The Cafe Ninja

When Cafes Go Wrong...

On my lunchtime walk today I passed by this lovely little sandstone cafe.

I'd seen it before and had look at the interior and the menu - both fine, but the cafe was totally deserted - in fact I'd never seen a customer in it.

As I approached it from a distance I asked myself "I wonder if it has closed down yet?" As I approached closer I saw a sign on the window:

 Obviously it all went wrong. Sad, but so easily avoidable. 

When looking at a cafe location one of the simplest ways to assess viability is to look at footfall - that's a fancy word for how many people are walking past. It was clear to me from day 1 that no matter how good and how pretty this cafe was it was doomed to failure from the day it opened.

Don't make the same mistake - do your research and get sound, professional advice.

Cheers,

TPN

Useful Websites to Help You Find Cafes For Sale in Sydney

There are a plethora of websites out there where you can find cafes for sale in Sydney. To save you time and effort I've compiled a list of some of the key websites and brokers that can help you.

Independent "Businesses for sale" websites:

http://www.rs.realcommercial.com.au/

http://www.sbx.com.au/food.php

http://business.domain.com.au/

http://australia.businessesforsale.com

http://www.business2sell.com.au/

Brokers:

http://www.linkbusiness.com.au

http://agents.realestate.com.au

http://www.corebb.com.au

http://www.mccormackbrokers.com.au/businesses-for-sale.php (Franchise Only)

Let me know of any other websites that you have found to be useful in your search and I will add them to the list.

Cheers,

TCN

Well Done to My Clients who have Recently Featured in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Cafe Guide

I was pleased to see a number of my clients receiving recognition recently:

• Pablo's Vice in Surry Hills was listed in the Sydney Morning Herald Good Cafe Guide 
• Cafe Pompidou at Milson's Point was awarded one cup in the Sydney Morning Herald Good Cafe Guide
• Esther's Table received a very good review in the Good Living section of the Sydney Morning Herald this week

Well done to all of them - great examples of how you should do things right in the cafe business.

Cheers,

TCN

Getting Your Cafe's Menu Pricing Correct

One of the biggest topics of concern for cafe owners is how to set their prices.

Here are some tips for how to get your pricing right:

• Understand who your target market is - do research, talk to people in the street - how much will they pay?
• Understand your competitors - what do they sell? How much do they charge? How good is the quality?
• Understand your food costs and your profit margins so you can price dishes correctly
• Have a range of prices, but not too many items on your menu
• Don't have too many low priced items on your menu 
• Don't focus on being the cheapest, focus on an appropriate price for your market
• If you do HAVE to be cheap - ensure that you can sell VOLUME
• Charge more for dinner - but not if it's the same thing you sell for lunch!

Cheers,

TCN

Download My Coffee Profit Calculator!

I'm often asked about the mystical profit margin of coffee. People seem to be fascinated by how profitable coffee is. Yes, it does have a great profit margin, but it's important not to put too much emphasis on it. If you want to run a successful operation based just on coffee (or small food items also) you need to have volume. To get volume you need to be bloody good! That means great service - be fast, polite, know your customers, make fantastic coffee and charge the right price!

So without further ado, you can click here to download my Coffee Calculator Template!

It has been pre-populated with some current prices, so for those of you that don't already own cafes, it will help you to understand current profitability.

Cheers,

- TCN

Coffee Making & Grind Adjustment Procedures

So much fuss is made about making coffee, and let me tell you - it's not that hard! Follow these simple procedures and you'll be ahead of 90% of other cafes.

Firstly...a coffee procedure:

1. Check Coffee Order Docket
2. For white coffee select the appropriate type of milk jug (Regular, Skim or Soy)
3. Fill the jug to the appropriate level (depending on the number of coffees) with Fresh Milk
4. Move the steam wand to point toward the grill and purge the wand by letting steam through it
5. Move the steam wand again and insert it 2cm into the milk in the jug
6. Fully depress the steam handle to initiate texturisation of the milk
7. Once Texturisation is complete switch off the steam handle
8. Immediately wipe the Steam wand with a clean damp cloth
9. Purge the steam wand to remove milk from within the wand
10. Hang Milk Cloth onto right steam handle
11. Remove Appropriate Group Handle from Machine
12. Knock old Coffee out of Group Handle into knock drawer
13. Hit Group handle against cloth of bench to further remove old grounds
14. Ensure all coffee is out of handle otherwise rinse using machine
15. Place group handle into Cradle of Grinder 
16. Pull forward once for each 8oz dosage
17. Tap the Group Handle to Level the Coffee Inside
18. Press the Group handle firmly into the tamping mechanism & Twist the handle to compact the coffee
19. Brush the top of the group handle with hand to remove excess coffee grinds
20. Rinse water through machine using manual flow button ( * )
21. Place group handle immediately into group head, select glass and press the appropriate button to make coffee
22. Finish Making Coffee by adding milk
23. Serve Coffee with Saucer and Spoon (on right hand side)

And if you'd like to get REALLY technical, here's how the coffee grind should be adjusted:

About the grind

The Grind is a vital part of the coffee making process. When the grinder is first turned on in the morning a small amount of coffee should be ground and then tested.

How to tell if the Grind is correct

The coffee should pour in a steady narrow stream It should appear to spiral slightly It should take 25-30 seconds to pour The Crema should be golden in colour and should not immediately dissipate. Three shades of crema should be visible.

How to tell if the Grind is poor

Grind Too Coarse

• The coffee will take less than 25 seconds to pourIt will pour in a waterfall like flow
• It will make a popping noise as it pours
• There will be little or no crema

or

Grind too Fine

• The Coffee will take more than 35 seconds to pourIt will drip out rather than pour.
• The Crema will be very dark and uneven

What makes the Grind too fine or too coarse?

• The Weather is the main contributing factor to fluctuations
• Whilst many coffee shops are located within air conditioned premises others experience fluctuating temperatures and differing levels of humidity
• When the weather is hot and humid, the beans effectively "sweat", releasing oils which cause the grind to be stickier than normal This causes the grinds to clump together which makes it more difficult for the water to push through the grinds.
• The opposite is true for cooler weather as the absence of oils allows the coffee to be dry and to stay separate. Thus, when the water is pushed through it meets little resistance and flows through too quickly 

How to adjust the grind

If the coffee is pouring too fast then the grind is too coarse and needs to be made finer. Push the lever no more than 2mm in the direction of the arrow which says "Finer", grind more coffee and test.

If still too coarse repeat, but do not be tempted to move the lever more than 2mm at a time
If the coffee is pouring too slow then the grind is too fine and needs to be made coarser.

Push the lever no more than 2mm in the direction of the arrow which says "Coarser", grind more coffee and test.       If still too fine repeat, but do not be tempted to move the lever more than 2mm at a time.

Continual Adjustment

To ensure perfect coffee the grind must be continually adjusted throughout the day as the weather and temperature change.  A good barista will continually monitor the pour of the coffee and adjust the grind accordingly.

Let me know if you have any questions about the glorious process of crafting an espresso coffee!

Cheers,

TCN

Cafe Design - Oliver Brown at Top Ryde City

Chocolate Cafe Oliver Brown has now opened at Top Ryde City. I had a look at it last weekend and I liked the design. Most of all I like the fact that the style and branding runs through everything in the cafe - the signage, cups, chocolates and the furniture - it all fits together nicely.

The fact that they don't seem to have a working website is a strange matter, but we'll give them some time to fix that up...

Cheers,

TCN

How to Sell More Takeaway Food

The following photos show how to get takeaway right. It's not rocket science.

Here's how to do it:

• Pack your displays full (stock sells stock!)
• Provide a good range
• Don't provide too big a range (reduces wastage)
• Make it beautiful (look at those salads - appetising, eh?)
• Use interesting, quality products
• Be different - not the same old ham and cheese sandwich
• Label everything clearly - description & price
• Serve customers quickly - that's why they are getting takeaway!

Cheers,

TCN

The Fundamentals of Toast

Toast is a many splendor-ed thing...

The picture above shows a diabolical serving of toast I received at a cafe in Burwood. Not only was the bread bog standard, cheap and nasty white sliced bread they decided to put both butter and jam on it for me. In their eagerness to please they deposited about half a kilo of jam on my toast (note the huge dollop I scraped off). Hideous.

Like it or loathe it, toast is on the menu at almost every cafe. Here's how to get it right:

• Serve interesting, unusual breads - not the rubbish you can get at the supermarket
• Cut it thick
• Don't undercook so that it's floppy and don't overcook so that it is burnt - it should be golden brown
• Use a commercial toaster to cook the bread evenly (don't use a domestic toaster)
• Serve butter and jam separate to the toast
• Use butter, sliced into wedges (never plastic packets)
• Use good quality gourmet (or homemade) jam
• Don't serve icy cold butter that can't be spread
• Provide a napkin & knife
• Serve quickly once prepared (nothing worse than cold toast)

Cheers,

- TCN

Memorising Customer Favourites Increases Customer Loyalty

 

Every morning for the last 9 months I go to a nearby cafe, and every day they ask me what coffee I want. It's always the same order. Why can't they remember? Laziness. 

Learning your customers' usual order is a great way of building up a loyal following - customers love feeling that they belong to your cafe - that they are somehow special by being remembered. It isn't hard to memorize coffee orders either so there is no excuse. In my time as a cafe owner I memorised hundreds of coffee and food orders.

So next time you see a familiar face coming into your cafe - make the effort to remember their favourite brew.

- TCN