Coffee shops are everywhere you go, and yet demand seems high enough that plenty of smaller establishments can survive even when they go up against the big chains. Part of the reason for this is that each coffee shop has its own individual character and charm, which tends to attract loyal regular customers.

But, of course, it all comes down to coffee, and if you're only serving up run-of-the-mill fare, you're going to have a tougher time getting noticed. Different commercial coffee machines for sale will you allow you to create all sorts of delicious drinks. Here are some ways to make sure your coffees are memorable.

Latte art

If you've been on social media in the last few years, you probably will have seen some pretty amazing creations within the foam on top of milky coffees. And, chances are, you've had a coffee somewhere that had the classic fern-like pattern on the top.

The key is steaming cold milk to around 60 degrees C in a separate container to the coffee to make lots of thick foam, so you need a coffee machine with a designated steam wand that allows you to do this. 

Come up with your own unique design, practise it until it's second nature, and give all of your coffees a distinctive look.

Unique flavours

Every coffee shop worth its salt has a few syrups in stock like vanilla, hazelnut and cinnamon. What you might not realise is that there's a whole world of weird and wonderful flavours out there to try, and most shops don't stock them.

Getting a good variety of flavours to enhance your coffees sets you apart and has people coming back to try more. You could also make your own unique blends by mixing two or more together, and change your availability with the seasons to create a bit of hype and urgency.

Chocolates or biscuits

Giving your customers a small chocolate, biscuit or some other tasty adornment with each coffee really helps with generating regular customers who feel appreciated. Italian gianduja chocolates are a good choice as they're made with hazelnuts instead of dairy, so more people are able to eat them.

Handwritten or printed notes

If you're creatively minded, providing a little message with each coffee is an unusual way to enhance the experience you give to customers. You could write poems, fortunes, interesting little phrases, quotes, facts — the list goes on. Tie them up in little scrolls with ribbon and watch people line up to collect them.

Amazing espresso

It should go without saying that the coffee itself needs to be top-notch in order to compete, and your machine plays a big part in this. If you're currently using a machine with less than 9 bars of pressure, you're not extracting as much flavour as you could from the coffee, and an upgrade will make a big difference.