Optimal bench space for grinders

coffee_extremist

G'day,

I'm starting an espresso bar in Cairns and although I have a bit of management and service industry experience, I have limited experience as a Barista. My intention is to hire a full-time professional Barista and I want to ensure that the work area I provide is as streamlined and efficient as possible - ie; a joy to work in. I have purchased a Synesso machine and 2 Mazzer Robur grinders plus a mini Mazzer for decaf. My question is this (possibly the first of many): What is the optimum bench space I need to allow for to enable efficient unobstructed operation of the grinders? Also, on what side of the machine do baristas usually prefer the grinders to sit?

askthecoffeeguy

Hi CE - I'm going through a similar learning curve at the moment building a new cafe from the ground up but I've done my home work and hopefully these figures should help: Allow 1100mm for the coffee machine, 300mm for each of the Roburs, and say 200 for the Mini, and 1200 for the bench space which includes 300 for the cashj register and the rest service space, with the bench being 1000 to 1100 deep This is assuming that you are running with a 3 group though the actual specs may be slightly less depending upon the machine (but this information is readilly available from the Synesso web site I'm sure) Hope this helps, Pat

coffee_extremist

That's great! Thanks for the prompt reply.

Unknown

very nice, a synesso and two roburs. i think if your barista exp. is limited, and you have gotten a setup like the one you have, you should take your time and find an awesome barista who is looking for long-term prospects - don't have him work just FOR you, have him work WITH you. as long as they're really good, a setup like that and clever management will get you amazing results. with that in place, you can let that barista setup the workspace as he sees fit - different baristas have different preferences, anyway.

psaigh

Great advice!  Giving staff members a sense of ownership at their chosen workplace also does wonders for staff retention, which is a big problem in this industry.

coffee_extremist

Absolutely! This is exactly what I want and I'm trying to put together a work place that will encourage and motivate all my staff. I see attracting the right staff and then retaining them as being the single greatest challenge to the success of my business. This could be even more difficult due to the transient nature of Cairns. However, I'm hoping that by providing great equipment and a serious coffee culture, I'll be able to flush out the 'gun' baristas who are dissatisfied with the current coffee scene in Cairns. "...you can let that barista setup the workspace as he sees fit - different baristas have different preferences, anyway." This is a good point...I'm about 7 weeks away from opening and I'm wondering when is the best time to start advertising the Barista position - I don't want to start too early in case potential applicants are unabel to see that far ahead but obviously I don't want to leave it too late and potentially run out of time. Advice/suggestions welcomed!

Unknown

it might be too early to advertise on your typical seek, mycareer, paper etc, but I think it would be prudent to start asking around coffee forums such as this. chat with industry and you'll a) get a headstart which is often cheaper since it's specialised and b) get a better result. track down some QLD champs or ask around the industry about who they know, maybe you could line up somebody to come join you in those two months. i think 7 weeks isn't too long if you find a serious barista who is ready to shoulder the task. rope somebody in after you do your research about 'em, have a few meetings, let them see the space when they're off their current work... it'd also give them time to resign from their current position