The primary reasons for you wondering how many coffees a barista can make in an hour is to try and figure out productivity. Both in the form of deciding how many baristas you need per shift–or during your peak hours–and to benchmark their productivity. But there are many variables that can influence a barista’s output. So, even though a young Australian woman set a record in 2018 by producing 420 cappuccinos in an hour, you shouldn’t expect the same from your baristas. In busy establishments, speed is important, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of the quality of your coffee drinks or customer service.
How Long Does It Take To Pull One Espresso Shot?
The average brewing time for a single espresso is around 20-30 seconds. However, that doesn’t factor in time taken to grind the beans, load the portafilter, and then place the group head. And if your customers are ordering cappuccinos, flat whites, mochas, macchiatos, and lattes, there’s the steaming, texturing, and pouring of milk and more to consider. And then emptying and cleaning the portafilter and group head before pulling the next shot. A highly skilled barista might manage one-two coffees a minute, or anywhere up to 100 in an hour. If you have good equipment.
How Many Group Heads Does Your Machine Have?
Commercial coffee machines typically have two to four group heads, meaning a skilled barista could make up to four coffees at once. Assuming each order requires a single espresso as the base. If you only have a single, two group head machine, this naturally reduces the number of coffees your barista could produce in an hour. If your establishment is busy enough, you would want to consider having two coffee machines with two group heads each, with two baristas working during your peak periods.
Ristretto, Espresso, or Lungo?
What your customers order can affect your barista’s output too. A single or double espresso/lungo should take up to 30 seconds to brew with a two group head machine. But if a large number of customers are ordering a lungo, it will add up. Regardless of the brewing time, the actual prep and clean up for each drink remains the same, so don’t look for any gains there. And as mentioned before, any coffee beverages that require milk are going to take a little longer too.
How Long Does It Take To Become a Skilled Barista?
As we have written before, it can take up to a year to properly train as a barista. Anyone who has completed an accredited barista course can progress faster. But their natural talent will influence how quickly they become highly skilled and are able to produce up to 60-100 coffees in an hour. Without any negative impact on the quality of the drinks, or customer service. Which should always be your top priority. Customers aren’t going to care that their coffee was served in under a minute if it tastes awful.
Forming good habits and having an understanding of good work flow is critical to making the whole process seem fluid.
