Coffee machine recommendations?

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Hammered
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#3038308 17-Feb-2023 18:21

Handle9:
robjg63:
I seriously think this forum topic should be split into two. One branch for 'home appliance' coffee machines (say < $1000) that suit 95% of the population and the other branch for those rather more invested in the 'finer points' of coffee and coffee machines where there is no $ limit. The two branches have vastly different requirements and will just annoy each other.

I’m not sure that it’s a problem? One of the things I like about this thread is mostly gatekeeping is absent. That’s not the case on a lot of coffee forums.

This thread will not be split. You're right, it's working just fine as it is.

People often mistake me for an adult because of my age.

Keep calm, and carry on posting.

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#3039036 19-Feb-2023 14:40

new coffee recently and had to change the grind to suit. just shows how much the grind influences the outcome. i'm still tweaking the recipe a little.

as far as the cheap appliance type machines go, i would go get separate brewer and grinder. how good is the grinder going to be when the both machines together cost ~$500. you want a good grinder as that seams to be a major part of the brewing process.

https://youtu.be/AVYGxext8XI can you make good coffee with cheap grinders?

https://youtu.be/avM-XsaTBIc can you get good coffee from cheap espresso machine?

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#3039086 19-Feb-2023 18:23

tweake:

new coffee recently and had to change the grind to suit. just shows how much the grind influences the outcome. i'm still tweaking the recipe a little.

as far as the cheap appliance type machines go, i would go get separate brewer and grinder. how good is the grinder going to be when the both machines together cost ~$500. you want a good grinder as that seams to be a major part of the brewing process.

https://youtu.be/AVYGxext8XI can you make good coffee with cheap grinders?

https://youtu.be/avM-XsaTBIc can you get good coffee from cheap espresso machine?

Neither of those videos are very useful for what the OP asked. The £500 espresso machine video is far more relevant as he talked about the Bambino, which shares a lot of commonality with the BBE..

The grinder video is pointless. They are all essentially disposable not comparable to the BBE grinder.

tweake

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#3039118 19-Feb-2023 20:05

Handle9:

tweake:

new coffee recently and had to change the grind to suit. just shows how much the grind influences the outcome. i'm still tweaking the recipe a little.

as far as the cheap appliance type machines go, i would go get separate brewer and grinder. how good is the grinder going to be when the both machines together cost ~$500. you want a good grinder as that seams to be a major part of the brewing process.

https://youtu.be/AVYGxext8XI can you make good coffee with cheap grinders?

https://youtu.be/avM-XsaTBIc can you get good coffee from cheap espresso machine?

Neither of those videos are very useful for what the OP asked. The £500 espresso machine video is far more relevant as he talked about the Bambino, which shares a lot of commonality with the BBE..

The grinder video is pointless. They are all essentially disposable not comparable to the BBE grinder.

so your saying they put a $500+ grinder into a $500-700 machine? or they just overprice the hell out of their separate grinders?

i think it highlights that cheap grinders are to be avoided, while cheap espresso machines can be made to worked.

danielparker

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#3039125 19-Feb-2023 21:00

I have read all 19 pages.. and I'm looking for recommendations please.

My requirements will be for a machine for an office of 10 staff.

It needs to be able to have a duty cycle of about 20 cups / day.

Needs to be low maintenance. Probably either a super automatic or a capsule machine.

While I drink my coffee black, others will want frothed milk etc.

My goal is to stop staff from wanting to go to BP (Wild Bean Cafe) 300m away.. I'm not going to stop them from going.. but if we can do a decent enough coffee inhouse, why bother?

So, what do people recommend for something I can feed with beans, water and milk, and then select what I want, and get something that is acceptable?

Thanks

Daniel

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#3039133 19-Feb-2023 21:20

tweake:

so your saying they put a $500+ grinder into a $500-700 machine? or they just overprice the hell out of their separate grinders?

I'm saying neither of those things.

The grinders in that review are a whole lot worse than the BBE grinder. It's not the best grinder out there, as I mentioned above, but it's ok.

The espresso machines in that review are a whole lot worse than the BBE espresso machine. The bambino is quite comparable and from the same manufacturer so would be a far more useful comparison. The extra features the bambino has are mostly around milk.

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Handle9

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#3039138 19-Feb-2023 21:40

danielparker:
I have read all 19 pages.. and I'm looking for recommendations please.

My requirements will be for a machine for an office of 10 staff.

It needs to be able to have a duty cycle of about 20 cups / day.

Needs to be low maintenance. Probably either a super automatic or a capsule machine.

While I drink my coffee black, others will want frothed milk etc.

My goal is to stop staff from wanting to go to BP (Wild Bean Cafe) 300m away.. I'm not going to stop them from going.. but if we can do a decent enough coffee inhouse, why bother?

So, what do people recommend for something I can feed with beans, water and milk, and then select what I want, and get something that is acceptable?

Thanks

Daniel

I don’t have a specific recommendation other than to say in my experience office machines, especially super automatics, all need regular maintainence. They work hard and don’t get looked after very well.

We went through a ton of pretty expensive machines at work over the years and ended up with the commercial Nespresso machines. They have been pretty reliable but I don’t think they’re cheap to run.

sen8or

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#3039196 20-Feb-2023 08:24

We have the Nespresso commercial machine at work, I would say don't bother. Requires daily maintenance (milk system flushing which takes about 15 mins), we had 2 replaced within 12 months and both the replacements have also had technician out to sort out issues. Cost wise they are about 90c per capsule. The coffee is tolerable (better than instant), but not good - in no way would you say "cafe like" nor better than even the likes of wild bean.

For an office, you should go single group commercial machine and a grinder. Yes, there is a learning curve for staff to operate a coffee machine, but its not rocket science and within a week, most staff will be capable of making a decent enough coffee. Commercial machine will still require daily maintenance, but this is a 5 minute job. For the grinder, get one with a doser, coffee grounds are messy and doserless grinders tend to be messier.

tweake

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#3039523 20-Feb-2023 17:08

danielparker:

I have read all 19 pages.. and I'm looking for recommendations please.

My requirements will be for a machine for an office of 10 staff.

It needs to be able to have a duty cycle of about 20 cups / day.

Needs to be low maintenance. Probably either a super automatic or a capsule machine.

While I drink my coffee black, others will want frothed milk etc.

My goal is to stop staff from wanting to go to BP (Wild Bean Cafe) 300m away.. I'm not going to stop them from going.. but if we can do a decent enough coffee inhouse, why bother?

So, what do people recommend for something I can feed with beans, water and milk, and then select what I want, and get something that is acceptable?

Thanks

Daniel

its an interesting question and would like to hear what you end up with.

i can see the appeal of a fully auto espresso machine. but its limited by beans you buys. a pod machine can give a much wider range of coffees to choose from, and there is compatible pods by coffee suppliers. so you can actually get decent coffee out of them.

i have no decent experience with them other than the horrid pod coffee work got. i can make a better cup of instant than some of those and with the cost of pods we went back to instant.

https://youtu.be/iZEM1cC86t8 fully automatic machine review, no idea if they are available here or what price. but might be helpful with pro's and cons.

https://youtu.be/fRBOxyu2b2Q Oracle Touch by Breville

https://youtu.be/EvMwNnAtTL8 Nespresso Pod review

blackjack17

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#3039533 20-Feb-2023 17:24

We have this one I think F11 Dr Coffee

https://www.coffee4business.co.nz/office-coffee-machines-new-zealand

seems fine

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#3039868 21-Feb-2023 07:52

For an office, with around 20 cups a day or more, I’d look to rent a machine.
They’ll mostly maintain it, they’ll recommend the best type and they’ll charge you for it, but you’ll at least get something decent.
Get something that uses real milk, not powder.
Also don’t get too many beans at a time. They do go stale.

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openmedia

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#3074998 11-May-2023 13:24

My Breville The Infuser BES840 needs some repairs due to a blockage and just in case it isn't worthwhile I'm trying to find a small espresso machine that was recommended here a year or two ago. Trying to go back thru the threads but not having much luck. It wasn't a brand I was familiar with, and took considerably less space than my existing machine.

Any recommendations on compact espresso machines with a decent pump?

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jonathan18

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#3075043 11-May-2023 15:52

I have a Sunbeam Mini Barista as my work machine, and it's still going strong after a few years; not too slow for heating milk (and powerful enough to get a decent vortex on a big jug, which some small machines struggle with). The coffee it produces is decent, especially relative to the price of the machine when on sale. I also like that it has a 58mm group head, so the accessories are interchangeable with my f/s home machine.

That said, the only cheap model that Consumer recommends is the Breville Bambino and, if I was buying a small machine today, it's probably what I'd go with given Breville's reputation for making the best 'affordable' espresso machines.

I'd certainly recommend staying away from cheap Delonghi machines and their 'cappuccino frothers'.

openmedia

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#3075106 11-May-2023 16:28

jonathan18:

That said, the only cheap model that Consumer recommends is the Breville Bambino and, if I was buying a small machine today, it's probably what I'd go with given Breville's reputation for making the best 'affordable' espresso machines.

The Bambino is a little underpowered, but the Bambino Plus looks like a reasonable replacement for my current machine.

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openmedia

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#3075108 11-May-2023 16:34

openmedia:

jonathan18:

That said, the only cheap model that Consumer recommends is the Breville Bambino and, if I was buying a small machine today, it's probably what I'd go with given Breville's reputation for making the best 'affordable' espresso machines.

The Bambino is a little underpowered, but the Bambino Plus looks like a reasonable replacement for my current machine.

Ok I'm wrong. Same power and the reviews are generally very good

- https://craftcoffeespot.com/espresso/breville-bambino-vs-bambino-plus/

Generally known online as OpenMedia, now working for Red Hat APAC as a Technology Evangelist and Portfolio Architect. Still playing with MythTV and digital media on the side.

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