Equipment list and layout for a new café's coffee bar: categories and the questions to ask

This is part 4 of our 7-part series Opening a café: from idea to first day. Earlier: the concept, the location and the menu.

Equipment is where the menu meets the building. The espresso machine needs power and water, the ice machine needs a drain, the fridges need to keep up on a hot afternoon, and all of it has to fit along a bar where two people can work without walking into each other.

This post lists equipment by category with the questions to ask before you buy, then covers the layout. It has no prices: they vary by brand, by region and by whether you buy, lease or buy used. Get quotes for your own list, and see paying for the build-out and equipment for financing and leasing.

Start from the menu worksheet

Take the menu from part 3 and write, for each item, the equipment it touches: the grinder, the machine, the steam wand, the blender, the toaster, the fridge it's stored in. Equipment that only one rarely ordered item needs is a sign to change the item, not to buy the machine.

The equipment list, by category

Coffee

• Espresso machine: the number of groups, the boiler setup, steam power for your milk volume.
• Espresso grinder(s): often one for the main blend and one for decaf or a guest coffee.
• Batch brewer and its grinder: for filter coffee by the urn or airpot.
• Water filtration: sized for the machine and brewer, and serviceable.
• Small tools: scales, tampers, knock boxes, milk pitchers, thermometers, timers.

Cold

• Undercounter fridges at the bar for milk, so the barista doesn't walk for every jug.
• A reach-in or walk-in for backup milk, food and deliveries.
• A freezer, if anything on the menu is frozen.
• An ice machine, sized for your iced drink volume on the hottest days.
• A pastry or grab-and-go case, refrigerated if it holds anything that needs cold holding.

Food

• Toaster, oven or panini press, depending on the menu.
• A blender for smoothies or frappés, ideally with a sound enclosure near the counter.
• Hot holding, only if the menu needs it.

Sinks and cleaning

• Hand sinks at the bar and in the food area.
• A three-compartment sink for washing, rinsing and sanitizing, and possibly a dish machine.
• A mop sink and a place to hang mops.
• Storage for chemicals, away from food.

Front of house and storage

• The POS and a card reader, a printer or screen for tickets, and the network. See choosing a POS (coming Nov 11) and café Wi-Fi setup (coming Nov 13).
• Shelving for dry storage, off the floor.
• Cup, lid and sleeve storage within reach of the bar.
• Trash, recycling and compost bins at the bar and at the condiment station.

Questions to ask before you buy

Ask these about every major piece, and get the answers in writing:

The Food Code rules that shape the bar

Your state or local food code is the one that applies, and your plan reviewer will tell you how they read it. Most are based on the FDA Food Code, and these sections of the 2022 edition shape a coffee bar:

• Certified equipment. "FOOD EQUIPMENT that is certified or classified for sanitation in conformance to a recognized American National Standard by an American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-accredited certification program is deemed to comply" with the Code's parts on equipment materials, design and construction (§4-205.10). Ask whether each piece is certified before you buy, especially used equipment.
• Enough cold and hot capacity. "EQUIPMENT for cooling and heating FOOD, and holding cold and hot FOOD, shall be sufficient in number and capacity to provide FOOD temperatures as specified under Chapter 3" (§4-301.11).
• Hand sinks where people work. A hand sink "shall be located: (A) To allow convenient use by EMPLOYEES in FOOD preparation, FOOD dispensing, and WAREWASHING areas" and "(B) In, or immediately adjacent to, toilet rooms" (§5-204.11). A hand sink across the room from the bar won't get used.
• A three-compartment sink. With some exceptions, "a sink with at least 3 compartments shall be provided for manually washing, rinsing, and SANITIZING EQUIPMENT and UTENSILS" (§4-301.12(A)).
• Filters you can service. "A water filter, screen, and other water conditioning device installed on water lines shall be located to facilitate disassembly for periodic servicing and cleaning" (§5-204.13).

The plans you submit include the "Proposed layout, mechanical schematics, construction materials, and finish schedules" and the "Proposed EQUIPMENT types, manufacturers, model numbers, locations, dimensions, performance capacities, and installation specifications" (§8-201.12(C) and (D)). So decide the equipment before the plans go in, not after.

Lay out the bar from order to handoff

A guest's order moves through four places: where they order, where the drink is made, where food is plated, and where they pick up. Lay the bar out in that order, so nothing crosses back.

1. Order and pay. The register near the door, with the pastry case beside it so food can be added to the order.
2. Espresso. Grinders next to the machine, with the knock box under the grinder. The milk fridge under or next to the steam wand. Cups stacked within reach.
3. Cold and blended drinks. Ice, the cold brew and the blender together, slightly away from the espresso station so two people can work at once.
4. Food. The toaster or press near the case and the fridge with the toppings, away from the espresso line.
5. Handoff. A pickup shelf or counter at the end, away from the order line, so people waiting don't block people ordering.

Walk it with tape. Before anything is installed, mark the counter and the equipment on the floor with tape, and walk through a dozen orders with two people. Watch for crossing paths, long reaches and anyone walking past a hand sink to get to it. Our morning rush post has more on stations and line flow.

Leave room for the second barista. Even if you open with one person on bar, the peak will need two. Plan the second grinder, the second steaming position or the separate cold station now.

Common mistakes

• Buying the machine before checking the power and water. Get the space checked first.
• An ice machine sized for winter. Iced drinks rise with the temperature.
• No local service. A machine nobody nearby can repair costs you mornings.
• Hand sinks that are technically there. If staff have to leave the bar to wash, they won't.
• Skipping water filtration. Ask the manufacturer what it requires before you buy.

Where Mays fits

• Sensors on the fridges. Wireless Govee thermometers (bought separately) report each unit's temperature to Mays. The Thermometers page shows every unit's latest reading against its range, and Mays alerts your team when a unit stays out of range. See Connecting Govee thermometers and Temperature alerts.
• Cleaning and maintenance as checklists. Put each machine's daily, weekly and monthly cleaning on checklist templates scheduled for the right role, with photo answers where proof matters. See Create a checklist template. Our coffee bar opening and closing checklist is a starting point.
• Manuals in the knowledge base. Upload manuals and data-plate photos to a Knowledge Base folder so the closing barista can find them on their phone.

What Mays doesn't have: an equipment register with serial numbers and warranty dates, so keep that list in a spreadsheet or a knowledge base document. Our equipment maintenance log has a template.

Your equipment checklist

• Each menu item mapped to the equipment it needs
• An equipment list by category: coffee, cold, food, sinks and cleaning, front of house and storage
• Power, water, drains, venting, certification, capacity, service and cleaning checked for every major piece
• Hand sinks at the bar and the food area; a three-compartment sink; filters you can reach
• The equipment decided before the plans are submitted
• The bar laid out from order to handoff, and walked through with tape

Next: food safety before opening

The equipment keeps food safe only if someone in charge knows the rules. Part 5 is about the food protection manager requirement. When you're ready, start your free trial: 30 days, every module, no card needed. Or book a walkthrough and we'll set up your opening checklists with you.