Repurposing a special edition Elektra

A Matter of Taste coffee bar is going to show the beauty and tradition of Italian espresso machines like no other shop in the area has. Solid-state relay PID controlled, multiple boilers, and digital displays are not features that will be present on one of the two espresso machines planned to be in the new location in Waterloo that MOT are patently waiting to get into.

The coffee machine I elude to above is the special edition Elektra "Old America" HX espresso machine. This machine was built in 2002 and Phong tells me that the espresso machine is one of only 100 machines of this build spec that was made at the time. In fact his machine was the first off the line. Only three of the machines were shipped to North America at that time- this being one. The Elektra has being retrofitted with a new copper boiler and some new process control components focused on the saftey of the machine. Here are some pictures of the inside

The one feature the machine has which is something that is considered fairly modern and sought after even today is volumetric control of the brew water. That was a pretty big deal to have this feature in and likely only the special edition would have had it then. The really unique aspect of the Elektra is the cover. Check this out.

That is a hand carved piece of copper. Phong said the carving is of a communal pub scene. To me it looks like something from the Neoclassical Period (yes I had to look that up). That drives home the Italian style, history and tradition behind Elektra that would suit even his Holiness, the Pope. Though it was a different kind of Elektra that was given to the Pope, to my dissappointment.

In any case, with Phong (or his trained staff) at the controls it's sure to be dialed in for "god shots" every Sunday morning, and then some. ;) ;)