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Opening up a cafe is an enthralling way to go into business for yourself. You'll get to interact with customers on a regular basis, and you'll be able to experiment with different selections of coffee and food. At the start of your new business endeavor, in particular, you're likely wondering how to save on opening costs.

Use an Old Cafe

Finding the right spot for your business is important, and you don't want to compromise in terms of location. After all, the location can determine the success of the business. Check out cafes that are up for sale or available for rent in your desired neighborhood. By doing so, you won't necessarily have to start from scratch. In other words, the business may already have tables, chairs, equipment, and other items that you can use instead of having to purchase your own.

Choose Used Items

Chances are that you're going to have to stock the cafe with at least some appliances, furniture, and other supplies. For example, purchasing a used stainless steel three-door commercial freezer is less expensive than buying a brand new one. Make sure that the used products are up to health and safety standards. As long as these items meet the standards, you can save a lot of money when getting your cafe together.

Partner with a Friend

Mixing business and friendship can be dicey, so you'll want to be cautious with this move. However, if you have a friend whom you can really trust and who has also dreamed of owning a cafe, going into business together can be a way for both of you to save costs while fulfilling your dreams. Before you open the business, sit down to have an honest and open conversation about how you will divvy up the expenses.

Test Menu Items

You might have a lot of great ideas about items to put on the menu for your guests to try. Rolling all of the products out at once, though, could be a financial mistake. You don't want to get in a bunch of ingredients only to discover that your customers don't like those products. Test out items. You'll learn what the customers like and dislike, and you can adjust the menu accordingly.

It's true that opening up a cafe can cost some money. However, you don't need to spend excessive funds and lead your company into financial ruin. Follow some practical tips for having a successful business opening.

Perhaps you're an individual who looks forward to that first cup of coffee in the morning. You might be someone who loves to enjoy that iced cup of coffee in the afternoon. Regardless of the time, you already know that coffee isn't a beverage you're willing to give up. Still, you know that it's wise to make it a beverage that's as healthy as possible.

Plant-Based Creamers

When a beverage tastes great a certain way, it can be hard for some people to adjust. However, if you're a person who suffers from lactose intolerance, you'll have to make concessions. Thankfully, there are tons of plant-based alternatives for the person who needs to steer clear of dairy-based creamers and cow's milk. From caramel-infused oat milk creamers to vegan hot cocoa, there are plenty of dairy-free options to enjoy while being mindful of the taste.

Portion Control

While coffee provides its fair share of health benefits, it can be damaging when it's consumed in excess. If you suffer from anxiety, too much caffeine can exacerbate your symptoms. In order to eliminate this issue, use portion control to your advantage. If you don't want to pull out the measuring spoons to measure your instant coffee, incorporate a really convenient option like K Cups in order to ensure you're receiving a specific measurement every single time you brew a cup of coffee.

Sugar-Free Sweeteners

For many people, the major compromise with coffee involves sugar. The recommended daily amount of sugar for most adults is 24 grams of sugar. After a person adds syrup, creamer and whipped cream to their morning latte, they've consumed double that amount at the start of the day. In order to preserve your health and keep your blood sugar stable, consider sugar-free sweeteners. Read the sugar content on the labels of the boxes so that you know how much sugar you're actually consuming.

Spices and Complementary Flavors

To enhance the flavor of your coffee and increase the sophistication of your palette, consider adding flavors and spices to your morning brew. Incorporating spices like cinnamon, cardamom and ginger can add warmth that's akin to a rich chai latte. Cayenne pepper can add spice. A few drops of vanilla extract or maple extract can add another layer of incredible flavor.

As you get older, it becomes increasingly important to take good care of your body. The healthy habits you create will only benefit you when you look at the bigger picture. Sure, it might take some time for your tastebuds to get used to certain flavors. Still, it's worth the effort to become creative as you find the best ways to make a healthy cup of coffee for your health and enjoyment.

You've probably noticed that having a cup of coffee at home doesn't taste quite the same as a treat from your favorite coffee shop, and you may wonder why. In fact, you might even start to think that you're simply imagining the difference. However, coffee shops do have some tricks that make your favorite morning beverage taste extra special.

Professional Equipment

If you've ever had the experience of cooking with high-quality cookware, you likely know that the tools used can affect the taste of a product. Coffee shops have different types of professional equipment, so your latte or macchiato is made with these tools. Furthermore, the baristas know how to use this equipment because they do so regularly. While some people do have fancy coffee makers in their homes, knowing how to properly use these tools is another task.

High-quality Products

When you go to the supermarket, you might grab whatever coffee is on sale. Even when you have some fancier products that you like to purchase, those items might be unavailable at the local grocery store. One way that coffee shops get amazing products and for an affordable price is by getting products in bulk. For example, some coffee shops will order a 2 lb bag of whole bean Colombian coffee for each week. That way they have amazing coffee beans, and can support a ton of orders per day. The ingredients make the drink, so better ingredients will create a tastier product.

Expertise

You might think of yourself as an expert at making coffee since you brew a cup each morning. However, keep in mind that the baristas spend their entire workdays creating delicious coffees. Furthermore, the owners and higher-ups in the businesses have dedicated their lives to good coffee. Spending a few minutes each morning at your home coffee bar is different from having a career in the field.

Standard Recipes

Another benefit of going to a coffee shop is that the baristas will follow standard recipes. They aren't experimenting with different ingredients while trying to find just the right mixture, which is an approach that you might take at home. These coffee experts are working with recipes that have been successful for some time. Also, most coffee shops bring new recipes in once in a while, so you have seasonal favorites and the like to look forward to.

Part of the thrill of getting a good cup of coffee from a shop has to do with not having to exert the energy yourself to make the product. The other benefits come from the fact that professional baristas are crafting a product with which they have much experience.

Having a variety of different food items available on your menu will allow you to draw in more customers to your café. If you are worried about it complicating your day, here’s how to introduce these foods to your café menu so that it will go as smoothly as possible.

Don't Introduce Too Many New Foods at Once

Many café owners make the mistake of introducing too many foods at once. They get so excited about their new menu offerings that they forget that a lot of work goes into utilizing new foods in their café. This can slow down service times, increase employee confusion, and decrease overall quality. This is why it’s best to only introduce one or two new foods at a time. Let everyone adjust to smaller changes rather than blow them over with sudden changes.

Get Bread Delivery

The food you might want to introduce for your café probably uses a lot of bread. After all, sandwiches and toast are common café offerings, and bread is also offered on the side of salads and soups, which might make up your lunch menu. Using fresh bread can give your food a great boost, but making bread is time consuming. 

If you are worried about how you will find the time to bake bread every single day, you can utilize fresh bread delivery. This will allow you to have fresh bread whenever you need it without having to complicate things by trying to make it yourself.

Prepare What You Can The Night Before

Many people likely visit your café first thing in the morning for coffee and breakfast. However, delays in food prep can make them late for work or appointments, leaving your customers upset and unlikely to return. To prevent long wait times, do as much food prep as possible ahead of time. This might include cutting up fruits and vegetables, marinating ingredients, or preparing condiments. So that you don’t have to get to work too early in the morning, try to do food prep the evening before.

Talk to Your Staff First

One of the biggest struggles that a lot of café owners face when introducing new foods is their staff not being sure how to prepare these new items. This is why you should talk to them about these new offerings beforehand. Show them how to prepare each item, and make sure they have the chance to make these dishes on their own as well. You can also provide recipe cards for the kitchen for any new employees or anyone who might need a reminder.

While introducing new foods to your café menu can make it more diverse, you may find they also can make your day more complicated if you aren’t thoroughly prepared ahead of time. Fortunately, there are some things that you can do beforehand that will save you time and will allow your staff to be fully prepared to work with these new food offerings.

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Having a fully equipped kitchen is essential for the success of a café. You need to ensure that everything can run smoothly and you can serve customers within minimal time. The kitchen requires several kinds of equipment running from an oven, grill, deep fryer, freezer, sauté pans, baking sheets, etc. When it comes to kitchen equipment, the list is endless. Despite the long list of equipment, there are four major equipment types that are a must-have in your kitchen. Below are a few critical types of equipment your café needs to have in order to thrive.

1. Oven

When it comes to assembling your kitchen arsenal, the oven takes center stage. Ovens come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and the type that your café needs will depend on the kind of restaurant and food served.

When choosing an oven, you must consider its quality, size, and function. Ensure you incorporate the type of food you want to sell by checking out the different ovens available. You can decide to go for a commercial, convention, or a pizza oven, depending on your café needs.

2. Freezer/ Refrigerator

It isn't easy to operate a café without a freezer or a refrigerator. However, it is an essential item in your kitchen since it helps to keep your food fresh. In addition, having a freezer or refrigerator is mandatory when adhering to food safety and health code violations.

You may decide to go for a walk-in cooler or sizeable freezer depending on the capacity that meets your café needs. You can also go for a used stainless steel three-door commercial freezer which is less costly than a new unit. It is important to find a quality freezer the operates efficiently so that your food stays fresh for longer. Utilizing a freezer with an inconsistent performance could compromise the quality of the meals you serve.

3. Kitchen Display System

The kitchen display system (KDS) enables you to operate swiftly, ensuring things are moving effectively. The KDS is usually on a counter stand or mounted to the wall. It facilitates the ordering process because all staff can view their orders on one screen.

Fulfilling orders becomes more manageable when using the kitchen display system. Orders are worked on accurately and on time.

4. Fire Extinguisher

A fire extinguisher is an essential item in any building. When it comes to your café's kitchen, you must ensure you have a fire extinguisher because it is a requirement. It comes in handy in case of a fire and can prevent further fire damage.

When operating your café, you will want to have every piece of equipment in place. When this is not accomplished, you may be forced to compromise. You will have to prioritize and go for the items needed most. The four items mentioned above are a must-have in your kitchen for the smooth running of your operations.

If you would like to keep customers interested in what your coffee shop offers, you want to come out with new drink items for those customers to order. Offering seasonal drinks, such as lattes, will keep your customers coming back and get them excited to see what you will have available next.

Figure Out Which Drinks You Want to Offer and How to Make Them

If you are going to offer seasonal drinks, you need to find recipes and try them out. You should figure out which types of lattes you want to offer to your customers, and then you should figure out which ingredients are needed to make each one. You should follow recipes to make lattes and then tweak the recipes a bit to make them your own.

Secure All of the Ingredients Needed

It is important for you to know that you will be able to make a number of the seasonal lattes once customers start flooding through your doors. You should stock up on things like a 2 lb bag whole bean Colombian coffee to make sure that you will be set when things start to get busy. You should also make sure that you have special ingredients, such as cinnamon sticks and peppermint extract, at the ready when a new season starts up.

Find a Way of Sharing News of the Seasonal Lattes With Your Customers Ahead of Time

It is important for you to get your customers excited about each new drink offering. You should find ways of getting the word out about seasonal lattes, sharing about them on your social media account and setting up promotions that will encourage people to come in and try them. You might offer free drinks to the first few customers on the day that a new seasonal latte comes out.

Make Sure Your Staff Is Trained to Make the Lattes

It is important for your staff to know how to make the new seasonal drinks. Make sure that each staff member has the chance to practice making the drinks - and to try them so that they know how to describe them.

You can start to mix in some seasonal offerings when it comes to your coffee shop menu. Get people excited about each new season and the coffee that you sell by offering seasonal lattes to your customers.

Illness in a cafe can quickly impact the amount of business that you see. Customers may start to think that your cafe doesn't follow basic sanitary codes and choose to take their business elsewhere. Luckily, there are a few permanent changes you can make to your cafe to ensure you don't spread illnesses.

Immediately Send Sick Employees Home

You should never encourage employees to work if they're feeling ill. Because they're handling food and dealing with customers, you can be sure that they're spreading their germs around. Most customers may not have an appetite if their food is being served by someone that looks sick, too. You should make it a policy that if someone is ill, then they stay at home. No questions asked. Using sneeze shields at work can also keep your employees from making anyone else sick before they know they're ill.

Implement Hand Washing Policies

Because your cafe handles foods and beverages, it's essential that everyone practices good hand-washing techniques. There should be policies put into place that indicate how to properly wash your hands, how long the hands need to be washed, and when hands need to be washed. By regularly washing their hands, employees can help stop the spread of various germs. These policies need to be enforced. Employees shouldn't be punished if they take a bit of extra time on their breaks to wash their hands.

Encourage Vaccine Shots

While you shouldn't force anyone to undergo an annual flu shot, you should encourage it. You can even offer to carpool everyone after work to a local pharmacist for flu shots. By taking care of the drive for them, as well as the cost, your employees will likely be more willing to receive a flu shot. With the vaccine, your employees stand a smaller chance of becoming ill and spreading it to others.

Encourage Outside Dining

During the warmer months, you should transition your cafe from an indoor cafe to an outdoor cafe. Germs have a harder time being passed around outside. Sunlight can kill germs. There's less trapped air, too, which can also circulate germs around. You may need to build an outdoor eating area, but doing so can prevent the spread of illness.

Make Your Cafe Drive-Through Only

You may have been a traditional cafe that allowed customers to dine inside, but if you want to stop the spread of an illness, then you should consider changing to a drive-through-only cafe. Offering plenty of spaces for diners to sit in their cars and enjoy their orders can make customers happy, too.

These tips can help your cafe prevent the spread of illness. By preventing illness, your cafe can stay active and continue to bring in revenue. You may also make your customers feel safer.

Coffee drinkers around the world strive to try new coffee flavors and degrees of strength. Providing a variety of rare flavors will keep your customers coming them coming back as they are in awe when visiting your coffee shop. To provide a profound coffee experience, here are some ways to bring rare flavors into your coffee shop.

Auction

Now, it may be easy for you to find the traditional Arabic or Columbian coffee bean and test out some syrups to add to the coffee, but to provide a truly unique experience for your customers, you need to research the rarest coffee beans in the world and figure out how to get your hands on it. To find rare beans, you may have to go to auction lots where the beans are sold to roasters. Best of Panama Competition Champion coffee scored high and is sold for $1300/lb.

Now, the average pound of coffee can make 48 cups of coffee. This may seem like a lot if you are purchasing the coffee for personal use but since your purchasing it for a business, you will need to purchase several pounds of coffee. Getting your hands on this coffee is important but learning how to roast the beans yourself is also important. If you roast the beans yourself, you can save on that money. There are other coffees such as the Hacienda El Robel HR61 coffee that sells for $150/lb. This is a special made Columbian coffee that comes from HR61 beans, this coffee is not produced often and is made available for auction as a charitable event.

Change Up the Coffee

Rare flavors in your coffee shop are important but not something you may be able to do year-round. Since specialty coffee is made only during special times, you can use this to your benefit when selling the coffee to the public. Since beans are only grown and distributed during certain times of the year, advertising the coffee in your shop is important. It’s just like seasonal flavors are only made during certain seasons.

Roast the Beans

Roasting green coffee beans cost less than roasting them and having them shipped as it takes out the leg work of the roasters. A bean roaster may have a higher upfront cost but will save you money as you continue to purchase green beans. There is nothing fresher than freshly roasted coffee beans and you can even use this to your advantage by selling freshly roasted coffee.

Whole Bean Columbian Supremo

A 2 lb bag whole bean Colombian coffee with notes of dark chocolate and amaretto cherry will give a fresh finish to the brewing process. Purchasing these beans whole and then grinding them to order will give the customer a fresh cup of coffee that is smooth, aromatic, and flavorful. The roast is medium providing the perfect consistency for the customer.

To provide a profound coffee experience, these are the perfect ways to find a unique flavor and bring a great coffee experience to the customer. Providing different flavors and options during the year will keep the customer coming back to find out what new flavors are available

Running a successful coffee shop is about a lot more than simply selling delicious drinks. That’s because neighborhood cafes have come to take on a consequential societal role. People expect to do much more than simply buy a drink at their local coffee shop. They also want to relax, do some work, and hang out while they finish their coffee. In order to match these modern expectations, you need to make your coffee shop an awesome place to hangout. Here’s how you can make that happen.

Provide Free Wifi to Customers

This is the single most important thing to do if you want customers to hang out at your cafe. Modern consumers expect to be able to browse the web at their local coffee shop. Many will even bring laptops, hoping to get some work done while they sip on their drinks. Groups of students will use the space to study, and business people will come for casual meetings. These activities are only possible if you provide your customers with free, fast, and reliable internet.

Create an Outdoor Patio

Lots of people prefer sitting outside, especially during pleasant weather. By giving your customers an outdoor option, you’ll greatly enhance the appeal of your cafe. Having outdoor seating is especially important now, with the pandemic scaring many folks away from indoor dining. By giving people an outdoor space, you’ll invite them to safely hang out at the coffee shop without risking infection.

Buy Heaters

Sitting outside can still be pleasant in the cooler weather, but you’ll need to provide some artificial heat. Outdoor space heaters will make your patio a pleasant place to sit right into the colder months. This could set your coffee shop apart from the competition.

Install Speakers and a Television

Light background music has become standard for coffee shops around the world. The problem is that you need to find the perfect sweet spot when it comes to volume. The best way to do this is by installing speakers through the premises. That way, you can play music loud enough that everyone can hear it, without bothering any particular customer who happens to be sitting beside a standalone speaker. Hire an A/V company to set up the speakers, and consider installing a television while you’re at it.

A coffee shop should be as much a hangout spot as a place to buy coffee. Follow these tips to make your cafe the best it can be.

The equipment that your employees use to craft the delicious dishes for your customers are a vital asset to your overall business. When they're properly taken care of, they will last for a long time. However, when they're not well-maintained, they can break down prematurely and end up costing you a ton in replacement costs. Here are four tips that you should follow to properly maintain your restaurant equipment.

Read Through the Owner's Manual

When it comes to properly maintaining your restaurant equipment, the best place to start is your owner's manual. This is the place that gives you step by step instructions on how to properly clean and service your equipment. You'll likely discover that only certain cleaning practices and cleaners can be used to maintain the quality of the equipment. You should write down what each of these are for all of your restaurant equipment.

Have the Right Cleaners In Stock

We can't stress this second point enough. Your staff members can only use the cleaning products that you have on hand. Different equipment is going to require different cleansers. You're likely going to need a different cleaning solution to thoroughly clean your stainless steel hamburger moulder equipment as compared to cleaning your porcelain plates.

Teach Your Staff the Right Way to Clean

Just because you've read the owner's manual and know how the cleaning of each piece of equipment should be done, doesn't mean it will get done that way. You must inform your staff members of proper cleaning methods. Take time to train them on cleaning each piece of equipment. Even go as far as creating reference lists so that no step in the cleaning process is unintentionally skipped over.

Repair Broken / Worn Out Parts Immediately

The best form of maintenance that you can do is to fix problems as early as you notice them. When little problems start to develop, such as an odd noise, it's time to get the equipment checked out. Many restaurant owners will skip over this step for fear of putting the piece of equipment out of commission. When you address the problem early, you can usually decrease the downtime and save yourself a bundle in repair costs.

Properly maintaining the quality of your restaurant equipment takes time and energy. You need to have a plan, such as the one above, that will ensure all aspects of your equipment are looked after. Realize that crafting the plan is only one part. You also need to work to successfully integrate it into your daily restaurant operations for it to be successful in maintaining your equipment.

As a restaurant owner, you should always be on the lookout for ways to increase your total dining space. Not only do patrons enjoy being able to spread out, but more space also allows you to increase your overall capacity. More people in the restaurant at a time means more profits for you. If you own a cafe, then creating an outdoor patio is one of the best ways to extend your space. Here are four reasons why you should hire builders, buy some patio heaters, and create an outdoor seating area for your cafe.

Increase Capacity During the COVID-19 Pandemic

While vaccines have arrived and the end is in sight, the current pandemic seems like it will continue for another few months, at least. Many states, counties, and municipalities are limiting the capacity for restaurants, especially when it comes to indoor seating. Opening an outdoor patio will allow you to increase capacity while honoring social distancing regulations. It will also invite patrons who prefer not to eat inside for fear of infection.

Attract Patrons Who Prefer to Sit Outside

Even during normal, non-pandemic times, some people simply prefer sitting outside. Perhaps they love fresh air, or maybe they think small, indoor spaces fill unpleasantly with the sound of voices. Whatever their reasons, they’ll be more likely to patronize your cafe once you install outdoor seating.

Use Your Outdoor Space to Attract Customers off the Street

Not only does an outdoor patio improve the customer experience, but it also serves as a giant advertisement for your business. Some passersby might not notice the sign above your door, but the pleasant patio full of happy customers will certainly attract their attention. They’ll also notice the delicious drinks on the tables, inspiring them to come in and check out your menu.

Host Special Events

An outdoor patio will provide an excellent space for small parties and functions. These types of events are often challenging for cafes because they require additional space. While you can’t rent your whole indoor dining area for a party, you can certainly set aside the outdoor space while business-as-usual carries on inside.

Any decent owner is on the constant lookout for ways to improve their business. If your cafe has extra outdoor space, then creating a comfortable patio is a great way to increase space and boost sales. With so much to gain and little to lose, you should start work on your patio today.

Running a cafe is a wonderful way to make a living. Not only do you get to spend your days in a relaxing environment surrounded by the enchanting aroma of coffee, but you’re also likely to make a decent profit. Americans love their coffee, and it seems cafes will stay as busy in the next ten years as they have been lately. Even if you’re making some good money, however, you can always expand your food menu to increase your profits. Take these tips into account as you add more food items to your coffee shop’s menu.

Aim for Slow and Steady Growth

If you suddenly unveil an extensive food menu, your customers won’t have time to adjust to the change. You’ll also have to make big investments in equipment and staff, investments that might not pay off. Rather than getting in over your head, try adding a few new menu items here and there. As particular foods prove successful, consider adding similar items that are likely to be a hit.

Abandon Items That Aren’t Selling

Being stubborn is never a good idea in the restaurant industry. Don’t stick with a bad idea just because you were once convinced it would work. Sometimes, things don’t catch on for reasons that remain beyond our comprehension. If a particular menu item isn’t selling despite your best promotional efforts, admit the defeat and move on to something else.

Ask for Customer Feedback

When it comes to gauging the popularity of your new menu items, your customers are always your best resource. Don’t be afraid to ask people what they think after they finish their food. They’ll be happy that you value their opinions, and they might even be more likely to become regular customers. Don’t let a bit of criticism get you down, since everyone has unique tastes. If you notice a pattern, however, you should consider tweaking ingredients or changing a menu item.

Use Technology to Aid in the Development of Your Menu

In this day and age, technology makes running a restaurant a whole lot easier. Consider using customized menu software to create unique offerings for your business, and always post your menu to your website where more people can see it. 

By expanding your food options, you can encourage every customer to spend more during their visit. At the end of the year, this could have a major impact on your bottom line.

Could you imagine not entering the coffee shop on your morning commute to work? Coffee shops tend to be a daily routine for those living a busy lifestyle - they are convenient and help with the morning fix to start your day. 

However, whilst it can be extremely fitting to enter the coffee shop on your morning commute, there’s the risk that you could be putting on the pounds more when you consider you’re going in there everyday. We can be tempted to order that treat staring at us in the stand window or sweeten our coffee a little more with an extra dose of sugar.

To ensure you don’t follow the trap, here are 5 tips to make your coffee shop order a little healthier.

Consider doughnuts a treat rather than breakfast

Having a doughnut as a treat can be on the odd occasion, but having it as a breakfast can be extremely harmful for your health. Amongst the high sugar content and simple carbohydrates that it contains it can also have you feel droopy and in need for another energy boost shortly after. 

There’s also no nutritional benefit to having doughnuts due to the amount of fat and calories that it contains. As a healthier alternative, consider a wholemeal doughnut instead. 

Opt for milk

If you’re the type to order the specialty beverages at coffee shops, look to order the ones that contain milk such as a latte or cappuccino. You should also ask for the milk to be skimmed, giving you a good amount of calcium without the saturated fat that they normally contain. 

Choose Biscotti for a healthy alternative

Fancy a biscuit to dunk into your coffee to make it feel a little more homely? No problem! We don’t want you to completely get rid of the coffee treats that are available to you. So, opt for Biscotti as your biscuit of choice. 

They’re twice baked and offer the perfect dunking option for your coffee. Some well-known coffee shops offer the biscuits which carry just 110 calories and only 5g for fat. 

Self-serve your extras

To manage what you’re having and how much you have, order your coffee plain and add in your own extras yourself. This is because many of the speciality drinks at many coffee shops already contain plenty of calories and fats. They also have mixes in them which can contain trans fat ingredients. 

To avoid this, order a plain black coffee and add in your own skimmed milk, sugar and sugar substitutes. You can also add some flavour toppings such as cinnamon and ground chocolate.

Get your hands on a bagel

Rather than getting one of the sweeter treats that you tend to see on the bakery shelves opt for a flavoured bagel instead. Or even if you go for plain bagels, it can be a better alternative as you won’t need the added cream cheese or other spreads and toppings. 

You have a range to choose from including blueberry, cinnamon and raisin options and you can go better and order a wholemeal, multi-grain or oat-bran bagel. 

Final thoughts

Keeping on top of our nutrition and calories has been an obsession in society for many years now as individuals become conscious about their health and nutrition. Many of us may be opting for health supplements to help balance out our diets but the tips above provide an indication of how making little changes in our routines can make a big difference to our health. Incorporate these in your daily routines and see how it benefits you in the long term.

According to Forbes, 84% of companies that boost their efforts to improve customer experience see revenue increases. If you want to improve the experience of visiting your cafe, these are some helpful tips.

Make Waiting Easier

One of the most common complaints about cafes is wait times. Since mistakes and order influxes that increase wait times are inevitable, it helps to give guests a reason to enjoy the wait. For example, if you anticipate a delay, offer the guests a small snack or free coffee while they wait. To make hungry guests more satisfied even during short waits, you can also provide free Wi-Fi. If you discourage phone use in your venue, you can put erasable game boards and markers at each table to let people play hangman, tic-tac-toe or another game.

Be Responsive and Caring

The key to improving customer experience is finding out exactly what customers want. Provide comment cards with feedback loops at important intervals. For example, find out what they think when they enter, while they wait, while they eat and after they leave. Ask about the service, atmosphere, food quality, and everything else. Provide a blank space for them to leave specific suggestions. Use these cards to identify trends and make changes.

Also, take this level of care to online feedback. Respond to reviews. Thank positive reviewers, reach out to negative reviewers and offer solutions to anyone who voices concerns. Today, your online reputation partially depends on how you respond to positive and negative feedback.

Use Card Processing Consultants

With cashless and touchless payments growing in popularity, it is important to offer customers the convenience of card processing. However, you must also consider fees for credit card transactions. Fortunately, there are fee-eliminating solutions for smaller businesses today. There are plenty of other features that allow you to accept and process card payments without losing your hard-earned profits. Card processing consultants can provide you with affordable pricing structures, devices, and plenty of other resources.

Involve Your Customers

To build loyalty, find creative ways to engage your customers. Start by making social media posts that ask for their feedback or require action. For example, ask them to share a post and leave a comment to be entered into a random drawing for a 10% off coupon to use during their next visit.

You can also make customers feel important by involving them in decisions. For example, you can designate one day of the week for trying new recipes for food or drink specials. If you make several items and offer free samples for a two-hour period, you can ask guests to fill out vote cards to vote for their favorites. This helps you make sounder investments in menu choices and gives customers something to look forward to that they already like. Additionally, it keeps them interested in future events or promotions.

Depending on how your cafe is set up, your budget and other factors, you may find more unique ways to create loyal customers. The key is to continually monitor your competitors, identify their strengths and try to find ways to offer unique advantages that set you apart from the competition.

The roaster I am using in Manila is a 5kg Has Garanti. First time I have roasted on one- usually Probat, Toper and a Diedrich way back in Auckland in my early days. Still waiting my own greens here so had a dry run to check airflow and the exhaust flue setup using local greens. The roaster had been new into storage 2017- so I also had to rewire the ignition system- no sweat. Also required some work on the gas system- checking it thoroughly before firing it up.

hAll in all everything went ok. Looking forward to roasting my own coffee in the near future- means (post covid) I will be regularly roasting in 3 countries- Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines. 

Keep safe everyone, happy NY - cheers Alun Evans, Antipodean

One of the keys to growing a restaurant business is to make your restaurant stand out. Technology is one of the things that you can use to separate your business from the competitors, and many technological upgrades are necessary just to remain on the same playing field. There are several types of technology that you can add to your restaurant. Here are a few of the more common ones that customers may begin to expect.

Digital POS System

It is estimated that 80 percent of restaurants today have an electronic register system. However, you can use a digital POS system that is even more sophisticated, allowing the customers to make their own orders without the aid of a cashier. While this may not be the best system for every restaurant, it is extremely useful for fast-food restaurants where the majority of orders are the same and require few customizations. As more fast-food chains adopt this new technology, those who fail to upgrade with the times may seem outdated to customers.

Digital Signs

Digital signs have become commonplace in most restaurants in today’s modern world to the point that even many sit-down restaurants are getting them. Digital displays of your menu allow customers to get a view of what you offer without having to commit to sitting down straight off, which is appealing to newer customers unfamiliar with your establishment. Having your own screens in the restaurant also can become an added stream of revenue if you’re willing to sell some advertising space among the slides of your own making. Additionally, you can let the customers know about the loyalty programs and discounts that are available. Today’s commercial TFT LCD displays manufacturing offers a variety of sizes and screen types that can easily be adapted to your restaurant type.

Protected Wi-Fi

While just about any restaurant can offer Wi-Fi at their establishment, many are failing to properly protect their Wi-Fi signals from just anyone getting on and accessing the restaurant’s network. This not only gives them access to the data and devices of other customers, but it can put the restaurant’s private data and devices at risk of hacking as well. If you aren’t interested in making Wi-Fi a major offer for your customers, then make sure to encrypt the Wi-Fi network that your restaurant uses for business separately from those of the customers. If you wish to offer your customers a secure line to access Wi-Fi themselves, then you can offer then encrypted, limited access on a separate customer network line.

The right technology will help enhance your business. It can also help keep customers coming back to your business. You can invest in a digital POS system and digital signs. You may also want to purchase Bluetooth Temperature Sensors. Additionally, it is a good idea to have Wi-Fi in your restaurant.