Coffee Shop Ice Machines

Which ice is best for coffee drinks?

Many cafés choose nugget ice for blended and iced drinks because it blends quickly, which is easier on blenders, and it's the ice customers ask for. Half dice is a lower-cost alternative that still packs and chills well. See nugget ice vs cube ice.

How much ice does a coffee shop need?

Ice use follows your iced drink count. Manitowoc's widely used planning figures for fountain drinks are a good guide:

Example: a café serving 200 iced drinks a day, mostly 16 oz, uses about 200 x 8 oz = 1,600 oz, or 100 lb of ice. Add blended drinks (often more ice per drink), iced tea pitchers and cold-brew service, and plan about 130-150 lb a day. In summer, iced drinks can be the majority of sales, so size for your busiest summer day.

Coffee shop ice machines compared

Countertop nugget dispensers (Manitowoc CNP) are also in the grid for self-serve water and ice. Specifications from each product page. Note: the Manitowoc UNK0200AZ and UNK0300AZ in the grid are 230V / 50Hz versions; U.S. shops should choose the UNP models.

What stands out

• Best nugget machine for a typical café: the ITV IQN 200C makes 159 lb/day at 90/70 from an 18-inch cabinet, with a 44 lb bin.
• Most chewable ice under the counter: the Hoshizaki F-330BAK-C makes 250 lb/day at 90/70 with an 80 lb bin and a drop-down door that's easy to scoop from. Its CleanCycle24 flushes the water system for two seconds every hour.
• Biggest bin: the Manitowoc UYP0310A holds 119 lb of half dice, enough for a morning rush.

Plan for the morning rush

Coffee shops have sharp peaks: the morning commute and early afternoon. A 160 lb/day machine makes only about 7 lb an hour, so during a rush you're working from the bin.

• Check the bin against your busiest hour. If you use 40 lb between 7 and 9 am, a 20-24 lb bin will run out.
• Run the machine overnight so the bin is full at opening.
• Consider a second machine for a second station or drive-through window.

Where to put it

• Under the counter at the bar, so baristas can scoop without walking. Most machines here are front-breathing or front-discharging; keep the front grille clear of cups and syrups.
• Away from espresso machines and ovens. Heat cuts output. Use the 90/70 figures.
• Drain: most cafés have a floor sink near the bar. If not, choose the ICETRO IU-0090-ANP, which has a built-in pump, or add a drain pump kit.
• Self-serve water: a countertop nugget dispenser such as the Manitowoc CNP0201A lets customers help themselves to ice water without touching the barista's ice.

Hygiene at the bar

• Use a dedicated scoop stored outside the ice.
• Never scoop with a cup or pitcher.
• Clean and sanitize the machine on schedule, and more often in busy shops. Nugget machines need regular descaling.
• Keep milk, syrups and food out of the ice bin.

Read how to clean a nugget ice maker.

Running costs

Nugget and cubelet machines are efficient and use about 12 gallons of water per 100 lb of ice, much less than many cube machines. From the product pages: ITV IQN 200C 6.2 kWh per 100 lb, Hoshizaki F-330BAK-C 5.0, Ice-O-Matic GEMU09090 4.2, Ice-O-Matic CIMU220HA90 3.7. At 150 lb a day and $0.15 per kWh, that's about $300-510 a year in electricity. See our operating cost guide.

Water treatment

Coffee shops already filter water for espresso. Make sure the ice machine is on filtered water too, using a filter with scale inhibitor sized to the machine. Scale on a nugget machine's auger cuts output and adds wear. See ice machine water filters.

Worked example: a drive-through café

A drive-through café serves about 350 iced drinks on a summer day: 60% are 16 oz, 30% are 24 oz and 10% are blended.

• 16 oz drinks: 210 x 8 oz = 1,680 oz
• 24 oz drinks: 105 x 12 oz = 1,260 oz
• Blended drinks: 35 x about 12 oz = 420 oz
• Total: 3,360 oz, or about 210 lb of ice a day

The busiest two hours (7-9 am) account for about 35% of sales, so the shop uses about 75 lb in that window. A Manitowoc UNP0300A makes 275 lb/day at 90/70 but holds 50 lb, so a single unit would come close to running out in the rush. Better options:

• Manitowoc UYP0310A (270 lb/day at 90/70, 119 lb bin) for half dice, which covers the rush from storage.
• Two machines, one at the drive-through window and one at the counter, which also gives you a backup if one needs service.

What ice costs per drink

Ice is one of the cheapest ingredients in an iced drink. Using the energy figures above at $0.15 per kWh, a nugget machine using about 6 kWh per 100 lb spends roughly $0.009 of electricity per pound of ice. An 8 oz portion for a 16 oz drink is half a pound, or under a cent in electricity, plus water and filter costs. Even with the machine's purchase price spread over several years, ice costs only a few cents per drink, which is why running out of ice in a rush costs far more than buying a slightly bigger machine.

Blended drinks and blender wear

Blended frappés and smoothies use more ice than iced coffee and are where ice type matters most:

• Nugget and cubelet ice are soft and porous, so they break down quickly and give a smooth texture with less blending time.
• Half dice cubes are small and blend well.
• Full cubes take longer to blend and are harder on blades and jars.

If more than about a fifth of your iced drinks are blended, nugget or cubelet is worth the extra cost. Fill blender jars with a scoop from the bin, never by pushing the jar into the ice.

A daily routine for baristas

1. At opening: check the bin is full and the scoop is in its holder outside the ice.
2. During service: keep the bin door closed between scoops to slow melting.
3. After the rush: check the drain and wipe the area around the bin door.
4. At close: wipe the exterior, clean the scoop and holder, and make sure nothing has been stored in the bin.

Cold brew, iced tea and other uses

Ice use in a café goes beyond the cup:

• Cold brew: brewed cold, but often served over ice. Plan the same 8 oz per 16 oz drink as iced coffee.
• Iced tea: brewing hot tea double-strength over ice is a common method, so each batch uses a lot of ice at once. Count it separately.
• Shaken espresso drinks: shaking uses ice that is then strained or kept in the cup; plan a little more per drink.
• Water for customers: a self-serve countertop dispenser keeps this ice off the barista's machine.

These batch uses tend to happen before opening or between rushes, which is another reason to choose a machine with a generous bin.

Common mistakes

1. Sizing for winter. Size for your busiest summer day.
2. Too small a bin. The morning rush comes from storage.
3. Putting the machine next to the espresso machine. Heat cuts output.
4. No drain plan for an undercounter unit.
5. Ordering a 50Hz model by mistake. Choose UNP, not UNK, for U.S. power.

Related collections

• Undercounter nugget ice makers and commercial nugget ice machines
• Small cube ice makers and half cube ice makers
• Cubelet ice makers and countertop ice makers
• Guides: best ice machine for a coffee shop, what is nugget ice