A café counter has two jobs. Customers see a front that presents the brand and the pastries; behind it, baristas move between the grinder, espresso machine, milk fridge and pickup point hundreds of times a day. Getting the counter right means planning that flow, the equipment and the utilities before the millwork is drawn. Here is what to settle.
Most cafés follow the same sequence: order and pay, wait, pick up. The counter should let customers move in one direction without crossing each other, and let staff work without crossing behind one another. A typical layout runs from the point of sale and pastry display, to the espresso station, to a pickup area at the end, with a separate spot for mobile orders. Behind the counter, keep the path between grinder, espresso machine, fridge and pickup short.
Water, drains, floor drains and power need to arrive where the equipment sits, so coordinate the counter layout with the plumber and electrician before the floor is poured or closed. Run lines through chases in the counter with access panels for service. Equipment drains, such as those from the espresso machine, ice bins and dump sinks, typically discharge indirectly to a floor sink through an air gap, so align the floor sinks with the counter and leave access to them. Water filtration units, often under the counter, need space and access for filter changes.
Pastry and food display cases are usually refrigerated or heated equipment from a specialist supplier, built into the millwork. The counter needs openings sized to the case, ventilation for its compressor, and access for service. Ambient displays for packaged goods and retail coffee can be built in millwork; see our guide to display case design.
In Ontario, food premises are regulated under the Health Protection and Promotion Act and its Food Premises regulation (O. Reg. 493/17), and local health units often review floor plans. Their guidance typically covers a separate handwashing sink in each preparation area used only for hand washing, a two- or three-compartment sink or commercial dishwasher for cleaning utensils, as the health unit requires, surfaces and equipment free from cracks, crevices and open seams, cleanable shelving, and chemicals stored away from and never above food. Check with the local health unit early, since a missing sink is expensive to add after the counter is built.
The order and pickup counters are service counters. In Ontario, new service counters fall under the province’s Design of Public Spaces Standards, which call for at least one accessible counter for each type of service; see our cash wrap guide. Condiment stations and self-serve areas also need to be reachable from a seated position.
Lit menu boards, back-lit logos and lit counter fronts are common in cafés. Lit millwork is electrical equipment, so agree early with the electrical consultant how it will be approved and connected.
Our café work includes Michel’s Bakery Café at Yorkdale. We build café and coffee shop counters in our Vaughan plant, with CNC cutting, finishing, solid surface and integrated LED lighting in-house, and work with partners for metal, glass and quartz. Our drafting team issues shop drawings for review before production, and they are the place to coordinate equipment, utilities and access. See restaurant and hospitality millwork and our guide to bar millwork, or send us your drawings.
In the order customers move: order and pay, wait, pick up, with a separate spot for mobile orders. Behind the counter, keep the grinder, espresso machine, milk fridge and pickup close together so baristas do not cross paths.
A strong counter, a filtered water supply, a drain, a dedicated electrical circuit, and space around it for steam and service. Follow the machine’s installation requirements, and get the model early.
Solid surface, quartz or stainless steel, which handle constant spills and cleaning. Cabinets below should use moisture-resistant cores and sealed edges.
Health unit guidance for food premises typically calls for a separate handwashing sink in each preparation area, used only for hand washing, plus facilities for washing utensils. Check with the local health unit before the counter is designed.
Yes. Refrigerated or heated cases from a specialist supplier are commonly built into the counter, which needs openings sized to the case, ventilation for the compressor and access for service.
