Can't decide between the Merrychef E1S or the E2S? We cook off some toasties and panini in the Merrychef E1S and E2S and compare the product side by side to help you decide which oven maybe right for you
A lot of food to go businesses are preparing to open up their kitchens and deciding it’s time to replace the old panini grill. One of the go to replacement brands of choice is Merrychef. We are always asked about the difference between the Merrychef E1S and the E2S as there is over £1000 difference between them.
Performance wise they are very similar as the video shows. The Merrychef E1S doesn’t have quite as powerful microwave as the E2S so it takes about 10 – 15 seconds longer to reach core temperature. This is not a huge difference and for many sites this will really increase the speed of service. So why would anyone choose the E2S? Capacity is the answer. The E1S is designed for sites that will do around 50 cook cycles per day where as the E2S is primed to do between 100 – 120 and for sites going above that, there is the 32A single or 3 phase version. However we generally advise that it is rare you would need to go for that model as the 13A model can keep up. The exception is for sites that are cooking constantly without any break between cook cycles.
The Merrychef E1S is really designed for Toasties / Panini (although it also does a great pizza in 2 minutes). The 800W microwave isn’t great for doing a lot of product from frozen and if you had items you were doing from frozen regularly (eg breaded chicken products) then the E2S would be a better option. A definite no-no in the E1S is any raw protein: no raw bacon or sausages! On the Merrychef website it does show cooking raw bacon and sausage in the E2S but we would definitely recommend against it as it will reduce the life span of the oven.
If you’ve got any questions about cook times in the ovens please do get in touch.