Coffee Shop Checklists Kit Pro: Coffee Shop Opening & Closing Checklist Templates for Excel

Start with personal hygiene (clean uniform, hair tied back, cuts covered, hands washed), then open each area. Kitchen: hood on before anything else, the gas check if you have gas, oven and griddle on, and the overnight cooler readings logged. Front of house and patio: lights and HVAC, tables set, the menu board updated, condiments restocked, the POS and card terminal working. Espresso bar: machine warmed up, group heads purged, the grinder dialed in with a test shot (25–30 s, 25–30 ml, about 1 fl oz), machine pressure checked (9 bar), the steam wand purged, beans, milks, syrups and tea stocked, cold milk pitchers ready, the ice bin filled with a scoop, never a glass, and the batch brew on. Then the pastry case: glass cleaned, stocked with the day's bake, labeled with price and allergens, the refrigerated case at 41 °F or below with the reading logged, and tongs or gloves out. The whole shop has its own list: alarm, lights, HVAC, POS, signage and patio. Every task needs who does it, a due-by time and initials.

At the espresso bar: backflush each group head with espresso machine detergent, clean the portafilters, purge and wipe the steam wand, clean the drip tray, empty the knock box and turn the machine off; brush out the grinder and close the hopper; clean the blender and the batch brew airpots. Leftover pastries get dated and stored, the refrigerated case is emptied or covered, and open milk goes back into the fridge at 41 °F or below, covered and dated. Note the bean stock and tomorrow's orders, sanitize the bar top, wash the milk pitchers, empty the ice bin and sweep. Then the kitchen and front of house close, the patio is brought in, the cash drawer is counted against the POS Z report and the shop is locked up: POS and HVAC off, final safety check, alarm set.

At opening, the barista turns on and warms up the espresso machine, purges the group heads, dials in the grinder with a test shot, checks the stock of coffee, milks, syrups and tea, gets the cold milk pitchers, the toppings and syrup station, the batch brew and the ice bin ready. During service: drinks to order (espresso, latte, cappuccino) with consistent crema, temperature and texture, the portafilter cleaned between shots, the steam wand purged after every use and stock topped up. At close: backflush, grinder brushed, pitchers and tools washed, coffee stock noted for the order, bar wiped and the machine off. In this kit, the "Barista Checklist & Daily Duties by Role" workbook has one checklist each for the shift lead, barista, baker, server and busser, and the espresso bar has its own opening and closing tabs.

Backflush every day at close, group by group, with espresso machine detergent and following the manufacturer's instructions. Descale as the manufacturer says: on many commercial machines your espresso tech does it. In this kit, the backflush is on the espresso bar closing checklist and on the barista's close; descaling, gaskets, boiler pressure and the water filter are on the monthly maintenance sheet; and the Quarterly & Annual sheet adds the filter change, a water hardness test (GH/KH), a full service by your espresso tech and the grinder burrs by pounds ground (as a guide, flat burrs 880–1,320 lb and conical 1,760–2,650 lb; your grinder's maker has the final word).

Keep anything that needs refrigeration (cream cakes, cheesecake, dairy fillings) in a refrigerated case at 41 °F or below and log the reading, as the FDA Food Code requires. Date-mark those items and use them within 7 days, counting the day they were made. Serve with tongs, bakery tissue or gloves, never bare hands. Label every item with its name, price and allergens (the 9 major allergens in the US; for pastries, mostly wheat, eggs, milk, soy, tree nuts, peanuts and sesame). Rotate the oldest product to the front, and log the day's waste so tomorrow's bake matches what sells. The "Pastry Case" tab of the kitchen workbook has these tasks already written.

Yes, you will find free checklist templates online, and a blank one is fine to get started. This kit is something else: 11 Excel workbooks with 500 coffee shop tasks already written and sorted by shift, area and role, a counter on every checklist that skips the tasks you mark N/A, temperatures in °F and a cash count in US dollars. Print it on US Letter, or save any sheet as a PDF from Excel.

Yes. Every checklist comes with the real tasks of a coffee shop and brunch cafe already written. You'll want to make it yours: adjust tasks to your shop, delete the ones that don't apply and add your own. The editable cells are green, and each table ends with 5 free green rows that the counter already includes.

Yes. There are event checklists for Sunday brunch (Saturday prep, Sunday opening, service and post-brunch close), Valentine's Day, the holiday season and the start and end of patio season, and the calendar bonus adds 22 key US dates with their tasks. Mimosas and bellinis only appear where your license allows alcohol, served to guests 21+ with ID.

Yes. The templates scale. A small espresso bar can use the espresso bar, front of house and pastry case lists. A cafe with a kitchen adds the hot line, the cold station and the brunch checklist. A group of shops adds the manager checklists and the shift handover.

Checklist apps charge a monthly fee per location and need connected tablets or phones. This kit gives you the same task lists in Excel for $19, a one-time payment. No subscription, no internet needed. What it is not: there are no reminders, photos or notifications on your staff's phones.

Yes. One purchase covers one business with all of its locations, which makes it a good fit for coffee shop chains. If you are a consultant, you can use the checklists with your clients, but you can't hand them copies: each business buys its own.

Yes, with a few edits, all in cells you can change. The kit is set up for the US: temperatures in °F under the FDA Food Code, the 9 major allergens and a cash count in US bills and coins. In the UK, most people say cafe, cold holding is 8 °C or below and hot holding 63 °C or above, and allergen information covers 14 allergens (the allergen tasks already note the UK's 14); the events calendar has a UK note with Mothering Sunday, bank holidays and Boxing Day. In Canada and Australia, type your province's or state's holding temperatures in °C and its allergen list into the green cells. If you serve mimosas at brunch, you need a licence: the legal age is 18 in the UK and Australia (where staff also need an RSA certificate), and 19 in most Canadian provinces (18 in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec). For pounds, Canadian or Australian dollars, unprotect the cash count sheet (there is no password) and change the label and value of each bill and coin. Every English edition also includes the US · UK · Canada · Australia Equivalents Guide, a bonus with the local terms, taxes, food safety, staff rules and alcohol side by side.

The price is $19 USD, a one-time payment. At checkout, Stripe can show the amount in your local currency (for example GBP, EUR, CAD or AUD) and converts it for you.

No subscription: you pay once and get lifetime access to the online dashboard. When we add new templates or improvements, you get them at no extra cost — just download the files again.

Yes. A full 30-day guarantee. If you're not happy, we'll refund 100% with no questions asked.