Hospitality Testimonials

Proud to support Isle of Man Businesses

Enzo’s Restaurant

Enzo’s Restaurant at 52 Bucks Road, Douglas, has been in operation since May 2013. The small family-owned restaurant can comfortably cater for 30 diners and is led by a friendly and knowledgeable team.

Open for lunch and dinner, Enzo’s Restaurant offers modern international cuisine with their signature Italian twist, providing a creative menu with an extensive, complementary wine list.

The restaurant and its customers will now benefit from a new top-quality espresso coffee machine, the Fracino Bambino, supplied by MannVend.

“We are committed to providing our customers with an excellent dining experience, with an equal emphasis placed on both food and drink alike,” says Enzo Ciappelli, owner of Enzo’s Restaurant.

“Coffee has notoriously developed its own culture in Italy, so we needed to use a reliable coffee machine to serve the best quality coffee. We are delighted with the Fracino machine that we have from MannVend. MannVend has always been approachable and professional, and their customer service is the reason we chose them.

“Their commitment to rapid technical response is unparalleled – even out of hours – which makes them the ideal choice for the fast-paced environment of a busy restaurant. We’re extremely happy with their service.”

Enzo Ciappelli, owner of Enzo’s Restaurant, with the Fracino machine supplied by MannVend.
Enzo Ciappelli, owner of Enzo’s Restaurant, with the Fracino machine supplied by MannVend.

“Their commitment to rapid technical response is unparalleled"

Scoops Ice Cream Parlour

Scoops ice cream parlour and coffee shop in Port Erin is a popular place to visit for locals and tourists. It’s in a great location with a spectacular sea view which makes it an ideal spot to enjoy a delicious Manx ice cream, and a refreshing coffee from an espresso machine supplied by MannVend.

Scoops owner Shri Naik, who has a background as a successful businessman in the hotel and hospitality sectors, also owns and runs the Kurries and Steaks restaurant in Douglas. Both businesses use MannVend coffee machines.

Shri said: “I have worked with MannVend since 2014 and during this time they have provided my businesses with coffee machines and also trained the staff on how to use them. Everyone at MannVend has been very helpful. The team have always provided prompt servicing and support – whenever we need someone to visit for service or maintenance call-outs, there’s always someone here straight away. Rather than it just being a business relationship I honestly treat them as friends because we have built up a friendship over the years.”

Shri Naik, owner of Scoops, with the barista coffee machine supplied by MannVend.
Shri Naik, owner of Scoops, with the barista coffee machine supplied by MannVend

“I honestly treat them as friends because we have built up a friendship over the years.”

Riley’s Garden Centre

Riley’s Garden Centre in Cooil Road, Braddan, is the Isle of Man’s second oldest business and can trace its history back to 1882. Today, it’s still run by the Riley family and has a strong reputation for providing quality products and excellent customer service. It’s also proud of its Manx heritage, and has a commitment to supporting the local economy.

MannVend’s history and principles have a great deal in common with Riley’s, says Managing Director Thomas Riley. “Working with local companies is very important to us. Our association with MannVend goes back to 2005 when we moved into our current premises. We now have a Sanremo Zoe Tall machine in our café which is perfect for our clientele, and it’s really user friendly so it’s easy for our staff to operate and maintain. MannVend’s customer service is excellent and they always respond quickly, even out of hours which is particularly important to us as the garden centre is open seven days a week.”

"MannVend’s customer service is excellent"

 

The Palace Hotel

‘For speed and volume, the 2 Cafitesse Excellence Touch coffee machines cope easily with our busy breakfast service in the Paragon Restaurant – we regularly serve over 300 guests in a short space of time. The customers serve themselves and the equipment has proved to be easy to use and very reliable.

Keith Vandermerwe, Operations Manager

"Easy to use and very reliable"

 

The Mannin Hotel

“The MannVend company slogan says it all – they truly are refreshment specialists. From the moment of our first enquiry, we’ve had a great working relationship with MannVend who helped us to choose the right machines and products to suit our demanding guests. Nothing has ever been too much trouble for the MannVend team and with their impeccable product knowledge and great customer service, it has been an absolute pleasure to work with them. I look forward to a very long relationship between Mannin Hotel and MannVend”

Rom Kesa – General Manager at the Mannin Hotel

"The MannVend company slogan says it all – they truly are refreshment specialists"

 

The Barbary Coast – Grill & Bar

When Darren Walker was planning the fit out for his new venture The Barbary Coast Grill and Bar, he already had a good idea of what sort of coffee making equipment would best suit his needs. As manager for thirteen years at the successful eating and drinking venue JAKS Bar and Steakhouse, Darren knew that the likely high demand of really good bean to cup coffee required something a bit special.

With this in mind he called in to MannVend to view the Karisma coffee machine, ably demonstrated by our sales manager Christine in our dedicated demonstration room. Time and again it has proved really helpful to our customers to be able to see a machine like this in full working order when planning such a significant investment.

This new super automatic coffee machine is dedicated to the cafe and restaurant market. The Karisma is attractive, easy to use and perfect for rapid and optimal service, ensuring a professional and consistent drink quality, cup after cup.

“We needed something that was quick and easy, but produced a really top quality drink”, Darren told us. “Experience at JAKS had shown us that it takes time to produce a good coffee from a traditional espresso machine, and that can be a problem when you have thirsty people queueing at the bar”.

Darren’s customers particularly enjoy the speciality coffees that they produce, adding flavoured syrups and even alcohol to create a great after dinner drink. “Our cappuccino is particularly good, and we get a really good froth on the top”, he told us.

Darren was pleased with the way the installation came together and all the usual construction delays that go along with a new build were happily accommodated by the team at MannVend. “Alun and Peter, the engineers from MannVend did a great job, and continue to offer back up and support if and when we need it.”

When asked if he had made the right choice, Darren said “Absolutely, it’s great!”

Mannvend also supplied Darren with a Bravilor HWA20 providing instant boiling water on tap at the bar. They offer a wide range of Birchall speciality teas and infusions, and our Sweetbird Smoothie mixes make a great base for some really exciting cocktails too.

When asked if he had made the right choice, Darren said “Absolutely, it’s great!”

 

The Neb Cafe

Teffine Butler and her team run a very busy  establishment at the Neb Café at Tynwald Mills. The cafe is always full of activity and at peak times her customers have been known to queue out of the door and through the ladies wear department next door!

With this in mind, Teffine needed a robust coffee machine that would produce a consistently excellent drink in the shortest possible time, so quality of product and queue management were her two main priorities. 

Dan from Mannvend recommended the Sanremo Verona. With its beautiful retro design , this Italian made machine provides a uniform extraction every time with a perfectly consistent crema.

The Verona was initially installed on a trial basis during one of their busiest spells, and it immediately lived up to expectations.

Teffine is delighted with the equipment: “It is consistent, quick and reliable, and the operation of the machine is foolproof – it’s a dream, it even has an auto cleaning function”.

Her team have all undergone extensive Barista Training within the dedicated training room at MannVend, and have developed an enthusiastic and professional approach to the art of making a good coffee:   “Our customers tell us we serve the best coffee on the Island!

“The inevitable queue is now much more manageable, enabling us to devote more time to up-selling from our unique Winter Warmers menu of speciality coffees and hot drinks.

“We have had wonderful support from Dan and the team at MannVend, they have been, and continue to be, a great help”.

“The inevitable queue is now much more manageable, enabling us to devote more time to up-selling from our unique Winter Warmers menu of speciality coffees and hot drinks."

 

Whistle Stop Coffee Shop

Since September 2008, Judith Cain has invested much love, attention and energy into her lovely coffee shop at the Port Erin Steam Railway Station. Things get better when they are done with passion and this lovely characterful space has evolved into a delightfully busy and vibrant café.

Quality is the key here, and Judith understands that as the mainstay of their business, the coffee needs to be the best available. With that in mind, they recently chose a San Remo Verona, a professional espresso machine that combines stunning looks with reliability and top performance to enhance the business.

The beautiful retro design of the Sanremo Verona makes a bold visual statement and MannVend have provided comprehensive Barista training. This has enabled the Whistle Stop Coffee Shop team to provide their customers with a superb range of popular speciality coffees. Judith is delighted with her new espresso machine and reports that her customers have commented on the quality of their coffee.

Reliability is crucial to busy operation such as this, so Judith has taken out a maintenance and service package with MannVend, giving her year round support from a team of expert service engineers. Judith says: “The help and support from the engineers at Mannvend has been amazing, nothing is too much trouble for them and they are always really helpful.”

Their delicious menu offers sandwiches, toasties, soups, jacket potatoes and salads, breakfast items, daily specials and a mouth watering array of freshly home baked cakes. To add to this they have a special gluten-free menu along with homemade gluten-free cakes.

In addition to the supply of equipment, MannVend have also helped Judith produce her own Whistle Stop Coffee Shop branded blend of coffee for retail sale, providing a further revenue stream.

“The help and support from the engineers at Mannvend has been amazing, nothing is too much trouble for them and they are always really helpful.”

 

Business Benefits

Save time and money

On average, staff will take 5 minutes to make themselves a hot drink. For a company with 30 staff, this would equate to 7.5 hours downtime a day for 3 drinks per person. At £12 per hour wages, that’s £23,400 a year spent on time making drinks the traditional way...

...A drinks machine can make a delicious drink in 20 seconds.

Internal Culture

People are demanding better quality coffee, or spending time away from the business to buy it. Bringing a bean to cup machine into your working environment changes all that – and creates a place where staff can engage with each other. Morale is always improved when fresh coffee is available in the workplace.

Hassle Free

You can opt for our full servicing and supply package and we’ll take care of everything, ensuring your machine is kept clean, serviced for optimal performance and manage supplies. Or, for our smaller machines, we can offer training to keep your machine clean, although our engineers are always on call should you require technical support.