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1. Feet enlarge as the day goes on, and it's very common for feet to be different sizes.^1 I'd suggest double checking your shoe fit near the end of the day. Other issues could be caused by the way you're standing. If your shop doesn't have any bar pads^2 make sure to get some. Lastly make sure you're in decent shape, not obese, exercise regularly, and give yourself adequate rest.
   
   
2. I'm not sure exactly what you mean by an automatic machine. Could you expand on that? Regardless here are a few barista tips: when tamping espresso make sure to put the tamper in the middle of your palm. To find the spot make a straight line with your hand and forearm. Take your thumb of your opposite hand and find the area by the crease of your thumb by your wrist. There should be an area that you can perfectly rest a tamper. Always push from there because it puts less strain on your wrist and other joints. The second tip is to make sure you're not pinching your hand while steaming milk. My preference was to stick my three big fingers on the inside of the pitcher handle and to use my pinky on the outside to balance the pitcher. This is what felt most natural for my hand and caused the least stress.
   
   

There are ton of factors that need to be considered, but what's happening at your shop is unfortunate. It really sounds like it's one of those situations you should probably remove yourself from because it will take a lot of time and effort on your part to change the system and you'll likely see no reward for it.

Claiming you can pull a delicious shot in 5 seconds is like saying you can cook a full turkey in 30 minutes. Please don't get caught up in "It should be within 25-30 seconds" or whatever you may hear. Just your dose alone will change that a ton. So will roast profiles, ratios (ristretto is a ratio, not a time btw), grind size, roast date, etc.

You asked for resources though and I think to get a relatively unbiased opinion you should get the Scott Rao books The Professional Barista's Handbook and Everything but Espresso. Scott Rao isn't a cafe owner like Schomer or the Blue Bottle crew so the theory and methods aren't based on his own company's coffee. A lot of resources out there that say how a shot should be pulled are more specific to their coffee and the machines they use. I recommend these two books to everyone who wants to really learn coffee theory objectively aside from any one company's methods. Plus, this information will help you when moving from one shop to another since the theory stays the same.

Hope that helps!

This scale is only $10, & ought to fit under a cup in your drip tray if your owner is uber tight-fisted; it's not water proof & doesn't fit the whole portafilter on it, but you can make it work if you're careful--I bought one myself to use @ work (and at home, and traveling, and with yarn...) 'cuz it was easier than getting my boss to both invest in one & get around to remembering to order it; and it's served me pretty well for dialing in. (now to teach everyone else how to do it....)


Also remember that bottom line is what tastes good, even if that doesn't fit into what's done "typically" & to have fun experimenting. =)

The home sized esspresso machines cannot do foam properly, I have tried a lot of them. I did see that someone modified an Italian percolator and turned it into a steamer, you should try to diy it.

You can also try using a small milk frother but it won't exactly be microfoam.

This one is great, I have the two group version:

https://www.amazon.com/Nuova-Simonelli-Volumetric-Espresso-MAPPIA5VOL01ND003/dp/B06XHKCNZ5/ref=mp_s_a_1_43?keywords=espresso+machine&qid=1568072452&refresh=1&s=gateway&sr=8-43

Keep searching!! Best of luck. It going to be hard to buy a setup for less than 2 or 3k but look on your Facebook marketplace and you can find one for cheap.

There are specific almond milks that are used for the very purpose of steaming:

https://www.califiafarms.com/collections/plant-milks/products/barista-blend-32oz

https://www.amazon.com/Pacific-Barista-Original-Almond-Beverage/dp/B00X4IZRZS/ref=sr_1_3?gclid=Cj0KCQjwzunmBRDsARIsAGrt4muK0rb-V_zUhIRY6JwuFG2h41NF-u54KbLVkIMyxKQc49N0do3NRmcaAkwXEALw_wcB&hvadid=178382947096&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9031015&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t2&hvqmt=e&hvrand=9991440117978711379&hvtargid=aud-676677759524%3Akwd-156384584464&hydadcr=4853_9629488&keywords=pacific+almond+milk+barista&qid=1557863035&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011&rnid=2470954011&rps=1&s=gateway&sr=8-3

I'm sure there are other almond milks that are used in the coffee industry, but these 2 are pretty much the standard.

>There's always foam on top, but underneath it's like just, separated liquid.

Most likely this is due to it separating. This happens when it sits too long. On commercial machines you can pull a shot and steam at the same time. As soon as the shot is done pulling you'll most likely be finishing steaming at the same time, or a little before. The benefit of this is that the milk wont be sitting in a steam pitcher long enough for it to separate.

There is a work-around for home machines. Most home machines are single boiler which means you can't steam and pull a shot at the same time. You have to do one then the other. If you're concerned about milk separation, then you need to pull your shot then steam your milk. This is what I do and here is why:

If you are concerned about your espresso "expiring", that is a myth perpetuated by 2nd wave coffee chains (SBux, Peet's, Coffee Bean) and has been debunked on a scientific level by people withing the specialty coffee industry. If you are concerned more from a temperature perspective, afraid that your espresso will get cold, don't worry. The amount of hot steamed milk will compensate.

If you choose the other route ( steaming milk then pulling a shot ), here are some things to keep in mind:

Once you steam your milk you have seconds before the foam and the milk are going to separate. Even when I was working in the coffee industry and working with machines that can pull a shot and steam at the same time, we would always re-incorporate the milk right before we poured. Now, imagine a machine where the wait time is a little over 1 minute having to wait between pulling a shot and steaming. The milk will be WAY separated by then. Now, if you choose the route where you want to steam milk first them pull a shot, you're going to have to sit there and twirl the steam pitcher vigorously to keep the milk from separating. Also too, keep in mind that if the milk cools down too much from sitting in the steam pitcher, it doesn't matter how hot the espresso shot is, that amount of liquid wont be able to compensate for the amount of cooler milk mixing with it. Meaning, that much milk, if cooled by sitting too long will bring the temperature of the drink as a whole down.

From The Flavor Bible, these are the flavors that go particularly well with coffee & espresso:

• almonds
  
• amaretto
  
• anise
  
• bananas
  
• barbecue sauce
  
• beverages (What the… ? —Ed.)
  
• bourbon
  
• brandy
  
• caramel
  
• cardamom
  
• cheese, ricotta
  
• cherries
  
• chicken
  
• chicory
  
• CHOCOLATE, ESP. DARK
  
• chocolate, white
  
• cinnamon
  
• cloves
  
• COCOA
  
• coconut
  
• cognac
  
• CREAM
  
• curry
  
• custards
  
• dates
  
• fennel seeds
  
• figs
  
• game birds
  
• gravy
  
• ham (e.g., with red-eye gravy)
  
• hazelnuts
  
• honey
  
• ice cream, vanilla
  
• Irish whiskey
  
• lamb
  
• lemon
  
• lime
  
• liqueurs, coffee (e.g., Kahlúa, Tia Maria)
  
• macadamia nuts
  
• maple syrup
  
• milk, including sweetened, condensed
  
• nutmeg
  
• NUTS
  
• oats
  
• orange
  
• pears
  
• pecans
  
• persimmons
  
• pork
  
• prunes
  
• raisins
  
• rum
  
• star anise
  
• SUGAR: brown, white
  
• VANILLA
  
• vinegar, balsamic
  
  avoid: lavender
  
  recommended flavor affinities:
  
  
• coffee + bourbon + cream
  
• coffee + caramel + chocolate
  
• coffee + cinnamon + cream + lemon + sugar
  
• coffee + mascarpone + rum + sugar + vanilla
  
  Hopefully, you find some inspiration in here. (Maybe a signature latte with mascarpone, BBQ sauce and chicken?)
  
  If you're comfortable in the kitchen, I highly recommend this book. It's not a cookbook — you look up an ingredient and it suggests complementary flavors.
  

Rhinowares is fairly decent and well priced. I use them at home. I’ve also heard good things about Motta. They can be higher in price than rattleware, but they have a super interesting design.

It's hard to beat the affordable and durable Hario Mini Mill or Hario Kerton hand grinders. They aren't the best grinders around, but for below $40 and a little work, it's well worth the minor investment.

If you happen to choose the Mini Mill, check out the mods that are easily installed and your grind consistency will improve significantly.

This looks like a travel-friendly kit. For travel, and home-use, I'd recommend the Aeropress any day over a French press. Clever is a decent choice, but I've always preferred the results of an Aeropress. Great start though. Now you need a scale (http://amzn.to/2sZ1RaM) and a timer (cell phone).

I liked this one, Curious Baristas Guide to Coffee

Not only is it a good book, it is a gorgeous coffee table ornament!

For espresso, we use these and they're great. They have a .1g resolution, fit comfortably on a drip tray, and they're backlit.

This book has a whole picture guide to the move. Start with elbows out, and twist your distribution hand as you bring your elbows toward your body- this is a crappy description, but I hope it helps.

Shop owner here. Depends on your county's Health Department regulations but I don't know of any that only allow you to use Stermine. Most will let you use a tiny bit of bleach water as a sanitizer for dishes as well. The only thing is you have to have different test strips if using bleach instead of a sanitizer. Here's some other sterilizers I've found that are USDA certified so they should be accepted in your county

r/https://www.amazon.com/Bar-Maid-DIS-201-Dishwashing-Sanitizing/dp/B002TDTYEY/ref=sr_1_5_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1540655738&sr=1-5&keywords=sterilizer+tablets

r/https://www.amazon.com/Members-Mark-Commercial-Sanitizer-128/dp/B0787938GN/ref=sr_1_4_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1540655787&sr=1-4&keywords=sterilizer+tablets

We use this...works great.

We did quite a few tests and this worked much better than a spoon.

American Metalcraft SBW10 Stainless Steel Bar Whisk, Square, 10 1/2" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GZZSKXW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_qBtUBbER9CMKM

I have THIS model by Black and Decker. I love it. It does the job nicely for pre-set home coffee when I'm not making lattes at work. I almost went with a different brand because it had higher ratings, but after reading the reviews I saw it required differently-shaped filters, and I didn't want the 150+ filters I already had to go to waste. So that's another plus, it takes normal home-machine filters (which are usually cheapest).

I much, much prefer my thermal carafe to the glass ones more commonly used. There's not only no more "oops, left the machine(burner) on and the glass pot has coffee sludge burned into it AGAIN" issues, but as a fellow barista, you probably also understand that continually cooking your coffee messes up the flavor. I firmly believe there's nothing wrong with a good percolator for home use, especially for the convenience of programming it to have your coffee ready when you want it. A solid coffee will survive being percolated, never fear.

Here's what I use. It works wonderfully. You have to convert from brix to TDS, but that's just a multiplication by .8455 to save hundreds of dollars.

http://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-Refractometer-Automatic-Compensation-Resolution/dp/B007Z4IN58/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1414704702&sr=8-2&keywords=brix+digital+refractometer

https://www.amazon.com/POKAL-GLASS-SHOTS-CLEAR-GLASSES/dp/B008H4SDKU Its something similar to this, but the one my cafe uses is an unnamed brand. Got it for super cheap from a crockery store in Petaling Street, Malaysia.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Professional-Baristas-Handbook-Preparing/dp/1605300985