of the most important factors in your new cafe – the equipment and accessories.
Here are the most important items that every cafe owner needs to have.
Food Storage Containers
No matter how big or small your menu is, you’ll have a lot of different ingredients to keep in your kitchen.
From the grains and bread loaves to the salads and spices, you’ll need to find a space for everything in your kitchen and stock rooms. It’s important that everything has its place so that your staff can find the right ingredients quickly and easily.
Each food should have its own storage area so that you can comply with general food safety rules too.
To help you stay organized and maintain proper hygiene practice, you’re going to need a range of deli containers and food storage boxes.
Using high-quality, resealable containers ensures that no moisture gets into your ingredients. This keeps your foods fresh, safe, and free of contamination.
If you offer a variety of coffee is, it’s likely that you will need some caramel, vanilla, and chocolate syrups. Alongside standard rectangle and of long food containers, consider getting syrup pumps. Keep these by the side of your coffee machine for quick and easy access.
Coffee Machine
Coffee is one of the main reasons why people catch-up with their friends or sit and do work at a cafe. So, you need to make sure your coffee is delicious.
One of the easiest ways to achieve consistently great coffees is getting a high-quality coffee machine for your cafe.
Most professional coffee machines have a variety of different coffees, including cappuccinos, lattes, espressos, and more. This means you can provide a great coffee menu for your visitors in a simple and seamless way.
Your machine will save your staff time and energy making frothy coffees from scratch. It can create hot, frothy milk to create tasty drinks that your customers will love.
Ovens and Toasters
If you plan to offer a selection of hot dishes, you’re going to need at least a couple of ovens and toasters in your cafe kitchen.
You can use your ovens for cooking burgers or sausages and the toasters will be perfect for bagels and hot sandwiches.
There are different kinds of ovens and toasters, so make sure to find options that meet your needs.
They don’t have to be the most expensive, high-tech options. You can find affordable kitchen appliances that work perfectly if you’re in a budget.
Fridges and Freezers
Every cafe owner needs to invest in large fridges and freezers. These are necessary to keep your meats, dairy products, and fresh produce in good condition.
Most of your fridge and freezer space will be in the back of your cafe, out of you customers’ view. Having lots of food storage space means you can buy your ingredients in bulk to save money. It also means you never run out of essentials during a busy day.
Make sure that you keep each food group in a designated area to avoid contamination or confusion. Keeping organised food storage spaces can make all the difference to your efficiency as a cafe.
It’s not just the back-end fridges that you’ll need consider. Cafes also need front-end fridges to that are going to be visible to your customers.
Your front-end fridges will display the fresh food and drinks that you offer. They should match the general aesthetics of your cafe to create a cohesive appearance that appeal to your customers.