Lesson 4
Today's objective: Adding the gear ⚙️
Today's outcome: Coffee equipment as part of your coffee bar design
Hi Coffee Loving Friend!
Time flies when you're having fun!
Hopefully by now you're well on your way to creating your dream coffee bar (or at least have all the info you need to do so)!
I think this is probably obvious, but if not I'll say it anyways...
We all love coffee gear. ☕+⚙️=🧡
All the cool equipment is probably what drew us to the specialty coffee world in the first place. Try and remember back to the first time you saw that beautifully crafted espresso machine and realized you could actually put one in your home and make your own delicious espresso.
For me I remember thinking, "Dang Gina!" ... I need that in my life!
So that's what we're going to talk about in today's lesson... adding all that beautiful coffee gear to our purposefully designed coffee bar!
Equipment to brew coffee
There is no shortage of websites reviewing and selling all kinds of coffee brewing, grinding, and serving equipment.
Whether it's tens of thousands of videos on YouTube or thousands of 'influencers' on Instagram — it feels like everyone is out to sell or promote the latest piece of coffee gear!
So just to be clear … I'm not selling or promoting any equipment!
Odds are you already have the coffee equipment you need to brew coffee at home (or you'll be adding it shortly). And if not, as I said above there's plenty of resources online to research all the great brands out there.
Don't be ashamed ... we all go down the YouTube rabbit hole looking into something coffee related from time to time! 🐇+🕳=🤪
Although this lesson is not intended to discuss any specific types of equipment or companies ... what I will say is strive to buy the best coffee gear you can!
Not only will the quality of the product be better, but odds are the quality of your coffee brewing experience will also be better!
Higher end products also typically *look* better, which means a nicer coffee bar design!
In this lesson, I want to cover some thoughts on design when it comes to the coffee brewing gear you've chosen (or will choose).
More specifically — how to display it on your coffee bar in a way that ADDS to the design, not DETRACTS from it.
Design tips
1. Coffee brewing, grinding, and serving gear should be part of your coffee bar design.
We all know that coffee gear can be beautiful and worth displaying. Glass carafe's and cups, hand made ceramic drip brewers, and even kettles and grinders are being designed with a beautiful aesthetic in mind. Many of the specialty coffee brands these days are developing beautiful products — equipment designs have come a long way and continue to get better each year.
Espresso machines are also beautiful works of art. A quality prosumer or commercial espresso machine will usually draw lots of attention from guests in your home. This can be a centrepiece that you'll leverage as part of your overall design aesthetic.
When it comes to your gear:
- Play around with the configuration that meets your preferred brewing workflow and also looks great.
- Try experimenting with how you display your brewer(s), grinder(s), and server(s) to enhance your bar design.
- Decide what gear deserves a spot on your bar top — while other pieces may be displayed on shelves, under a counter or away in storage.
Here are some examples of beautiful ways people have displayed their coffee gear:
Lots of shelving space makes it easy to display a few brewers and coffee storage containers.
Photo: @daniellr
Peg board and shelves create a fully custom setup to display coffee gear in a really unique way.
Photo: @nangman_shutter
2. Coffee brewing, grinding, and serving gear *tends* to look better when generally all the same color OR all different.
A bar with mostly all white gear or all black gear creates a color theme and consistency that typically adds to the overall design of the bar. Consistent gear color can fit into almost any design style.
The other option is to intentionally have all different shapes, sizes, and colors of gear to create an eclectic mix — this choice is a bit more unique but could fit really well within a 'bohemian' or 'punk rock' design style.
Having the same color equipment (or all different colors) is not a hard and fast rule. As always, create what you love the look of and enjoy seeing each day in your own bar.
I also realize most espresso machines are chrome. This is usually the one piece of equipment that will be a different color than the rest of your gear. But there's also a lot of options these days to change the steam knob, hot water knob, and the group head lever to a certain color that will match the overall design style of your bar. Something to consider as you continue to enhance your home bar over time.
Gear the same color
@berrysbrews coffee bar is a perfect example of creating consistency in gear color that adds to the overall design. It also helps that the overhead shelving and support bars also match.
It's a perfect contrast to the lighter colored wood butcher block counter top.
Gear different colors
@blckhoneygirl has a beautiful coffee bar that's a great example of intentionally utilizing different colors, shapes, and sizes of gear as part of the overall design aesthetic.
This option allows you to mix and match any piece of gear you have or buy in the future without worrying too much about consistency in color.
3. Less is more
The one thing we want to avoid when displaying our coffee gear is clutter. Having too many pieces of gear on the bar top or on shelving can take away from the overall design aesthetic. When it comes to design we want our gear to enhance the look of our coffee bars and not detract from it.
The principle of 'less is more' applies here. You'll have to be selective on what you keep out on display and what you choose to store away unseen. This is especially true if you've chosen a 'modern' or 'minimalist' design style, but really applies to all coffee bars in all design styles.
Simply speaking, the best looking bars are the ones where every piece of gear has its place and purpose.
A clean and beautiful countertop setup with only the necessary gear for daily espresso.
Photo: @h4usof5ive
A bar with tons of character ... again only espresso gear out for daily use. Cute pup too!
Photo: @anotter_coffee
Homework
Choosing your gear
The gear you choose for your coffee bar is an individual and subjective part of your design process.
AND ... the one big thing I haven't mentioned yet is that your gear SHOULD be based on how you love to brew your coffee...essentially your brewing workflow.
Over the last 10+ years I've collected lots of coffee equipment — some I still use daily, others I haven't used in years!
Just make sure your home coffee bar is stocked up with equipment that makes sense for the way you brew coffee for yourself, your family, and your friends. Not just for the way it looks!
Pro-level move
Here's the practical steps to take as you decide what coffee gear to use and display on your dream coffee bar:
- Find coffee gear you love! Buy, beg, borrow, or steal your coffee gear so it aligns with the way you love to drink coffee each day.
- Choose the look of gear that is consistent with your preferred design style (refer to your swipe file from lesson 1 to refresh the style you're trying to replicate). This includes the overall color scheme and design style you're aiming for.
- Display your coffee gear in a way that adds to your coffee bar design, not detracts from it. Play with how you configure your coffee gear to ensure it fits your preferred coffee brewing workflow and also looks good.
- Less is more. Remember that less clutter will almost always make your coffee bar look better versus having every piece of coffee gear you own on your bar.
Find some inspiration. Look through all the amazing coffee bars at @coffeebardesign to see how other people display their gear. You're sure to get some great ideas that you can apply to your own setup.
Last thoughts
Hopefully this lesson makes you think a little more about being intentional with gear choices.
As we said in a few lessons now... design matters.
And part of a well designed coffee bar will be an intentional and consistent way to integrate your gear into your overall design style.
- Choose gear you love and will use often.
- Arrange your gear in a way that makes sense for your workflow as you brew coffee.
- Display those beautiful pieces of coffee gear you love in a way that is consistent with the overall design style of your bar.
If you follow these simple steps you'll be sure that your gear will enhance the design of your coffee bar and not detract from it.
- Send me a photo of the current state of your coffee bar (even if you're in the process of a re-design)
- Let me know how far have you come in the design process ... are there any lessons you're struggling with?
- If you need help don't hesitate to reach out — I'll do what I can to help you work through any problems.
Until next time,
Mike
