It depends where you are located and which coffee roasters you have available around you, lots of larger wholesale roasters can provide coffee, training and lease you machines at a very competitive price. That could be a good option if you want to serve espresso drinks for 50-100 customers and don’t have the budget to cover the costs upfront, although that depends on your specific needs. Otherwise as people have suggested filter batch brewers are also very good if you want to serve 50-100 customers.

Some of the cheaper commercial batch brewers don’t really produce very good coffee, generally the spray heads are of poor quality, so I would be wary. The moccamaster kbg 741 isn’t a bad option if you buy a second carafe so you can brew another batch when one runs low. Another option would be the Marco: BRU F60A which has a larger capacity and is a plumbed in option (the manual option is fine but requires more work).

You could either get pre ground coffee, or coffee from a local supplier and grind it yourself in something as cheap as a wilfa svart and get better results.

Coffee Roaster. Home: Sage Dual Boiler, Niche Zero, Ode v2 (SSP), 1zpresso ZP6 Work: Eagle One Prima EXP, mahlkonig e80s, Mazzer Philos and lots more

    The Moccamasters are also made in the Netherlands so not far away!

    dfk41

    You’re right, many thanks for your input!

      InfamousTuba

      Thanks for your advice. I can indeed buy the moccamaster brand machines. Can you explain to me exactly what you mean by grinding coffee using a ‘wilfa svart’? Kind regards, Izzy

          IzzyAg A Wilfa is a make of grinder, meaning you could buy whole beans and grind them yourself. This grinder is good for the home but not suitable in a commercial environment in my view. To make a litre of coffee you will be grinding at least 60 grams every time. I still say search your local area for tea and coffee suppliers and chat to them. Tell them you want a Batch brewer. Go in and see what they have and drink their coffee. You might find a supplier whose coffee you enjoy and would like to sell. They may well lease or give you a batch brewer in exchange for buying their coffee. This is the easiest solution to your problems. The coffee can be tasty and is simple to make. The espresso machine route really is a rabbit hole!

          https://www.suddencardiacarrestuk.org/2024/02/thank-goodness-for-madeira-cake/

              The Marco is the type of machine I mentioned often sold with the flasks as shown here

              https://www.nisbets.co.uk/marco-bru-auto-fill-filter-coffee-brewer-f60a/de594?vatToggle=incvat&plaid=1&cm_mmc=PLA-_-18122692213-_-1-_-1&cm_mmca1=go_18122692213____c_&gclid=CjwKCAiA8OmdBhAgEiwAShr403M8xPMguOz3xlWVdKyUcP5gz_hpalyW68pKYnl8-vcta6hQ0Jq5DxoC3HIQAvD_BwE

              As I drink from one from time to time in a local cafe I can tell you taste comes down to which type of pack of preground is used. Or I suppose you could grind your own beans

                IzzyAg The wilfa svart is a coffee grinder, generally used for home grinding but it can also handle low volume batch brewing at least until something better can be purchased. I have seen them used commercially before with a moccamaster and they can work as a cheap option to get started although I would probably recommend something more robust if your budget can accommodate.

                https://machina-coffee.com/collections/wilfa-svart-grinders/products/wilfa-cgws-130b-svart-burr-coffee-grinder

                Coffee Roaster. Home: Sage Dual Boiler, Niche Zero, Ode v2 (SSP), 1zpresso ZP6 Work: Eagle One Prima EXP, mahlkonig e80s, Mazzer Philos and lots more

                  I think I can kind of work out exactly what you’re looking for. You can get a Mazzer Major with titanium burrs from Ebay for around £299. Should have space for it in a coffee shop. That’s the grinder sorted. (You may want to add a 2nd smaller grinder for if people want decaf etc)

                  I definitely wouldn’t go for pre ground coffee. That’s where you lose most of your quality within 24 hours. Learning to grind and dial in isn’t a big issue if you consistently use the same blends.

                  As for a machine, the sage products definitely do a ‘nice enough’ cup of coffee in my opinion, but the problem would likely be volume. Stuff like the bambino plus is designed for a few shots a day, not a few hundred. Perhaps As for a machine, the sage products definitely do a ‘nice enough’ cup of coffee in my opinion, but the problem would likely be volume. Stuff like the bambino plus is designed for a few shots a day, not a few hundred. Moccamaster might be a good shout, or perhaps somebody can suggest a good 2nd hand one.

                  The alternative would be a good commercial grade bean to cup machine. I’m sure some exist but unsure on price.

                  @IzzyAg I have already recommended a used mazzer major and a new mazzer burrs set. This option is always available, should you require, and you will find them easily on eBay.

                  Considering your preferences, please take a pause, reflect on options, take a look at local options as @dfk41 advised and go from there.

                    @IzzyAg, First off, you need to define the quality of coffee that you are looking for, (Better than the railway station is pretty broad brush). Taste and quality of coffee differs from person to person. You also need to identify exactly how much work you wish to put into making the coffee, and the amount of work you wish to spend keeping the apparatus in top condition, as this effects both taste of coffee and the reliability of the equipment.

                    I suggest you start off by visiting a number of establishments that make their coffee in different ways (eg, drip filter, expresso etc) and taste their output, have a chat with them on what equipment they use and how much work is involved in both coffee prep and equipment maintenance.

                    From this you can then decide on your method of brewing and look at equipment to match.

                    As previously stated by others, with far more knowledge than myself you can then decide if you wish to grind your own beans for your particular method of brewing or buy reground from either a local roaster or wholesale distributor.

                    Most home brewing products are not suitable for a commercial environment, yes some may cope initially, but their longevity may well be compromised, and you’ll end up spending more in the long run. (Read my Avatar)

                      LMSC

                      My man! Thanks for your input. I appreciate it

                        dfk41

                        Thanks again for your clear explanation! I have contacted some local coffee roasters, and I am going to visit them to indeed taste the coffee, and they also have batch brewers they offer that I can check out.

                          ajohn

                          I don’t immediately see a flask that comes with it on the link that you sent, thanks for your recommendation! I am going to get my preground from a local coffee roastery. The only downside I suppose then is that you can’t make different coffees with this one. Too bad, since my menu does include cappuccino, late, mocha, etc.

                              For a small budget anything espresso based is going to be hard to do

                              However

                              In the UK you can lease machines.

                              I would look at that, they usually come with fee beans and you should more than cover the monthly cost of the machine

                              Decent De1pro v1.45 - Niche Duo - Niche Zero - Decent is the best machine ever made -

                              IzzyAg Too bad, since my menu does include cappuccino, late, mocha, etc.

                              I believe there are barista courses around. To make those it might help you get started.

                              Leasing a machine may help too and will probably include maintenance and filters for your water supply,

                              The flasks were shown at the bottom of the page on the right hand side on the link I posted. Similar should be available where ever this type of machine is sold.

                                a year later

                                IzzyAg It is important that you know barista otherwise how will you know if the barista is doing things correctly. The most important aspect of cafe coffee is that all baristas that work there are producing the same results and its up to the owner to police that. Nothing worse than a customer coming in and only buying a coffee if a particular barista is on duty. Cheers.