The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

oven recommendations for small/semi-professional bread oven

toddvp's picture
toddvp

oven recommendations for small/semi-professional bread oven

Hi friends -- 

I work for a local cafe that just gave me the go-ahead to start developing our bread baking into a more serious part of the business, so I'm starting to explore the best way to take my experience from my little kitchen and transfer it to a larger production in the most efficient/practical way I can.

They don't want to do a full bakery build-out for obvious reasons, so I think my best options are to find a local business with a bread oven, or find a great/affordable bread oven with a small footprint that we can integrate into current kitchen space.

So! On that second point, I'd love some recommendations on a great oven that meets those needs -- affordable, small footprint, good for artisan bread, etc. I've seen some people talk about ovens that don't need a water line and just have water poured into them -- has anyone found or tried an oven like this?

Hopefully if I can get a little production going in a successful way it can mean a bigger and better-equipped bakery in the future.

Love your input -- thanks!

-Todd

MANNA's picture
MANNA

Check out American Baking Systems. They are excellent products and pricing is right for startup's. You can buy their electric deck oven and expand later as production goes by adding more decks. A single deck (3-sheet pan wide) will run you around 7,000.00. These are the ovens Im going to buy when I open my retail location in about 5 years.

yozzause's picture
yozzause

Hi Todd

We just had new ovens here at the teaching institute  we have 2 x XBC605E BAKER TOPS one of which is sitting on a proover unit XL415

They replaced a two deck oven and are so much more efficient, heat up time is  minutes not hours it has steam injection and evacution and also has a wash down cycle and with big glass doors and in an area the people can see then quite facinating to watch. The oven units were A$7,700 each the Aussie dollar is currently worth more than the US doller plus we usually pay to much here for goods like this. I expect if you google you will be able to get details  and pics of this particular oven etc

Kind regards Yozza

 

there we go Todd Oven and proover on the right, 2nd oven sitting on tray rack on the left, great ovens to use

and old faithfull and not so easy to get along with out in the cold