We are a nation that loves our coffee. Most of us will visit a cafe weekly, some of us daily (or multiple times a day. I’ve noticed that newer and more busy cafes have begun to switch to automated milk frothing machines.
If you don’t know what they are, here’s an example. They auto measure, heat and froth a pre-set amount of milk for baristas to pour out your favourite milky coffee, all very quickly and generally very consistently. Baristas need not the skill to perfectly steam oat, soy, or almond milk which tend to be more difficult than full cream milk. But they aren’t cheap, and cost a cool $14k each - most cafes with these have 2 so they can pump out your favourite milk alternative as well.
While they have upsides, like reduced waste, there are downsides to these machines as well. Less jobs, perhaps no ‘character’, and I feel the milk texture is sometimes lacking.
The question is, does a cafe using an automated milk frother turn your patronage elsewhere? Or do you prefer the consistency? Assuming cost is usually the same as other cafes, since they usually are.
Why would it be less jobs? You could argue it's less experienced baristas, more-so probably just the owner etc who's making the coffees, rather than a trained barista who would prefer to froth the milk by hand, but unlikely to be fewer jobs as a result.
Can't say I've witnessed these any where though
Would be good for a smaller operation, the ones where you walk in and hear the 'barista' burning the milk, or the sound of the milk screaming because they don't know how to properly froth it. Cost of the unit would likely be prohibitive, though they'd likely just be renting/leasing it anyway (as well as the coffee machine itself)