How to Choose a Bunn Coffee Maker
Choosing a Bunn coffee maker doesn’t have to be difficult, but it does require some research. You should not only look into the Bunn coffee makers that are currently available on the market, but also your needs as a foodservice establishment.
Factors like tank size, usage, price, features, counter space and other specs will determine the best Bunn coffee maker for you and yours. But you’ve got customers to attend to, so without further ado, here’s how to choose a Bunn coffee maker for a commercial setting.
Usage
To make the decision process faster, ask yourself some questions like:
- How often are you going to use your Bunn coffee maker?
- How much coffee will you go through in 4 hours?
- Are you a full-service restaurant or a quick-service restaurant?
- Do you need to transport your coffee machines for catering events?
- Is coffee and its quality the primary focus of your business?
How do you plan on using your Bunn coffee machine, and how often are the two of the primary concerns. For example, the ICB Twin TF ThermoFresh 1.0 gallon platinum edition with a self-serve feature will thrive in almost any high-traffic gas station, whereas the Axiom 12-cup automatic coffee brewer with 6 warmers will be better suited for breakfast diners.
Tank Size
Obviously, the amount of coffee you and your customers need to function without blowing a gasket is proportional to your demands, but just because you serve 100 cups of coffee a day doesn’t mean you necessarily need a 1.5-gallon tank on your Bunn coffee maker. That being, any black coffee sitting on a burner for longer than 4 hours needs to be tossed for quality assurance.
Whether coffee is the main thing on your menu or an afterthought, you’ll first need to analyze your establishment’s data points on coffee purchases throughout the day. Do you sell 1.5 gallons of coffee a day? Maybe you do, but is that within a 4-hour or 12-hour period? The best coffee is fresh coffee, and your customers will taste the difference.
Brew Time
All Bunn coffee makers are fast, ranging from a measly 2-4 minutes. However, if you always seem to be in a rush to fill orders or just need a low-volume coffee machine to sprinkle throughout the break rooms, the Bunn Speed Brew is the rational choice–or to use as a backup when the lines are out the door and around the corner.
Price
Unfortunately, price is, as always, a primary deciding factor for many businesses. If you don’t find yourself wanting to take out a loan just to brew a few cups of coffee, there are a few options when choosing a Bunn coffee maker:
- Installment plans – Bunn doesn’t offer installment plans, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t retailers who don’t.
- Buy used – There are plenty of aftermarket coffee makers that might have a few cups under their belts but still work just as well as off-the-shelf brewers.
- Consider home products– The Bunn home products line are considerably cheaper than commercial-grade coffee makers. If you just need a few cups of coffee throughout the day to keep customers or workers caffeinated and happy, there’s no reason not to explore this side of their website.
- Small business loan – If you’re thinking of starting a coffee shop or café, it’s important to invest in a quality coffee maker. There’s both a fine science and a dedicated art to brewing the perfect bean. Factors like the brewing method, the extraction process, water temperature, and oxidation affect the taste, and that’s what makes Bunn coffee brewers the best in their trade.
Features
Most Bunn coffee makers come with additional features that might serve your needs better than other models. Keep your eye out for features like these when choosing a Bunn coffee maker:
- Hot water spigot
- Plumbed or not plumbed
- Water filters
- Grinders
- RFID technology
- Pourover
- Smart funnel compatible
Water Access
Most coffee houses and espresso bars have water hookups, but what about those fine establishments where coffee is not their primary selling point, such as gas stations, bars and cafeterias? If you want to choose a Bunn coffee maker without water access, you can’t go wrong with the Bunn VP13-3 and Bunn VPR.
Otherwise, there are the Bunn Axiom DV-3 and CWTF15-TC among plenty of other plumbed coffee makers for you to choose from.
Counter space
For commercial kitchen–and home–settings, counter space is another serious consideration. With other equipment, such as toaster ovens, blenders, cash registers and the like taking up precious real estate, you’ll have to measure the countertop dimensions.
Sometimes plumbing is not where you want it, or you simply don’t have enough hookups. With that in mind, do you need to rearrange your commercial kitchen, add a new water line or opt for a plumbing-free coffee maker?
The best-tasting coffee will always be from a clean and well-maintained Bunn Coffee machine, including the coffee pot and grinder. To learn how to make good coffee in a Bunn coffee maker, check out our articles and other resources, such as our extensive collection of manuals, wiring diagrams and genuine OEM replacement parts.