For New York coffee shops
Sell coffee. We'll show you how to clean everything.
Pick a machine. Follow the pictures. Be ready when the inspector walks in, and for the grade card customers see at the door in New York City.
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7:40 am
The line is out the door.
Who cleaned the steam wand?
- The machines
The espresso machine, the grinder, the milk fridge, the pastry case. Each one has to be clean, and each one has a rule.
- The guessing
You can't be behind the bar every shift. Did the opener take the milk fridge temperature? You don't know, and the inspector can walk in any day.
- The point
You opened to pour great coffee, not to chase clipboards.
Watch a sample cafe's 7:40 am first, so you decide with the screens in front of you.
The answer
Step-by-step cleaning guides
for every machine in your coffee shop.
Espresso machine, grinder, milk pitcher: each has its own guide, with a picture on each step. You clean it the right way and miss nothing the inspector looks for.
Find it
Type espresso, grinder or milk pitcher. The app finds it, even with a typo.
Follow the pictures
One step per screen. Run water through the group. Run the steam wand into the drip tray. Tap Done after each.
Out of espresso cleaner? One tap
Tap I'm out. It goes on your order list, with one tap to it on Amazon, and you keep your place. Told the app your machine's brand? Then it is the cleaner the maker names.
Open the espresso machine's steps on a sample cafe, so you see the pictures before you sign up.
The rules
What does the inspector
actually check?
The milk fridge, the sanitizer bucket, the date on the cold brew. Here are New York's rules behind them, coffee first, with where your county differs.
Hot and cold holding
Milk, cream and cold brew stay cold. Outside New York City the state rule is 45°F or colder (10 NYCRR 14-1.40); in the city it is 41°F (Health Code 81.09). We recommend 41°F everywhere, so the app's limit is 41°F. Hot food stays at 140°F or hotter.
CleanCleaver: Each milk fridge reading is saved with the time and the barista's name. A warm one asks what she did.
New York: 10 NYCRR 14-1.40(a)
Guide: Hot and cold holdingCleaning and sanitizing
Wash, rinse, sanitize, air-dry. Test the sanitizer bucket with a strip.
CleanCleaver: Each strip test is saved with the reading, time and name.
New York: 10 NYCRR 14-1.111, 10 NYCRR 14-1.112, 10 NYCRR 14-1.116
Guide: Cleaning vs sanitizing, and sanitizer strengthsDate marking and disposal
Subpart 14-1 has no date-marking rule: we read it and found none. We recommend the FDA Food Code's 7 days (3-501.17) for the cold brew and the milk you opened. The day you make it is day 1.
CleanCleaver: The app counts the 7 days and says what to write on the wrap.
FDA Food Code (model) 3-501.17, 3-501.18: not in New York's code, so this line is our advice
Guide: Date marking: the 7-day rule
What else can the inspector check? 5 more rules
Employee health: report, exclude, restrict
A sick barista stays off the bar: no one works while sick with an illness that spreads through food (10 NYCRR 14-1.70). A customer sick from your food is reported to your health department within 24 hours (14-1.200).
CleanCleaver: Health questions before each shift. You see only
OK to work
orNo food work today
.New York: 10 NYCRR 14-1.70
Guide: Sick workers: report it and stay homeFood handler training
New York has no statewide food handler card. Your county can require training (10 NYCRR 14-1.73), and several do. Monroe County wants a certified food worker present whenever you are open. Suffolk wants a certified person in charge at all hours. In New York City a Food Protection Certificate holder supervises all food work (Health Code 81.15).
CleanCleaver: The app keeps each certificate and its expiry date.
10 NYCRR 14-1.73
Guide: Temporary events, potlucks and fundraisersAllergens
Every menu, your online one too, carries an allergen line, such as
If you have a food allergy or intolerance, please notify us.
(NYSDOH required signage). Post the staff allergen notice (Public Health Law 1356). We recommend a written note for the oat, almond and dairy milks on top.CleanCleaver: The app makes the written allergen note for you.
NYSDOH required signage; Public Health Law 1356
Guide: Food labelsAccurate thermometers
Thermometers read within 2°F. Check yours in ice water at 32°F.
CleanCleaver: Dipping the thermometer in ice water is an opening step, saved with the reading.
New York: 10 NYCRR 14-1.85
Guide: Thermometers and calibrationBackflow protection
The espresso machine's water line has a backflow device, and testable devices are tested yearly. Subpart 14-1's own plumbing section was not matched line by line; ask your health department.
CleanCleaver: The yearly test is on the list, with the date it was done.
New York: 10 NYCRR 14-1.140; FDA Food Code (model) 5-202.13, 5-205.13: not in New York's code, so this line is our advice
See one of these rules on the screen your barista sees, so you know it is one line, not a wall.
The plan
How does the new barista
get it on day two?
Pick Coffee shop
The app starts you with espresso drinks, lattes, cold brew and pastries. You edit the list.
Text each barista a link
She opens it in her phone's browser, answers the health questions and sees the milk fridge as her next thing. No phone? The shop tablet and a 4-digit PIN.
Every reading is saved
Each one has the time and her name. The binder is one PDF.
Setup happens once and takes minutes, so your first barista is on it tomorrow.
Not open yet?
What does a New York coffee shop need
before the first latte?
First, workers' compensation and paid family leave coverage: no food service permit issues without them. Then the permit application, at least 21 days before you open (10 NYCRR 14-1.190). It goes to your county health department, or the state district office for your county. In the five boroughs it goes to the city's Health Department. Your office may ask for plans before you build (14-1.191). The permit lasts up to 2 years (14-1.192) and goes on the wall where customers see it. A handwashing sign hangs at every employee hand sink (14-1.143). The state's first aid for choking poster goes up (Public Health Law 1352-b). Every menu, online too, carries an allergen line. In New York City the inspector's grade card goes within 5 feet of the entrance after the first graded inspection.
There is no statewide food handler card. Your county may require training (14-1.73): ask. In New York City, a Food Protection Certificate holder is on the premises and supervises all food work whenever you are open (Health Code 81.15). The online course is free; the exam is paid and in person.
How to open a food business in your county
The permit comes first and the app keeps a copy of it, with the certificates, in the binder.
What if nobody wrote it down?
A warm milk fridge nobody wrote down
is a gap the inspector can see.
An inspector asks to see your temperature record. The barista who opened typed the milk fridge temperature at 6:50 am. It is there with her name, and the binder is one PDF.
Why not lose a few points?
A few points cost little.
An easier shift is worth more.
A few points off will not close you, so that is not the reason. The reason is tomorrow morning.
- An easier shift
Your opener sees one next thing: the thermometer, the milk fridge, the strip. The espresso machine's cleaning steps come with pictures. Out of cleaner? One tap puts it on the order list. The date labels count the 7 days, so the cold brew is used before it is found. Less scramble at open and close. A new barista knows what to do on day two.
- Credit for your team
For the barista, this is not policing. It is one next thing with the rule beside it, and her name on good work: every reading, every
Caught early
. A reading counts the same whether it passes or not. When the inspector walks in, the opener hands over the binder and goes back to the bar. - Proof, not promises
An inspection is a snapshot. In New York City the letter at your door is your score, in points, and lower is better. A is 0 to 13, B is 14 to 27, C is 28 or more. After a reinspection of 14 or more you may post
Grade Pending
until the hearing. The card goes within 5 feet of the entrance (24 RCNY 23-07). Outside the city there is no grade; results are public on health.data.ny.gov. Your records show how you run every day. Each milk fridge reading has the time and the barista's name, a photo where it helps, and corrections struck through, never deleted. The binder is one PDF with its own fingerprint. That is proof you can show, not a promise. The Health Department grades; we don't.
About five quick taps a day, on the phone your barista already carries. Count them on a sample cafe.
So what does calm look like?
Pour coffee.
The record keeps itself.
Tomorrow, the first barista opens the link, dips the thermometer in ice water, types the milk fridge temperature and tests the sanitizer strip. By close, Today shows what is still open.
25 days of real mornings is enough, so you can see if it holds.
Questions
Before you
start.
Does it show me how to clean the espresso machine?
Yes. Search for it in the app. Each step has a picture. Run water through the group. Run the steam wand into the drip tray. Backflush with water, then with cleaner at close. Each step says where it comes from. A manager can add your own way too.
Which cleaner do I buy for my espresso machine?
Tell the app the brand and model. For Breville, La Marzocco, Rocket, ECM, Profitec, Lelit, Rancilio, LUCCA and Fellow machines, the guide names the cleaner the maker says to use. It shows the maker's own words and finds it on Amazon in one tap. The same goes for grinders from Mahlkonig, Baratza, Eureka, Fellow and Moccamaster. Any other brand gets the plain espresso machine cleaner. No price is shown, and nothing is marked up.
Do we have to write down espresso temperatures?
No. Hot coffee served right away needs no temperature record. Milk and cold brew stay cold. The state rule is 45°F or colder (10 NYCRR 14-1.40). New York City's is 41°F (Health Code 81.09), and so is the app's. So the fridge is what gets written down.
Will my baristas actually do it?
Nothing to install: each one opens a link in her phone's browser. Today shows one next thing, like the milk fridge temperature, with the rule beside it. A reading counts the same whether it passes or not, so there is no reason to fudge a number. Points are for on-time work and never go down.
A new barista starts Monday. What does she need in New York?
No statewide card. Your county can require training (10 NYCRR 14-1.73). Monroe County wants a certified food worker present whenever you are open. Suffolk wants a certified person in charge at all hours, Rockland a Food Service Training Certificate. In New York City the Food Protection Certificate holder supervises the food work, and that can be you rather than her (Health Code 81.15). In the app she checks in with the health questions, then does the short lessons and sign-offs your setup lists before her first food step. A certificate on file shortens that list.
Can baristas type readings without their own phone?
Yes, on the shop tablet. Tap your name, then enter a 4-digit PIN.
Why does it say steps are left when I did the thermometer?
Three things hold Open for food: the thermometer, the fridge and freezer, and the sanitizer. Today shows which one is left.
What goes on my menu in New York?
An allergen line, on the paper menu and the online one, in the menu's language. NYSDOH gives three choices: "If you have a food allergy or intolerance, please notify us.", the allergens listed per item, or a menu note. Post the staff allergen notice too (Public Health Law 1356). The app prints a written allergen note per drink for you, which we recommend on top.
What does a coffee shop pay?
It depends on how many people are on your staff list: Solo (1–2) is $8, Small (3–6) is $24, Team (7–12) is $40 and Kitchen (13 or more) is $69 a month, per location. The 25 free days start when you add a card on Stripe's page. Cancel before they end and you pay nothing. 25 days free. Cancel anytime.
Isn't a B grade cheaper than all this?
Maybe, if the grade were the only thing. In New York City the card hangs at your door: A is 0 to 13, B is 14 to 27, C is 28 or more. But the reason is the shift, not the inspector. The opener sees one next thing, each machine's cleaning steps have pictures, supplies are one tap away. The date labels count the days, so less food is found too late. Your team gets the credit, with a name on every reading. Your records show every day, with times and names, and the binder is one PDF with its own fingerprint. That is proof you can show, not a promise. About five quick taps a day. The Solo plan is $8 a month.
Your binder is ready when the inspector is.
Pick your place. Start with one shift.
Start your 25 days free See it work
25 days free. Cancel anytime.
Questions? Call or text (415) 640-1667