MAHLKÖNIG - EK43S

EK43S (SSP HU) at home, Pietro (M-Modal) for travel.

Yeah, 98 HU exists but it’s completely opposite of what 64/83 HU are! I’m not sure I’d buy one these days as there’s better options, but it’s a workhorse for sure.

Eh it depends on your budget. Can get Titus Nautilus or Ozik with brew burrs… realistically any 80/98/102mm platform will be great. Pietro is very capable and is a great value for money, I often reach for it instead of my EK43S with SSP HUs which are more espresso focused.

the EK43, Guatemala, and Ditting 804/807 are all great options for a coffee shop that wants to signal to customers that they take coffee seriously (ugh). The Bunn models including g and newer gvh are more common in lower budget coffee shops and frequently found in diners, gas stations, restaurants, and grocery stores. This varies regionally though. They are rarely found in quality coffee shops near me but that isn't the case everywhere. They can all produce great coffee in the hands of an experienced barista. I think the answer depends on the vision you have for your coffee shop.

I have a Mahlkonig EK43 and I bought it brand new. I wanted something for grinding espresso, pour overs and bulk.

I have a niche, a bartza encore, a zepresso jmax, an ek43. The niche does just fine

Honestly, the ek43 is pretty standard for all that. If you can find a used one, that’d be your best bet

Mahlkonig EK43 Got it for free, non-working, from a bar I used to work at. They were gonna throw it away when they got a new EK43S. I took it, replaced the burrs, both capacitors, bearings, felt rings, etc. also replaced all of the flat head screws with hex screws.  It's not my daily driver, but I use it for the rare occasion I want a pour-over or to play with weird brewing parameters and I need something very consistent.  Retention isn't the best, she is loud, ugly and power-hungry, but she's mine.

I use a Breville smart grinder at work and it works great. I have a Mahlkonig at home and it works better. 

I have the Mahlkonig and am extremely happy with the results, if you’re looking for recommendations.