ispyalexandra08 Senior Member Joined: 30 May 2008 Posts: 3 Location: Toronto, Ontario Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Wed Jul 2, 2008, 2:46am Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
Hello to all CGs...
I'm a pre-newbie and so I eagerly devour and greatly appreciate any and all related information, articles, comparisons, posts, opinions and rants, which I then try to sort through on my quest to make a "really good purchase decision" which started at Silvia/Rocky and is now somewhere around Pasquini Livia 90/Moka K2... So, thank you for all of it!
AND THEN... Just before I hit "checkout" at my online cart at GB (closer to $3,000 than $2,000, all in), I paused to search-out CG for "just one more" tidbit about the Moka K2 when I stumbled into this thread... Sure, I lost a(nother) night of sleep to thoroughly read through and process all of your posts and comments during these past 18 pages but perhaps, in return, I was spared from having lost several more... And, I'm extremely grateful for reading with my own eyes, posts from GB's own President as to its hackle-raising "high-/low-overhead customer" philosophy. I cross-referenced GB website and the reformulated-version of that policy still leaves a peculiar aftertaste.
Being a Canadian newbie, it seems more difficult to launch oneself into the world of coffee-geekdom here as we tend to have fewer choices available from Canadian vendors and often pay a whole-latte-more than US counterparts. Such prospects seem even more iffy when we factor in scant warranty and return policies. As a result, I thought I was near conclusion of closing the deal on my first espresso/grinder (and toys) purchase but, instead, I am left with a sense of greater frustration and apprehension. I've contemplated other vendors (online), and I would looooove to support certain US vendors (sadly, some do not ship to Canada) but I prefer to buy locally for convenience and with the hope/expectation that I, too, will receive local support if and when it is needed and more conveniently...
For now, I shall purchase not and I shall continue with research while simultaneously neglecting other areas of my life and surviving on pour-over and french-press with my whirly-blade and store-bought beans at home. I will specifically seek further CG threads re: Canadian-based/friendly vendors so as to alleviate myself from potential aggravation by high-overhead vendors as I foray into this brave new world of coffee-geekdom.
Do any of you CGs have further advice, guidance, tips or suggestions as to a Canadian-equivalent to places like CC, WLL, etc...?
ByronA Senior Member Joined: 24 Aug 2007 Posts: 375 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Rancilio S24, KitchenAid... Grinder: Compak K5, KitchenAid... Vac Pot: Don't want one Drip: Don't want one Roaster: Will eventually get one
Posted Wed Jul 2, 2008, 4:40am Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
Welcome to coffeegeek Alexandra. I'm glad this thread was of assistance. It continues to justify its existence regardless of what some posters would say. I have to admit that I was astounded by some of the comments of the president of GB. All I could do was shake my head and roll my eyes in wonder.
As for a Canadian market, I can't exactly say. I'm certain there must be some kind of vender aside from GB in Toronto that would suit your needs. Canadian internet stores do have very good shipping policies(no charge for the machine), and if you buy outside of Ontario, you actually save PST as well. There are some online stores based in Vancouver and Edmonton. Morala Trading here in Ottawa has some pretty decent starter machines as well. If you came out here, you could actually look at the machine too. You should be able to negotiate a decent price if you buy it all in one. My advice to you would be to ask CraigA. He is a really good resource, he is located in Toronto, and I think he would be happy to help.
Good luck, and if you want some company names, just email me. I'll send you what my research led me to. Oh...and BTW, I know you have read it here and probably don't really believe it deep down, but if nothing else, buy a superior grinder and the best and freshest beans you can get. That will make a bigger difference in the cup than any machine you can get. Take it from me, I could have saved myself some money if I had listened. Instead, I didn't and now own three coffee grinders. As well, you can use a good grinder for the life of your habit, hopefully a lifetime, where as the espresso machine itself (or pourover) will not likely last more than 10 or 20 years. :)
Posted Wed Jul 2, 2008, 2:57pm Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
My 2 cents:
I have been shopping at Green Beanery for 3 years, and have had nothing but positive customer service experiences. When I purchased my Silvia/Rocky combo in July 2005, there was an issue with a leaky boiler (from a manufacturer sealed box) .. the GB employee tried to help diagnose the problem, followed up by contacting Rancilio customer service, and finally deemed a replacement was in order. Since then, I have probably purchased 40-50 lbs of green beans, upgraded to a Mazzer Mini, and recently purchased a Behmor roaster.
This past weekend, I was making my morning capp and I heard a "snap" coming from Silvia's steam knob. The D-shaped spring holding the knob on failed (metal fatigue?) I checked around for replacement parts, but couldn't find anything local; parts from the usual places in the USA came with incredibly high shipping charges. I sent an email to Green Beanery on Sunday, received a reply on Monday telling me that I wouldn't hear back from the technician until today due to the Canada Day long weekend.. and sure enough, I received my email & picked up the part today at a comparable (low) price to the US suppliers.
Just wanted to put in a good word for a company that has always treated me respectfully as a customer.
Posted Wed Jul 2, 2008, 3:08pm Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
LordFoo Said:
This past weekend, I was making my morning capp and I heard a "snap" coming from Silvia's steam knob. The D-shaped spring holding the knob on failed (metal fatigue?) I checked around for replacement parts, but couldn't find anything local; parts from the usual places in the USA came with incredibly high shipping charges. I sent an email to Green Beanery on Sunday, received a reply on Monday telling me that I wouldn't hear back from the technician until today due to the Canada Day long weekend.. and sure enough, I received my email & picked up the part today at a comparable (low) price to the US suppliers.
Guess ya didn't check the website, as they sell the steam knob (with the D retainer) & 4 teflon O rings for $19.95 listed as a Rancilio Silvia Steam Valve Overhaul kit.. I hope just the clip was cheap enough, & you didn't have to buy this whole kit. The other parts can come in handy also. {;-)
Just wanted to put in a good word for a company that has always treated me respectfully as a customer.
Posted Wed Jul 2, 2008, 3:19pm Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
CraigA Said:
Guess ya didn't check the website, as they sell the steam knob (with the D retainer) & 4 teflon O rings for $19.95 listed as a Rancilio Silvia Steam Valve Overhaul kit..
Yeah I hear you. Hope you didn't spend more than a couple of bucks ($1.50) for it then. Those OEM factory O rings are $2.32 USD each & I'm sure the knob is at least $5 bucks or so ($5.12). {;-D
ispyalexandra08 Senior Member Joined: 30 May 2008 Posts: 3 Location: Toronto, Ontario Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Wed Jul 2, 2008, 4:44pm Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
Thanks for the information and I do appreciate additional GB perspectives! More food for thought... I plan to stop by GB and a few other local outfits (Creative Cookware, Faema, Zuccarini, EspressoPlanet, Morala Trading) and cross-reference online options (Caffe Tech, Espressotec) I'll check more GC posts for additional "first-time buyer" tips.
Posted Thu Jul 3, 2008, 1:22pm Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
Alexandra...make sure to get a roaster as well. I did not plan to get into roasting when I got my Silvia/Macap but it turns out to be a huge chore having to hunt down freshly roasted beans every weekend...much more conveniant to roast a small batch once a week and you can keep a large supply of green on hand without worry about it going stale.
Posted Fri Jul 4, 2008, 7:41am Subject: Re: WARNING! Horrible grinder buying experience from The Green Beanery.
I guess I should share my experiences with GB since I have placed a few orders with them. My first purchase I picked up a Macap grinder and some accessories. I did get my questions answered via email by someone who knew what they were talkin about, quite helpful. When I went to the place (not the new retail location) to pick up my order, there was some confusion about my order and the person helping me wasn't really much help/unable to answer any further questions I had. Since then, I have ordered green beans and accessories several times from them and have had no issues, all orders have been sent in a timely fashion. So basically my take is that it is good place to order from if you know what you want, but not a place that can help steer you in the right direction if you're clueless. Maybe things have changed since they now have a retail store...and I was able to get good help via email but never in person or even on the phone.
Symbols: = New Posts since your last visit = No New Posts since last visit = Newest post
Forum Rules: No profanity, illegal acts or personal attacks will be tolerated in these discussion boards. No commercial posting of any nature will be tolerated; only private sales by private individuals, in the "Buy and Sell" forum. No cross posting allowed - do not post your topic to more than one forum, nor repost a topic to the same forum. Who Can Read The Forum? Anyone can read posts in these discussion boards. Who Can Post New Topics? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post new topics. Who Can Post Replies? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post replies. Can Photos be posted? Anyone can post photos in their new topics or replies. Who can change or delete posts? Any CoffeeGeek member can edit their own posts. Only moderators can delete posts. Probationary Period: If you are a new signup for CoffeeGeek, you cannot promote, endorse, criticise or otherwise post an unsolicited endorsement for any company, product or service in your first five postings.
![CraigA: Steam Valve Overhaul Kit.jpg](javascript:ImagePopup("/images/39651/SteamValveOverhaulKit.jpg", 630, 500, "CraigA: Steam Valve Overhaul Kit.jpg");)
= No New Posts since last visit 