Commercial coffee machines are the central revenue piece of every café — group head count, boiler size and barista interface determine peak service throughput and cup quality. Hospitality Connect stocks authorised Astoria, Bezzera, Arcadia, Animo, Apuro, Barista Attitude and Benchstar — covering 1, 2 and 3 group espresso machines, automatic bean-to-cup, filter coffee makers and milk frothers.
Types of commercial coffee machines
- 1 group espresso (Astoria Greta SAE1V, Loft EMA1MINIV, Tanya R SAE1TR; Arcadia G1): For cafés doing under 60 cups in peak hour.
- 2 group espresso (Astoria Core 200 SAE2C200, Tanya R SAE2TR; Arcadia G2DP; Bezzera Eagle BZEAGLEB2E, BZEAGLEG2E): The standard café — 60-200 cups in peak hour.
- 3 group espresso (Bezzera BZB2016B3DE, BZB2016R3DE; Barista Attitude Storm SAE3ST): High-volume cafés and venues with multi-tap milk operations.
- Compact/under-bench (Bezzera BZC2013S2E): Bistro and restaurant compact machines.
- Modern Ellisse (Bezzera BZE2011S2EPID, BZE2011S3E): Multi-boiler with PID temperature control for craft cafés.
- Automatic bean-to-cup (Animo Optibean 3 XL, Optivend 32s, 42 Touch): Office, hotel and self-service coffee.
- Filter coffee brewers (Animo BAM-M200W, BAM-M202; Apuro CW305-A, CT815-A): Filter coffee for breakfast service and function bulk brews.
- Milk frothers (Benchstar CS-MFS7B): Standalone milk steaming for venues without dedicated barista capacity.
Sizing for your service
Café cups-per-hour rule: 1 group head handles ~30 cups in peak hour with experienced barista. A 100-cup peak hour cafe needs a 2-group; a 200-cup needs a 3-group or PID multi-boiler. Don't undersize the boiler — undersized boilers run out of steam during milk-heavy service rush. Look for dual boiler systems where milk and brew water are independent.
Key features to specify
- PID temperature control: Tighter temperature stability across the day — important for specialty coffee programs.
- Dual boilers: Independent milk steam and brew water — no temperature drop during latte rush.
- Programmable shot volumes: Reduces dial-in time and gives consistent espresso across staff.
- Saturated group heads: Better thermal stability for back-to-back shots.
- Water filtration: Mandatory — scale destroys boilers and group seals. Specify softener at install.
Installation considerations
Commercial coffee machines need 15A or 20A power (sometimes 3-phase for 3-group), water filtration with softener, drain plumbing and a dedicated coffee bench at correct height. Allow service tech access from the back of the machine — restricted access raises service costs every time. Daily, weekly and quarterly cleaning programs need to be set from day one.
Pair coffee machines with
Build out the café front-of-house with teapots, kettles and coffee makers, benchtop equipment, disposable cups, and hi-balls and tumblers.