Tag: commercial coffee supplies

How to say ‘thank you’ to your customers this Christmas

Posted on by Sara Walker

As we all know, loyal customers are the backbone of any hospitality business. Whether you’re a small high street coffee shop or a larger business, it’s more important than ever to help customers feel appreciated. Here are a few ideas to say ‘thank you’.

Start a loyalty service

This doesn’t have to be complicated – all you need is a small printed card and a stamp. Offering every 10th drink free, or offering bonus products, is a great way of keeping customers returning. Also, remembering regular customers’ names or how they like their drinks will help them feel appreciated.

Offer bonus products

Everyone loves a bargain, and Christmas specials such as a free mince pie or festive biscuit with every drink for a limited period will help people remember you.

Organise events

Invite loyal customers to ‘members only’ events at your venue. You can offer anything from tastings of new coffees and other products to a talk or book reading. The element of exclusivity means that people will feel appreciated for their loyalty. Alternatively, if you’ve got a milestone coming up in your business (anniversary of opening, or fifth Christmas, or new premises), throw a bigger bash for customers to help celebrate.

‘Just because’ discounts

In this age of relentless promotions, deals are often just seen as a form of marketing. Go spontaneous with a ‘just because’ discount (offering 20% off hot drinks, for example, for the week before Christmas). The unexpectedness of the discount means it will be appreciated by customers.

Shout about it

If you don’t tell your customers you appreciate them, they won’t know! Create a big poster, and stick it up in the window or behind the bar area, thanking them for their custom. Encourage people to take snaps with the poster for social media, and offer prizes for your favourites.

Merry Christmas from all at the Wholesale Coffee Company, the home of wholesale coffee beans and coffee supplies for the restaurant and catering industry.

 

Hallowe’en coffee specials for 31st October

Posted on by Sara Walker
If you like to offer seasonal specials in your coffee business, we’ve come up with some Hallowe’en ideas that are sure to grab those menu headlines.
Dripping blood cappuccino
This idea isn’t confined to cappuccinos, but you do need a coffee with a frothy top! You’ll also need to serve in a glass rather than a cup for the full effect.
Before you pour the coffee, drip the rim of each glass in a saucer of strawberry or raspberry syrup, just enough to colour it. Then, make the coffee as usual and drizzle more syrup across the top so it runs down the sides just a little. Garnish the saucer with glace cherries.
Marshmallow ‘ghosts’
Any regular coffee can be ‘spooked up’ with the addition of a little marshmallow ghost. All you need is marshmallows in two different sizes. Thread the larger one onto a cocktail stick, and follow with the smaller one. Using food colouring pens, draw eyes and a mouth onto the smaller marshmallow. Use to garnish the coffee itself (note – it will melt into the coffee!), or serve on the side
Screaming cream
If you offer whipped cream with drinks such as hot chocolate and cafe creme, add a ghostly touch. Either whip cream freshly from scratch and add a few drops of red or green food colouring, or spray it into a bowl and mix the colouring in. Top the drink with ‘normal’ cream and add a couple of blobs of the coloured cream for effect – you could also use it to make little faces.
Here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we’ve got coffee beans, supplies, accessories and everything else you need for your commercial coffee business, all available at great wholesale prices. To browse our full range, take a look at our main website at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Espresso cupcakes for National Cupcake Week

Posted on by Sara Walker
Image: Pixabay

Organised by British Baker Magazine, National Cupcake Week is designed to get more of us into this kitchen between 18th and 25th September. It’s aimed at both individuals and organisations, and there are events planned up and down the country. We’ve put together an easy cupcake recipe using our favourite ingredient – coffee! If you run a cafe or coffee shop, you can get involved by offering a batch of our caffeine-packed creations alongside your normal menu. Alternatively, just pull on your best apron and get the wooden spoon out, as these are perfect for coffee breaks. Here’s what to do:

To make 10 to 12 cupcakes (depending on size), you’ll need:

Espresso cupcakes recipe ingredients

For the cakes:

  • Either 30ml freshly-made espresso coffee plus 200ml hot water, or 230ml strong, hot, black coffee
  • 60g cocoa
  • 180g self raising flour
  • 110g softened butter or margarine
  • 200g brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 freerange eggs

For the buttercream topping:

  • 1 tablespoons warm milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon instant coffee powder
  • 225g icing sugar (plus a little extra)
  • 3 tablespoons melted butter
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa, sifted

Optional: chocolate-covered coffee beans for decoration

What to do:

Preheat the over to 180 degrees Celsius, and prepare a muffin tin with paper cases. Mix the cocoa and coffee together with the hot water, if using.

In a separate bowl, beat the butter or margarine and sugar together until fluffy, then add the eggs a little at a time. Add the flour, and beat until you have a smooth batter. Add in the chocolate/coffee mixture and beat until smooth.

Divide the mixture between the muffin cases – you should get 10 to 12 depending on how big the cases are. Don’t fill the cases more than 3/4 full or they’ll overflow when baking!

Transfer to the over, and bake for around 12 to 15 minutes until well risen and springy on top. Remove from the tin, and leave to cool on a wire rack while you make the topping.

For the buttercream, dissolve the coffee in the milk and add in the other ingredients. Mix everything until smooth, adding a little more icing sugar if it looks a little thin. Pipe swirls on top of the cupcakes, and add a chocolate-covered coffee bean if like.

For coffee ingredients, including coffee beans, coffee supplies and coffee accessories for your commercial coffee business, take a  look at our main website www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk

Coffee fads: the carrot-cino

Posted on by Sara Walker

Hot on the heels of the avolatte, news has reached us of an even more bizarre coffee fad – the carrot-cino. We’ve had the rainbow coffee, the unicorn latte, bulletproof coffee and coffee with all sorts of bizarre things added from turmeric to salt, but now the carrot-cino is making everything that’s come before it look pretty normal.

The avolatte was basically a standard coffee served in a novelty container – or an espresso served in the hollowed-out skin of an avocado. Even its fans didn’t claim that serving it in a fruit did much for the taste, and even if it looked prettier it definitely made it trickier to drink. It’s no surprise to learn that, like its sister the avolatte, the carrot-cino originated in Australia. A cafe in Sydney recently posted photos of their root-vegetable-themed creation on social media. Again like the avolatte, the carrot-cino is nothing more than a fancy holder for coffee rather than a flavour enhancer. The cafe peeled a carrot and cut it into strips, using the strips to create a holder to pour the coffee into. The owners say they just like experimenting and have already tried avocados and apples as well as carrots. However, they admit that this probably won’t catch on as much as the avolatte, as the ‘holder’ is hard to handle and has a tendency to leak. As you can’t make a very big cup out of a carrot, you also have to serve the coffee very strong. The cafe said the carrot-cino and other coffee/food combinations are just a bit of fun, but who knows if they’ll come up with the next big thing one day?

Here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we stock a wide range of coffee supplies suitable for your commercial coffee business, including coffee beans, accessories and supplies such as milk and sugar. We also stock cups and lids – but unfortunately, not carrots.

 

Chocolate and coffee Easter cake recipe

Posted on by Sara Walker

Looking for something a bit different to offer customers at Easter, or just to make for your own family? Chocolate and coffee are the perfect partners, and we’ve decorated this classic cake with mini Easter eggs for a seasonal twist.

Ingredients:

For the cake:

  • 200g margarine or softened butter
  • 85g cocoa
  • 140g self raising flour
  • 200g sugar
  • 4 freerange eggs
  • milk

For icing:

  • 300g icing sugar, sieved
  • 100g butter, softened
  • 40g cocoa powder, sieved
  • 40ml very strong black coffee
  • six squares of dark (70%) chocolate, melted

To decorate:

Chocolate mini Easter eggs

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Grease and baseline two 20cm round cake tins.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until pale and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat thoroughly between each addition. Add the flour and cocoa, and continue to beat until fully combined. The mixture should be a ‘dropping’ consistency (if you let a little slide off a spoon, it should drop easily). If it seems a little thick, add a drop of milk.

Bake for around 20 to 25 minutes until well risen and starting to shrink away from the sides of the tin. Remove and allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning out onto wire racks. Let the cakes cool completely before decorating.

Whilst the cakes are cooling, make the icing. Beat the icing sugar, cocoa and butter together, ideally using an electric hand whisk on a slow speed. Add the milk, a little at a time, then beat in the chocolate. Turn the whisk up to a high speed and continue to beat the mixture for another few minutes until it goes glossy. Use half the icing to sandwich the cakes together, and use the remainder to cover the top. Scatter with chocolate mini eggs, and serve.

For all your commercial coffee needs, visit our main website at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Celebrate National Baking Week

Posted on by Sara Walker

coffee-walnut-cake-recipeThis week is National Baking Week, from 17th to 23rd October. The event was founded in 2007 to encourage Brits to roll up their sleeves and get back in the kitchen, and the success of programmes like the Great British Bake Off means that baking’s more popular than it’s been for a long time. Help celebrate National Baking Week in your coffee business with this ultimate coffee and walnut cake recipe. It keeps well for a few days in the fridge, and also freezes.

You’ll need:

  • 225g butter or margarine, plus a little extra for greasing
  • 225g sugar
  • 225g self raising flour
  • 4 freerange eggs
  • 4 teaspoons instant coffee

For the icing:

  • 175g butter, softened
  • 325g icing sugar
  • 4 teaspoons instant coffee
  • walnut halves or pieces, to decorate

What to do:

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease two 20cm round cake tins, and line the bottoms with a double layer of greaseproof paper.

To make the cake, first dissolve the instant coffee in a tablespoon of boiling water. Put the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat until smooth, then add in the cooled coffee and eggs. Beat the flour in, a little at a time, until you have a smooth batter. Divide the mixture evenly between the two prepared tins and smooth off the tops.

Bake in oven for around 25–30 minutes until the tops are golden brown, and the sides just shrinking away from the sides of the tin. When done, take the cakes out of the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes before turning onto wire racks.

Meanwhile, make the icing. Again, dissolve the coffee in a tablespoon of boiling water, and leave to cool. Beat the butter and sugar together until smooth, then add in the cooled coffee and beat until combined.

Sandwich the cakes together with the icing mixture, and swirl the remaining icing on top to give an attractive finish. Sprinkle with the walnuts.

 

For all your commercial coffee needs, including flavoured coffee syrups, accessories and top quality coffee beans, visit our main website at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Happy New Year from the Wholesale Coffee Company

Posted on by Sara Walker

happy-new-year-1063797_640Many thanks to all our customers for your support in 2015, and we wish you a happy and prosperous 2016. There’s still a holiday feel in the air, so we’ve put together this light-hearted  coffee quiz for you to enjoy with the last of the mince pies. Happy New Year!

  1. All of the world’s coffee comes from the area between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. What’s the nickname of this area? A. Java line – B. Bean belt – C. Caffeine county – D. Bean equator
  2. How many calories in a cup of black coffee? A. 50 – B. 100 – C. 15 – D. 0
  3. How many cups of coffee does the average person drink a day? A. 1 – B. 0 – C. 3 – D. 7
  4. Which has a higher caffeine content, fresh ground coffee or instant coffee? A. ground – B. instant
  5. Name the only state in the US that grows coffee. A. Hawaii – B. California – C. Nevada – D. Florida
  6. Where does the name ‘cappuccino’ come from? A. From the brown habit of Capuchin monks – B. It means ‘breakfast cup’ in Italian – C. It’s named after a coffee bean farmer – D. It’s named after a bar where it was first brewed
  7. What’s the only drink more popular than coffee? A. Tea – B. Water – C. Beer – D. Juice
  8. What is an Americano made of? A. Equal parts filter coffee and milk – B. An espresso shot with cream – C. Sweetened filter coffee – D. Espresso with hot water
  9. Where’s the best place to store ground coffee? A. The fridge – B. The freezer – C. A cool, dark place
  10. Decaffeinated coffee is completely caffeine-free. A. True – B. False

Visit our website in 2016 for all your wholesale coffee needs – www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Scroll down for the answers.

1 – A

2 – D

3 – C

4 – A

5 – A

6 – A

7 – B

8 – D

9 – C – coffee is sensitive to moisture, so storing it for long in a fridge or freezer could cause it to deteriorate. It’s OK if you’re using it quickly, but a cool, dry, dark place like a cupboard is better.

10. – B. All decaffeinated coffee contains a small amount of caffeine. Permitted limits are 0.3% for soluble coffee and 0.1% for ground coffee.