Coffee Cart vs. Coffee Station: Which Is Right for Your Event?

Event coffee usually comes one of two ways. A self-serve station, with urns or a machine guests run themselves. Or a staffed cart, with baristas making drinks to order. Both work. It depends on what you need the coffee to do.

When a station is enough

• You want a low cost per cup and no staff to coordinate.
• Guests just need a refill at registration or during a long conference day.
• Space and setup time are tight.

The downside is nobody notices it. The coffee sits for hours, and there are no lattes, matcha or iced drinks unless you bring in another vendor.

What a barista cart adds

• Drinks made to order, including lattes, iced drinks, matcha and caffeine-free options.
• A natural place for people to gather, which helps at activations, receptions and networking events.
• Room for your brand on the cart, the menu, the cups and the latte art.
• Baristas who greet guests and keep the line moving.

How to decide

If the coffee is just fuel, a station is fine. If it’s part of a launch, a client day, a wedding or a booth you need people to walk up to, book a cart. Plenty of corporate events do both: a station at registration and a cart in the main room.

Questions to ask any coffee vendor

• What’s included? Cart, baristas, espresso, milks (including dairy-free), syrups, cups, setup and breakdown?
• How much space and power do you need? (Our cart needs about 6 by 6 ft and a standard outlet.)
• How many baristas and carts for my guest count and service hours?
• Can you put our branding on the cart, menu and cups?
• Can you send a certificate of insurance to the venue?

See what a Deja Brew cart serves →