Commercial Beverage Equipment

About Commercial Beverage Equipment

Beverage equipment spans coffee brewers and espresso machines, ice machines and dispensers, blenders, juicers, tea brewers, and bar refrigeration like back-bar coolers and glass frosters. Ice machines are the quiet essential — nearly every food service concept needs one, and capacity is sized in pounds of ice per 24 hours against your busiest day, not your average one.

Used beverage equipment can be an excellent value, with two caveats: espresso machines and ice machines are the two categories where maintenance history matters most. A cared-for commercial espresso machine from La Marzocco or Nuova Simonelli runs for decades; a neglected one hides scale and worn seals in places you can't see at purchase.

What to Look for When Buying Used Beverage Equipment

For ice machines, ask whether it ran on filtered water and when the last cleaning cycle was done — scale and slime are the main killers, and a machine that has sat drained for months may need new water-circuit components. Hoshizaki, Manitowoc, and Scotsman lead the category for reliability and parts. For espresso machines, ask about descaling schedule and water hardness, and inspect group heads and steam wands for scale. Coffee brewers from Bunn and Fetco are simple, cheap to refurbish, and among the lowest-risk used buys in food service.