Aarke Coffee System: two-minute review

If you’re in the market for a statement coffee machine, few options catch the eye quite like the Aarke Coffee System. With an unmissable chrome finish, it cuts a dash on any countertop, and the luxe design cues don’t stop with the stainless steel construction: from the knurled control knob to the weight of the grinder itself, there’s a lot about the setup that feels premium.

Comprised of a bean grinder and drip coffee maker, which can be bought and used independently, the two parts make most sense when connected together by wire. The cable itself is slightly unsightly, but automation is the pay-off: set the control knob to A and the grinder will churn out the right amount of coffee based on how much water is in the tank.

It’s a clever trick that reflects the streamlined approach of the whole system. Just a single button manages the maker, its hot plate and the descaling mode. You’ll find more controls on the grinder, including a collar that clicks as you twist to set the grind size, as well as a satisfyingly sturdy on/off switch.

What you don’t get is a great degree of manual influence over the brew. While you can fine-tune the quantity, strength and grind size, you can’t change the temperature – either for the brew or the hot plate. You might expect that option for the money, but the Aarke automatically regulates temperatures instead. That’s because this system is more about making slick and efficient brews in style.

In that sense it excels. Fill the tank and a light inside automatically illuminates so that you can see the water level. Hit the button and it heats up quickly, with the water head evenly wetting the coffee bed for maximum extraction. The result every time is an enjoyable pot of coffee with plenty of depth and flavor.

For such an expensive system, we encountered more niggles than we’d expect. The grinder jammed up twice, even with regular brushing. The supplied catch cup doesn’t sit perfectly against the grinder, which can lead to overshoot. And the carafe doesn’t keep coffee especially hot once it’s off the plate.

So the Aarke Coffee System is an interesting proposition. It’s beautifully built, simple to operate and has some clever automated features. Yet it’s not quite automated enough for uninitiated users to master without a demonstration, nor is it faultless. But if you want an exquisite solution for reliably good coffee and you’re happy to pay for it, there’s nothing quite like what Aarke is offering.

Aarke Coffee System: price and availability

• Coffee System costs $758 / £620
• Coffee Maker costs $379 / £300 (standalone)
• Coffee Grinder costs $379 / £300 (standalone)

Bean-to-cup coffee rarely comes cheap – and the Aarke Coffee System is no exception. Priced at $758 / £620 (about AU$1,200) for the Coffee Maker and Coffee Grinder combo, it’s a pretty serious investment – especially for a drip filter system which has limited controls.

That makes the Aarke Coffee System more expensive than any other machine in our list of the best drip coffee makers, including the De'Longhi TrueBrew CAM1025MB – a US-only bean-to-cup machine with a more sophisticated digital interface.

It’s worth noting that the constituent parts of the Aarke system can also be bought individually. The Coffee Maker costs $379 / £300 (about AU$450), while the Coffee Grinder is priced at $379 / £320 (about AU$600). That means you don’t save anything by buying the Coffee System versus purchasing each element separately – so you could start out with one and add the other later.

You can also pick up an optional Thermal Jug, which is vacuum-insulated and designed to keep your brew warmer for longer than the carafe included with the Coffee Maker. It’s yours for $99 / £80 (about AU$160).

• Price score: 4/5

Aarke Coffee System: specs

Aarke Coffee System: design

• Separate grinder and coffee maker
• Polished stainless steel finish
• Streamlined, tactile controls

With its chromed stainless steel finish, the Aarke Coffee System is an unmissable presence on any counter. There’s an industrial quality to the design, from the bolted-on nameplate to the way that the filter basket locks into place. It’s a beautiful bit of kitchen kit, even if its polished surfaces leave nowhere for fingerprints or spilt coffee to hide.

The system is comprised of Aarke’s Coffee Grinder and Coffee Maker. These can be bought and used separately, but they work best when paired together. Connecting them by a coiled cable unlocks the system’s party trick: fill the brewer’s tank, set the quantity to automatic and the grinder will churn out coffee to match the volume of water.

It’s a clever trick that works well in practise, but the cable feels like an unsightly piece of clutter in what is otherwise a streamlined setup. You can wind away some of the wire underneath, but with a pair of power cables also trailing away from the two machines, these leads do feel like a distraction. For a design-first coffee maker with a serious price tag, we think Aarke could have done more to neaten up the wiring.

Because the grinder and brewer stand separately, the Aarke Coffee System isn’t the most compact bean-to-cup option on the market. If you want the two to sit side-by-side, you’ll need to clear a fair amount of counter space. That said, the overall footprint isn’t unmanageable.

Both units are weighty in the right way. At 9.5lb/4.3kg, the grinder in particular has a heft that feels nicely premium. So do its tactile controls. A knurled knob on the side sets the grind quantity, with an additional dial built-in to fine-tune the strength. The collar twists with a satisfying click to set the grind size, while a satisfyingly sturdy lever starts and stops the grinding.

One unmarked button is all you’ll find on the brewer itself, to control the brewing, hot plate and descaling mode. You can also hold it for three seconds to bloom the coffee before the main brew. This setup reflects the minimalist approach of the whole system. You don’t get the kind of manual control offered by drip makers like the De’Longhi TrueBrew CAM1025MB, with no option to change the water temperature.

Because everything’s pared back and unlabelled, there is a little bit of a learning curve across the grinder and brewer. That said, once you’ve got the hang of it, this is a very easy machine to use.

There are several neat features which show the thought that’s gone into the setup: a grind size guide on the bean basket lid; a light inside the tank which illuminates when you add water; a valve beneath the filter basket, which stops coffee from dripping onto the hot plate when the carafe is removed. The hot plate also detects when the carafe isn’t in place, turning off to save energy.

There are some oversights, though. Chief among them is the included catch cup, which doesn’t sit flush against the grinder. As a result, ground coffee will often overshoot and spill around the base. The carafe also doesn’t feel as premium as the rest of the machine and doesn’t offer much insulation when taken off the hot plate.

These imperfections detract from what is otherwise a beautiful coffee maker. In that respect, the Aarke Coffee System falls just a little bit short for the money, but the aesthetics and interface do a lot to make up for it – especially if you want something slick, without too much complexity.

• Design score: 4/5

Aarke Coffee System: performance

• Relatively straightforward to use
• Brews quickly and consistently
• Grinder spout can block up easily

As a premium bean-to-cup setup that brews consistently tasty coffee without much fuss, the Aarke Coffee System performs well. With the grind quantity set to automatic, there are four human inputs: beans in the grinder, water in the tank and a filter paper in the basket – plus freshly ground coffee transferred from the catch cup to the filter.

Once you know the process, the Aarke Coffee System is fundamentally straightforward and – crucially – makes good coffee. With capacity for up to 10 cups’ worth in a single brew, you can easily churn out batches for yourself and guests. It’s pretty quick, too, taking just a few minutes to fill the carafe.

The showerhead covers pretty much the whole of the filter basket and does a decent job of wetting the coffee bed. According to Aarke, water temperature and flow rate are optimized based on the quantity in the tank. This automated approach means you don’t get any modes for different coffee styles. The system is simply designed to brew consistently good filter coffee.

In our experience, that’s what it does. With a range of different beans, the Aarke Coffee System delivered good extraction and nicely balanced flavors, without any bitterness. Using the bloom mode pre-soaks the grounds to reduce sourness, although whether you’ll notice a difference depends on both your palate and the beans you’re using.

We also found the hot plate temperature pretty much spot on. We never tasted any bitterness from burnt coffee at the bottom, which is down to how the hot plate operates: it isn’t designed to keep your brew warm indefinitely. Instead, the system gradually reduces power to the plate over 40 minutes. This is better for taste but because the time setting can’t be overridden, it’s not ideal if you want a pot of coffee to keep going back to throughout the morning.

As mentioned above, you get much more control over the grinder. We didn’t test all 50 of its grind settings, but we did find that it produces a consistent grind and quantity of coffee. Dialled in for espresso, French press or drip filter, it’s a quality flat burr grinder that would work well as a standalone option with a different brewer – albeit without the automatic hook-up.

On its default setting, we found the automatic mode resulted in coffee that was a little strong for our taste. That’s easily adjusted using the fine-tuning dial or by manually setting the grind quantity to one cup less for the same amount of water.

It is loud, but that’s the nature of the beast. More frustrating was the fact that it jammed up twice, due to ground coffee clogging up at the top of the spout. This happened after only a few uses. You’ll need to regularly and vigorously clean the spout with the included brush to avoid this, which is a slightly messy process and means the Aarke Coffee System requires more maintenance than something like the De'Longhi TrueBrew CAM1025MB.

• Performance score: 4/5

Should I buy the Aarke Coffee System?

Buy it if

Don't buy it if

KitchenAid KF8: also consider

Not completely sold on the Aarke Coffee System? Here are a couple of alternatives to consider.

How I tested the Aarke Coffee System

• Used every day for a month
• Tested with different beans and grind settings
• Cleaned out the grind spout several times

To test the Aarke Coffee System, I used it as my main coffee maker for a month. Every morning, I would grind a fresh batch of beans, tip them into the filter basket and brew several cups’ worth for me and my partner. I also brewed up the occasional afternoon boost – and because I tested it in December, the system was also put to use making coffee for guests over the festive season.

To fully understand the capabilities of the system, I tried a range of different grind sizes and strength settings. I used the grinder on its automatic mode, as well as manually adjusting the cup quantity to find a setting that suited my taste.

I also tested the system with a range of different beans over the course of the month, to put the grinder through its paces and understand how well the Aarke Coffee System extracts different flavor profiles.

While I haven’t reviewed too many coffee machines in my many years as a product tester, I know what makes a good coffee: I’ve been drinking the stuff for a long time – and I’ve made brews using everything from French presses to pod machines to portable hand pumps.

Find out more about how we test.

Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker: 2-minute review

The Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker is a super slick, modern drip coffee machine that gives filter brewing the smart treatment with automatic water temperature adjustment, dosage calculations, carefully timed blooming of coffee before brewing, and presets tailored for different roasts. There's even a cold brew mode, which produces deliciously smooth results without you having to wait overnight.

If that sounds like a little too much effort (or you live with someone who's less exacting about their brew), there's also an Auto Brew mode that lets you use the Aiden like an ordinary manual drip machine - just load in your preferred quantity of grounds, and it will run until the water tank is empty.

The timer is a smart addition, though you'll need to make sure you're prepared with your coffee mug as soon as it's finished because the Aiden Precision Coffee Maker doesn't have a hot plate and while the carafe is double-walled it loses heat quite rapidly. You can minimize this problem by pre-heating it before brewing, but that's not a viable option if you're using the timer.

The Aiden Precision Coffee Maker has a mobile app (available for iOS and Android) with some handy extra features, like customizable brewing profiles that you can share with other people, and the option to update the machine's firmware. You can link the coffee machine to your phone using a QR code by selecting 'Connectivity' from the settings menu, but it's entirely optional.

Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker: price & availability

• Launched at $365 / £365 (about AU$580).
• Available with coffee grinder for $111 more

The Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker launched in July 2024 and is available direct from Fellow in the US, or from Amazon in the UK. It has a list price of $365 / £365 (about AU$580).

Unlike some drip coffee makers we've tested, such as the Cuisinart Grind & Brew, the Aiden Precision Coffee Maker doesn't have a grinder. If you don't already own one, Fellow offers the machine bundled with a conical burr grinder for $476 (about £380 / AU$760).

That's about the same price as the Moccamaster KBGV Select, which currently sits at number one in our guide to the best drip coffee makers, and costs $359 / £229 / AU$515. Both are premium machines, but with the KBGV Select you're paying for a super tough manual machine that should last a lifetime, while the Aiden's price tag comes from its smart brewing technology. Both justify their list prices - it's just a question of where your priorities lie.

• Value score: 4.5/5

Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker: design

• Stylish, modern aesthetic
• Simple control dial
• Single and batch brewing baskets

The Aiden Precision Coffee Maker is beautifully designed - a compact black cuboid with a small, bright display panel, a single control dial, and a matching matt black carafe. Every part of the machine feels robust and well-made, from the sturdy hinge on the frosted plastic water tank (with clearly marked measurements on the front) to the smooth movement of the control knob.

During brewing, the LCD display shows a countdown timer and the current stage of the brewing process (such as 'blooming' or 'pulsing'), which is particularly handy since the black carafe doesn't let you see how much coffee is inside.

The machine has a maximum capacity of 1.5 liters (about 53oz), and brews in increments of 120ml (a standard tasse à café). A typical coffee mug holds around 280ml, so you'll need to set it to two cups for your usual morning brew.

It's supplied with two baskets - one for servings up to three cups, and one for bigger batch brews. It comes with filter papers designed for the larger basket; during testing, I found that my standard flat-bottomed 1x4 filter papers fitted the small one just fine. The machine can detect which basket you have inserted and will instruct you to set the 'shower' head to the appropriate color-coded setting so water is pulsed evenly over the grounds.

The carafe is well crafted, with a drip-free spout and sturdy handle, but as mentioned above, there's no hot plate in the machine's base to keep it warm when brewing has finished.

The Aiden is a piece of cake to keep clean; the baskets and carafe are easy to wash with warm, soapy water, and you can keep the body of the machine looking like new with a damp cloth. There's also a descaling mode to keep the water lines clear, which works with regular coffee machine descaling liquid. It's recommended that you do this every three months.

Fellow advises grinding your coffee coarser if you find mess in the brewing chamber once you're done, but this was never an issue for me. I used a Dualit burr grinder on a relatively coarse setting suggested for drip machines.

• Design score: 4/5

Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker: performance

• Automatic and guided brewing modes
• Very quiet in operation
• No hotplate, and carafe cools quickly

The Aiden Precision Coffee Maker gives you a choice: an Instant Brew mode that works like a standard manual drip coffee maker, and a Guided Brew option that lets you tinker with settings, suggests an appropriate dosage, and brews only the amount of coffee you've specified.

Guided Brew defies the preconception that drip coffee is inferior to espresso, tailoring the temperature of the water, how long the coffee is allowed to bloom, and how long is spent sending pulses of water through it afterward depending on the dosage and whether you've selected light, medium, or dark roast. You'll even be asked to enter your elevation relative to sea level during setup. It's not something I'd typically consider, but water boils at temperatures below 100°C/212°F at elevations above sea level, which can result in under-extracted coffee if you don't adjust for it.

I particularly enjoyed the machine's cold brew setting. It's much quicker than brewing overnight in your fridge, taking 1.5-2 hours from start to finish depending on the quantity. The Aiden Precision Coffee Maker still uses hot water to bloom the coffee but then switches to cold for the remainder of the process, and the resulting coffee is incredibly smooth. Pop the carafe in the fridge for a while once it's done, and it's fantastic.

There's also a timer, which is something I always appreciate with a drip coffee machine. The lack of a hot plate means you'll need to be organized in the morning to grab your fresh brew before it cools, but it shouldn't disturb any light sleepers who want a lie-in. During my tests, it only reached a maximum of 59dB while pulsing water through the grounds. That's about the same as a dishwasher, and the sound only lasted a couple of seconds at a time. Cold brew mode doesn't pulse and is nearly silent.

For me, the drawback of the Aiden Precision Coffee Maker is how quickly the hot coffee cools down. Not only is there no hot plate, the carafe seems to lose heat quickly despite its double-walled design and Fellow's claim that it "keeps your coffee warm for hours in any room of the house". In my tests, a four-cup serving cooled down significantly within half an hour in my kitchen.

That's not a problem if you're only brewing a cup or two, but the machine has a maximum capacity of 1.5 liters, and it's a real shame if you brew a batch and it goes cold before you can get through it all. You could decant your coffee into an insulated bottle or carafe once it's done brewing to keep it nice and hot, but that's an extra step I'd rather avoid if possible.

Not everyone likes keeping their drip coffee on a hot plate, and leaving your drink on one for too long will definitely affect the taste, but for me, one of the joys of a drip machine is being able to brew a carafe and come back for a second cup. And if I've set a timer to brew my coffee in the morning, I don't want to find a cold carafe if I hit snooze on my alarm and spend a few extra minutes in bed.

It's a shame because the Aiden Precision Coffee Maker is otherwise superb. It does its job exceptionally well, but you should be aware that it won't keep your beautifully brewed drink hot for long.

• Performance score: 4/5

Should you buy the Aiden Precision Coffee Maker?

Buy it if

Don't buy it if

Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker: also consider

If the Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker hasn't won you over, here are two other options to think about.

How I tested the Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker

I tested the Aiden Precision Coffee Maker using a variety of coffees from Clifton Coffee Roasters, comparing the results to those from a fully manual filter coffee machine and a V60 coffee dripper. The cold brew was compared to coffee steeped overnight in a fridge. Coffee was ground to the same coarseness using an electric burr grinder. The baskets and carafe were cleaned between uses, and I used filtered tap water for all beverages.

For more details, see how we test.

KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine KF8: two-minute review

The KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine KF8 is a truly premium bean-to-cup espresso machine, which automates the entire coffee-making process, but also gives you a surprising amount of control over your drinks. Each of the many drink types can be customized with your preferred strength, body, temperature, and volume - preferences that you can then save to your personal profile so everyone in the household can have their coffee exactly the way they like it.

The KF8 comes with very few instructions, but once you power it on, you’ll realize that’s because it doesn’t need them. You will be guided through every step of preparing the FK8, loading beans, filling the tank, and brewing your coffee with clear instructions and illustrations on the bright, responsive 5in touchscreen.

Interestingly, the KF8 takes both whole coffee beans and grounds (so you can opt for ready-ground decaf in the evening, for example), but it’s worth noting that you can only add one scoop of ground coffee at a time. This is primarily a bean-to-cup machine, with an alternative only for occasional use.

Coffee is consistently well extracted, with creamy golden crema, and the machine is much less noisy than you might expect while brewing - a fact that has earned it the Quiet Mark seal of approval. During my testing, most of the coffee-making process was no louder than the background murmur you might expect in a library.

The automatic milk frother works well too, and offers options for both dairy and plant-based milk. Surprisingly, almond milk foamed even better than dairy during my tests. Most bean-to-cup coffee makers only have one setting that’s optimized for dairy, so this was a pleasant surprise.

It’s certainly expensive (see below for details) but if you enjoy really good coffee and don’t want the hassle of preparing it yourself, it doesn’t get much easier than this.

KitchenAid KF8: price and availability

Bean-to-cup coffee machines are always pricey due to their complexity, and the KF8 is one no exception. It has a list price of $1,999.99 / £1,899 / AU$2,599, and is available direct from KitchenAid worldwide, or from third-party retailers like Currys in the UK and Williams Sonoma in the US.

It’s roughly the same price as our current top-rated bean-to-cup coffee maker, the Breville Oracle Touch (known as the Sage Oracle Touch in the UK), which is also operated via a generously sized touchscreen, but is semi- rather than fully-automatic.

It’s a big investment, but the extra features like advanced customization of your drinks, the ability to use both beans and grounds, the option to purge all coffee from the system when you want to try something new, and the sheer ease of use help justify that price tag.

• Value score: 4/5

KitchenAid KF8: specs

KitchenAid KF8: design

The KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine KF8 is an attractive, modern-looking coffee maker, finished in brushed metal and black (shown here), white, green, or stainless steel to match your other appliances. It’s one of the taller and longer coffee machines I’ve tested, measuring 10.2 x 14.3 x 15.2in / 260 x 363 x 385mm (W x H x D), but its narrow front means it doesn’t actually take up too much space on the kitchen counter.

This is a premium machine, and it shows in touches like the accessible design of the water tank, which has an ergonomic carry handle that makes it easy to lift out, and is supplied with a screw-in water filter. The KF8 also comes with a water hardness testing strip so you can configure it accordingly, and KitchenAid recommends filling it with fresh (not distilled) water every day for the best results.

Opening the largest door on the top of the machine reveals the bean hopper, plus a chute for inserting ground coffee (ideal if someone in your home prefers robusta to arabica, or you want to switch to decaf in the evening). There is also a button inside that allows you to remove the hopper for cleaning.

You’ll be offered the choice of using the hopper or the chute when you start up the machine, though it’s worth bearing in mind that you can only insert a single scoop of grounds at a time. There’s a measuring scoop supplied to make this easy, but this is primarily a bean-to-cup machine. If you want to use ready-ground espresso regularly, you could save some cash by opting for a semi-automatic coffee maker instead.

The machine’s dispenser moves smoothly up and down to accommodate different sized cups, and I was particularly impressed with the design of the milk system. Most fully automatic coffee makers use milk from a tube dangling in an open-topped container. The KF8’s milk container is covered at all times, which seems more hygienic, and is less likely to spill. It tucks neatly to the side without spoiling the coffee maker’s clean lines.

All drink choices are made using the bright 5in touchscreen, which is the biggest I’ve seen on any coffee maker I’ve tested to date, and feels pleasantly responsive in use.

A service door on the right-hand side of the machine allows you to access the brew unit for cleaning. The machine is supplied with two cleaning tablets, and more can be bought from Kitchenaid. To clean it, first rinse the brew unit with cold water and dry it as directed, then insert the cleaning tablet, place a large cup underneath the dispenser, and let the machine handle the rest. The process takes a long time, but you won’t need to repeat it regularly. It’s also possible to purge all coffee beans and grounds from the machine (ideal for when you want to use a different type of bean), and even evaporate everything from the water system after emptying the tank, which are both unusual but useful features.

On the subject of cleaning, when you first use your KF8, it’s worth knowing that the machine is tested with real coffee at Kitchenaid’s factory. It’s thoroughly cleaned before being shipped out (there were no traces of coffee in my review unit) but if you do happen to spot a stray grain or two, that’s why.

• Design score: 5/5

KitchenAid KF8: performance

When I first unpacked the KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine KF8, I was surprised how few instructions were provided. The manual looked chunky, but the section for each language was surprisingly brief for such a feature-packed device. Upon powering it up, however, the reason soon became clear - the KF8 guides you through every step of setup, brewing coffee, and cleaning via clear instructions on its large touchscreen display.

There’s almost no need to refer to the paper manual at all. Each instruction is presented in plain language, with images where necessary. It really couldn’t be easier to use.

The power button is on the right-hand side of the machine, so make sure you don’t position it right against a wall. Once you’ve pressed it, the KF8 will guide you through the process of installing the water filter and filling the tank. You’ll then be prompted to put a container under the dispenser to rinse it through - a standard coffee mug is the perfect size. When that’s done, load up beans (and grounds if you like) and you’ll receive the exciting message that “you are ready to start your coffee experience”.

There are 15 different drink options to choose from, most of which are customizable:

• Cappuccino
• Espresso
• Caffe Latte
• Espresso Lungo
• Macchiato
• Latte macchiato
• Americano
• Flat white
• Coffee
• Ristretto
• Cortado
• Frothed milk
• Warmed milk
• Hot water
• Green tea

If you choose a coffee drink, you’ll be offered the chance to select body, volume, and strength. The machine will then brew and dispense your drink. Once it’s done, you’re given the option to save any adjustments to your favorites for easy access next time. Members of your household can make their own named profiles for their custom drinks, which is a nice feature.

The ability to adjust the volume of each drink is welcome too, letting you use non-standard cups with ease. Some other bean-to-cup coffee makers require you to set the size of your cups through an awkward manual process, which isn’t easy to change again later.

I also appreciated the option to choose whether milk or coffee is dispensed first for lattes and cappuccinos. Bean-to-cup machines usually pour your espresso shot through the milk, which is the opposite way you’d do it yourself, and leaves a brown spot in the foam.

I tested the KF8 with fresh beans from my local coffee shop Mokoko, and the machine reliably produced lovely espresso with a thick, golden crema. It was definitely some of the best tasting coffee I’ve tried from a bean-to-cup machine.

You can also choose between dairy and plant milk settings - most bean-to-cup machines (like the Smeg BCC13 I tested recently) are optimized for dairy, so this is a welcome addition. There are no options for different plant milks, but during my tests I got the best results with almond milk rather than oat or soy. In fact, almond milk produced even silkier foam than dairy, which was surprising - normally I find almond milk foam stiff. Whichiver milk I used, it was always heated to just the right temperature - pleasantly sweet but never scorched.

I got the best results with lattes and cappuccinos when I increased the volume of the drink, adding more milk. The default setting is quite short and didn’t produce enough foam for my liking, so it’s definitely worth taking some time to create a preset that works for you.

One of the key selling points of the KF8 and its smaller siblings is their Quiet Mark certification, and the KF8 is definitely quieter than most. While making a latte it very briefly reached 66dB while grinding the beans, but the average volume was just 44dB. That’s about the same noise level you might expect in a library. I was particularly surprised how quietly the KF8 was able to foam and steam milk, which is normally one of the noisiest parts of the coffee-making process.

Used coffee pucks are dispensed into an easily removable bin that you can access by gently lifting and pulling out the drip tray. The tray has a spout at the back that makes it very easy to empty and rinse. After that, you’ll be prompted to connect the milk hose to the drip tray so it can be rinsed through with hot water. It’s a neater solution than that of many fully automatic coffee machines, which require you to use a separate container of water for the same purpose. The dispenser itself will also be rinsed, so place a mug underneath when prompted to catch the used water. The whole process is fast and simple.

Should I buy the KitchenAid KF8?

Buy it if

Don't buy it if

KitchenAid KF8: also consider

Not completely sold on the KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine KF8? Here are a couple of alternatives to consider.

How I tested the KitchenAid KF8

I tested the KitchenAid Fully Automatic Expresso Machine KF8 over the course of several days, making each type of drink available through the menu, making customizations, and saving them to a personal profile for re-use later.

I used freshly roasted beans from a local coffee company in the KF8's hopper, plus pre-ground espresso in the chute. I tested the milk system using full-fat dairy milk, barista oat milk, soya milk, and almond milk - all fresh and cold from the fridge.

I refilled the water tank before each use, and ran the full battery of cleaning programs at the end of testing, including cleaning the milk system, purging coffee beans, cleaning the brew unit, and evaporating remaining water.

Find out more about how we test.

Smeg BCC13: one-minute review

The Smeg BCC13 is a fully automatic bean-to-cup espresso machine with an automatic milk frother, which produces consistently well extracted coffee time after time.

The BCC13 is built to a very high standard, with thoughtful touches like an easy to access dump bucket for grounds; refill, cleaning, and descaling alerts; and smooth interior surfaces that are a piece of cake to keep clean. The machine warns you whenever refilling or cleaning is necessary, and a quick clean cycle of its milk and dispenser system takes just one minute from start to finish.

It has presets for nine different drinks, plus hot water for making tea, and you can tailor the length of lattes, cappuccinos, and americanos to suit the size of your cups. The most popular drinks are available with a single tap of the buttons on top of the machine, and less common options can be accessed by holding a button to access a secondary menu. It's not always immediately obvious which button relates to which drink, so you may find yourself relying on the quick start guide for the first week or so, but you'll soon get the hang of it.

This is the first coffee maker in the BCC series with an automatic milk frother, and it works extremely well. Just pour your milk into the robust container (which has an airtight lid so you can store it in the fridge), immerse one end of the rubber tube, and gently push it into place on the side of the dispenser. The BCC13 produces thick, creamy foam for cappuccinos and lattes, and the milk is heated enough to break down the lactose for a delicious, sweet foam without ever being scalded.

It doesn't work well with plant-based milks (even barista ones), but that's typical for a coffee maker with an automatic frother and Smeg does warn you that results won't be the same as they are with dairy. If you enjoy oat or soya in your lattes and cappuccinos, you might prefer to opt for one of Smeg's coffee makers with a manual steam wand, which give you total control. Our guide to the best espresso machines includes lots more options to check out.

Smeg BCC13: price and availability

• List price: $1,200 / £799.95 / AU$1,199
• Launch date: July 2024
• Availability: global

The Smeg BCC13 launched in July 2024, as a successor to the Bean to Cup BCC02. It has a list price of $1,200 / £799.95 / AU$1,199, and although it was only available in the UK initially, it can now be bought worldwide.

That's more than the BCC02, which retailed at around $1,000 / £680 / AU$970 depending on the retailer, but the price increase isn't huge considering the BCC13 has been upgraded with a fully automatic milk frother.

Bean-to-cup machines always carry a premium price tag, but the BCC13 certainly isn't the most expensive coffee maker of its type. The De'Longhi Dinamica Plus is an excellent machine, but at $1499.95 / £1199.99/ AU$1529 , it's beyond the budget of all but the most serious espresso lovers.

If you're on a tighter budget, I recommend considering a manual espresso machine like the Breville Bambino Plus, which retails at $499.95 / £399.95 / AU$649. There's more of a learning curve and you'll need a separate coffee grinder, but it's half the price and earned four and a half stars from our reviewer.

• Value score: 4.5/5

Smeg BCC13: specs

Smeg BCC13: design

• Sleek, modern look
• Thoughtful touches for easy cleaning
• Drink option buttons need a reference guide

The Smeg BCC13 looks almost identical to the BCC02, but instead of a steam wand permanently attached to the front, it has a removeable rubber hose for its automatic milk steaming system. It's a stylish machine, with a smooth black, white, or emerald green case and a brushed aluminum front. 

The dispenser on the front slides up and down with a smooth motion to accommodate different cup sizes, and has a port in the side for the milk hose. You can remove the milk pumping system by opening the front of the dispenser and pulling the unit out for cleaning.

Coffee beans are loaded into a hopper on the top (the BCC13 will warn you when it's empty) and there's a large water reservoir at the back, with a carry handle so you can easily take it to the tap or use a filter jug to refill it. The reservoir has a generous maximum capacity of 47.34oz / 1.4L, so it doesn't need refilling often, and the machine will automatically purge the water line when the reservoir is re-inserted,

A side door in the machine allows you to access the machine's brew group, which will sometimes need cleaning to remove buildup of coffee grounds. Just press the buttons on the side of the group unit, then gently pull to remove it. Once it's out, you can simply rinse it under a tap to get rid of buildup, then give it a dry with a tea towel before replacing it.

You'll receive a warning from the machine when the brew group needs cleaning, and a light will illuminate on top if you've accidentally left the panel off.

The drip tray slots onto the front of the machine, and you'll receive a warning when it's starting to get full. It has a generous capacity so it doesn't need emptying too often, despite the machine's automatic purging function, and like all parts of the BCC12, it feels robust and durable.

Used grounds are dropped into a convenient waste caddy at the bottom of the machine, which you'll find by removing the drip tray and sliding out a drawer. The caddy holds up to seven pucks of used espresso, and again, the BCC13 will warn you when it needs emptying. The caddy simply lifts out, and you can wash it using dish soap and water.

A set of five buttons on the top of the machine let you choose the type of drink you'd like to make. When they are illuminated white, you can pick from espresso, coffee, hot water for tea, cappuccino, and latte macchiato. Pressing the slightly larger button underneath them will switch the lights to orange, and let you choose
espresso light (a less extracted shot), long coffee, americano, espresso macchiato, or foamed milk.

It's obvious what some of the buttons will do from the icons alone, but until you've used the machine for a few days, you'll probably need to consult the quick start guides included in the packaging to remind you what each ones does.

The final button, on the right, starts the machine's quick clean cycle. It will flash after you use the BCC13's milk frothing system, prompting you to fill the cleaning container with water, insert the end of the hose, and press the button for three seconds to purge the system. Dirty water will be flushed out, leaving the machine ready to use again next time.

You can carry on making drinks without performing the cycle, but I timed it, and the process only takes one minute from start to finish.

The machine is supplied with a sturdy milk container with a maximum capacity of  500ml / 16oz, which has a rubberized lid so you can store it hygienically in the fridge when it's not in use. It's easy to clean by hand with dish soap and warm water.

• Design score: 5/5

Smeg BCC13: performance

The appeal of a premium bean-to-cup coffee maker is consistency, and the Smeg BCC13 excels, creating perfect shots of espresso with thick, rich crema every time. You can tinker with the grind size if you like, but I found the default settings produced a well extracted espresso with no adjustment. The entire process of brewing an espresso took 1:04 minutes from pressing the button to completion, and the BCC13 reached a maximum volume of 67dB (though most of the brewing process was much quieter).

I carried out our regular test of an espresso by placing a teaspoonful of demerara sugar on top. It sat for a few seconds before sinking through the crema, which is a sign of a good shot.

The inclusion of a hot water setting is a welcome addition that we don't see with all fully automatic espresso machines, and means you don't need a kettle for brewing tea. The foamed milk feature is also thoughtful, providing a babyccino on demand (just dust on some cocoa when it's done).

The built-in milk frother is very consistent, producing thick and creamy foam for cappuccinos and lattes. Milk was never overheated either; the BCC13 warms it enough to break down the lactose for a sweet taste, without scalding it. As with the well extracted coffee, the results are the same time after time, with no manual alterations necessary.

Depending on the size of your cups, you may want to adjust the volume of lattes, cappuccinos, and americanos by changing the amount of milk or water dispensed. You can do this by holding down one of the drink selection buttons until you hear a tone, then pressing the button again once the machine has dispensed the right amount. The BCC13 will save this preset for future use.

If you want to stop dispensing the current drink early, you can do so by tapping the drink selection key. This won't affect the presets.

The only real downside is that the Smeg BCC13 can't handle plant milks particularly well. Smeg's documentation advises that although you can steam non-dairy alternatives using its machines, you'll get better results with cow milk, and that certainly proved to be the case. A cappuccino made using barista oat milk had barely any foam on top (as shown in the picture below), and the machine overheated the milk rather than incorporating air. Smeg does warn you about this, and it's standard for a machine with an auto milk frother, so the BCC13 doesn't lose marks for it.

If you want to use oat, soy, almond, or coconut milk to make drinks then you may be better served by the Smeg BCC02, which has a manual steam wand so you can adjust the pressure and use your own technique to get the right texture. Alternatively, you could opt for the BCC01 espresso machine, which has no steam feature at all, and pick up a standalone milk frother like the Dreo BaristaMaker, which has presets for plant milks.

Fully automatic coffee makers are wonderfully convenient when you just want to make a drink with the minimum of fuss, but the moving parts mean they tend to be more of a hassle to clean than a manual machine. Thankfully the BCC13 keeps that to a minimum by prompting you to carry out regular cleanup tasks so things never get too messy.

You will be promoted to purge the dispenser and tubing each time you use the milk frother, which is sensible and prevents buildup of bacteria. When the quick clean button flashes, fill the square cleaning container with plain water, place it under the dispenser, and insert the end of the milk tube. Hold the button for three seconds and the machine will flush its whole dispensing system with hot water and steam, and pump the resulting waste into a reservoir in the cleaning container. It's impressive just how much it cleans out each time. 

A few stray coffee grounds inevitably end up falling inside the machine as it works, but not too many, and they're easy to clean up. The bottom of the BCC13 is easy to access with the drawer pulled out, and its smooth interior surface means you can use a brush or a piece of kitchen towel to wipe it out in a few seconds. The whole machine is made and finished to a very high standard, and there's nowhere for stray grounds to get trapped.

• Performance score: 5/5

Should you buy the Smeg BCC13?

Buy it if

Don't buy it if

Smeg BCC13: also consider

If you're not sure about the Smeg BCC13, here are a couple of other options to think about:

How I tested the Smeg BCC13

I had the Smeg BCC13 on loan for two weeks, during which time I used it to make all sorts of drinks using high quality medium roasted Brazilian espresso beans, and compared them to the same drinks made using a manual Gaggia Classic machine.

I tested the BCC13's automatic milk frother using both chilled whole dairy milk and barista-style oat milk, and compared the results with those created by foaming milk with a manual steam wand.

I measured the volume of the machine throughout the brewing process using a decibel meter app on my phone, and used my phone's timer to see how long it took to brew a drink and complete a quick cleaning cycle.

Read more about how we test.

First reviewed August 2024

Dreo BaristaMaker: two-minute review

The Dreo BaristaMaker is a milk frother designed to create thick microfoam for coffee drinks, without the need to wield a steam wand. It's a good option if your coffee maker lacks a steamer, you'd prefer not to use it, or you have limited mobility – although the resulting froth isn't quite as silky.

Unlike some milk frothers, the BaristaMaker has two interchangeable heads: a typical whisk, and a two-part head designed to bring liquid into the center of the jug and break up large bubbles. This creates the type of fine foam necessary for latte art – and it works pretty well, although I found that the bubbles were still larger than those made by preparing milk the old-fashioned way.

The BaristaMaker takes longer to foam your milk, too, requiring three and a half minutes to complete its multi-stage frothing process. You can use this time to weigh out your coffee beans, grind them, and pull your espresso shot. A countdown on the front of the machine means you can be ready to top your drink the minute it's done its thing.

The BaristaMaker has separate modes for different types of milk, including four non-dairy options, which takes the trial and error out of handling liquids with different fat and protein contents. In general, I found the default settings good for preparing plant milks for cappuccinos, but a bit too thick for latte art.

The Dreo BaristaMaker isn't the cheapest milk frother around, but its added modes for preparing cold drinks mean it isn't a single-purpose machine; this make it easier to justify the cost. During testing, it whipped up a particularly thick and creamy protein shake with minimum effort.

The key advantage of the BaristaMaker is its convenience. While it offers some options for customization (two speeds and various temperature settings, for example), the process is largely automated. It can't perfectly replicate the results of stretching milk with a steam wand, but it requires none of the skill and practice that traditional frothing demands. Just set your milk type and foam preference, pour in the milk, and press start. 

Dreo BaristaMaker: price and availability

• List price: $99 / £119.99 (about AU$150)
• Shipping date: October 2024
• Availability: US, Singapore and Malaysia via Kickstarter; global thereafter

At the time of writing, the Dreo BaristaMaker is coming to the end of a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter, where backers can pledge $80 (about £60 / AU$120) to receive a milk frother, with delivery estimated by October 2024.

This Kickstarter offer is only available in the US, Singapore, and Malaysia; but Dreo does sell its products internationally, so the BaristaMaker will soon go on general sale for $99 / £119.99 (about AU$150) in many more territories.

That's a mid-range price for a milk frother, sitting in between the premium Smeg MFF11 at $290 / £179.95 / AU$299, and the budget-friendly Instant Milk Frother Station at $59.99 / £69.99 / AU$129, both of which offer similar features but lack foaming programs specifically for plant-based milks.

• Value score: 4.5/5

Dreo BaristaMaker: specs

Dreo Baristamaker: design

• Smart design resembling an oversized milk pitcher
• Two tips for milk frothing
• Well-designed jug with fine spout for latte art

The Dreo BaristaMaker is made up of three key parts: the base, which contains the heating element and motor; the jug that sits on top; and the tips, which do the actual frothing. The jug and the base are stainless steel, and when fully assembled, the BaristaMaker resembles a smart-looking oversized milk pitcher.

It measures 4.93in/12.5cm diameter and 9.21in/23.4cm tall with the jug on top, weighing  2.56lb/1.16kg. Without the jug, it stands 6.38in/16.2cm tall and weighs 1.88lb/855g. That's about the same as the premium Smeg MFF11 milk frother, although the Smeg machine has a larger capacity for stirring.

The BaristaMaker has a small, bright LED display on the front, with four buttons for selecting your preferred milk and foam options at the sides, and a start/stop button underneath.

The machine comes with two tips that fit onto a prong in the center of the jug. The disc tip resembles the end of a typical battery-operated milk frother, and is used for preparing cold drinks. The impeller tip has two components: a plastic blade that's designed to draw milk towards the center of the jug; and a fine screen designed to break up large bubbles, turning them into fine foam.

The jug itself has no moving parts; instead, the tips are spun by magnets that rotate in the base of the machine. If you've selected one of the hot options, the milk is warmed by a heating element directly underneath the jug.

The jug has a fine spout for pouring latte art, and markings inside to show the appropriate amount of milk for different types of foam. I'd have preferred to see the actual volume marked inside as well, but that's quite a minor quibble. It's dishwasher-safe, but I found it easy to clean by hand due to the lack of moving parts inside.

• Design score: 4/5

Dreo Baristamaker: performance

• Simple to use
• Frothing takes three and a half minutes
• Foam not as fine as created by steaming
• Plant-based milk creates particularly thick foam

The Dreo BaristaMaker makes foaming dairy and non-dairy milk simple, if not fast. First, you use the simple controls on the front to select the type of drink you want to prepare, and the milk you're using. The BaristaMaker has settings for foaming dairy milk, half-and-half, soya, oat, almond, and coconut milk, and beverage options for flat white, cappuccino, latte, hot thick foam, cold thick foam, and stirring. You can also tweak the speed and temperature if you like, with two options available for each; but the default settings should serve you well.

Once you've picked your milk and froth settings, tap the start/stop button and the device will show you whether to insert the impeller or frother tip, With that done, pour in your milk to the appropriate level marked inside the jug. You'll need to pour at least 5.1oz/150ml for foaming, and the milk and jug should both be cold when you start, as they would be if you were using a steam wand.

When that's done, just press the start button and the BaristaMaker will begin foaming or stirring accordingly – a process that takes three and a half minutes. You can stop it sooner if you like, but the foam settings have several stages, and halting the process early means you won't get the best results. It takes a lot longer than preparing milk with a steam wand, but you have plenty of time to grind your beans and prepare your espresso while it's working.

I tested the BaristaMaker with every milk type except half-and-half, which isn't available in the UK. I found that full-fat dairy milk generally foamed best, producing the smoothest microfoam that was best suited to latte art.

However, the foam texture was noticeably more open and less smooth than when steamed using a wand. The image below shows the difference in texture between steamed milk (using the wand on a Gaggia Classic) and milk frothed using the Dreo BaristaMaker. The milk prepared with the Dreo machine had a less silky texture and larger bubbles, despite tapping the jug to break the biggest ones and swirling to distribute the foam.

Despite the broad presets, the BaristaMaker can't fully account for the many compositions of different types and brands of plant-based milks, so oat won't necessarily turn out with the same texture as almond, for example; but the results were usually workable and the machine's hot settings never overheated the milk.

Dreo suggests that you can try adding a scoop of protein powder if your non-dairy milk isn't foaming properly, but this wasn't a problem I experienced. In fact, soya and almond milk foamed a little too well on the latte setting, with almond turning out too stiff to pour art.

One of the BaristaMaker's big advantages over a steam wand is its ability to froth cold milk, which makes it great for preparing shakes and other powder-based drinks. I used the cold foam setting to prepare a strawberry protein shake with soya milk, and the resulting drink was thick, creamy, and very good.

The frothing process still took three and a half minutes, and a personal blender such as the Nutribullet Flip could do the same thing in 30 seconds, but the extra functionality makes the BaristaMaker easier to recommend than a device that only fills one niche.

The BaristaMaker is much quieter than a steam wand, reaching a maximum of 39dB during frothing (about the same as a calm library), which could be helpful if you're an early riser or need to avoid disturbing young children.

• Performance score: 3/5

Dreo BaristaMaker: should you buy it

Buy it if

Don't buy it if

Dreo BaristaMaker: also consider

If you're not sure about the Dreo BaristaMaker, here are a couple of other options to think about

How I tested the Dreo BaristaMaker

I tested the Dreo BaristaMaker using full-fat and semi-skimmed dairy milk, as well as soya, almond, oat, and coconut milks. I frothed each type using the BaristaMaker's flat white, latte, cappuccino, and hot and cold frothing settings, with the appropriate milk option selected. The only type of milk I didn't froth was half-and-half, which isn't available in the UK where I tested the machine.

I used the different frothed milks to pour latte art onto a double-shot espresso, and compared the results to milk foamed using the steam wand on a Gaggia Classic espresso machine. I used the BaristaMaker's cold foam and stir settings to prepare a protein shake using whey protein powder, with soya and almond milk, and compared this to the same drink prepared using a shaker cup.

My review unit was supplied with a US plug, so I used a step-down transformer to power it.

Read more about how we test.

First reviewed August 2024

Ninja Luxe Café: two-minute review

The Ninja Luxe Café is a three-in-one bean-to-cup coffee machine that makes espresso, drip coffee, and cold brew. With its grind size suggestions based on the type of drink, a weight-based dosage system, and an automatic milk frother, much of the guesswork when it comes to perfecting your brew is taken out of the equation It’s perfect for novices who are just beginning to dip their toes in the espresso world. But the real question is, does the Ninja Luxe Café actually deliver on its claim? And I’m happy to report that, for the most part, it does. 

Ninja has been in the small kitchen gadget game for a while now, with a range of pod and drip coffee machines including the Ninja DualBrew Pro, but the Luxe Café is its first foray into bean-to-cup espresso machines - a field that's currently dominated by brands like Breville and De’Longhi. In fact, the Luxe Café goes head to head with one of Breville’s most popular semi-automatic espresso machines, the Breville the Barista Express - and in my opinion, it comes out ahead thanks to the lower price tag, foolproof espresso system, and ability to also brew drip coffee. 

As soon as I took the Ninja Luxe Café out of its packaging, it looked and felt like a far more expensive machine. Though bulky, its sleek stainless steel body with black accents fit right into my kitchen. Given all that’s happening on this coffee maker, with its wealth of features and massive display, it’s a little intimidating at first but surprisingly easy to master.

The range of tools (like a funnel that does a decent job at keeping grinds in the filter and Luxe basket for quad shots and coffee brews) are nice inclusions, and Ninja has added a space to store these tools and more when not in use. Talk about convenience. However, it’s missing a hot water line for americanos, tea, and other beverages, I wish one could’ve been incorporated in some way. 

The Ninja Luxe Café looks the part of a quality bean-to-cup machine, and luckily, it performs just as great. The grind size suggestions and weight-based dosage system were a huge boon, ensuring I had the perfect espresso pull every time with a lovely golden crema and strong, smooth taste.  On the coffee side, the hot coffee and cold brew turned out great with minimal effort, as I never needed to measure out the proper amount of ground coffee or determine the proper grind size. However, the four different coffee settings were a bit gimmicky and unnecessary. A cold brew and classic coffee would’ve been fine. 

When I wanted to make a latte, cappuccino, or flat white, the automatic milk frother settings almost always worked with my 2% milk, creating a lovely microfoam with no skill needed. Unfortunately, the frother didn’t perform as well with oat milk, not a major surprise, as this is the case with many plant-based milks. A cold foam setting is also available but didn’t work with either of my milks. I missed the manual option for steaming milk with a steam wand, as I love extra hot drinks and practicing my steaming technique. 

Overall, if you’re a beginner who wants a quality, great value espresso machine that makes it easy to pull the perfect shot, the Ninja Luxe Café is for you. Even experienced at-home baristas will appreciate the excellent results this machine delivers. And it’s hard to beat the bonus of brewing tasty classic coffee and cold brew too. 

Ninja Luxe Café review: price and availability

• List price: $499.99 (about £400 / AU$750)
• Launch date: June 2024
• Availability: US

The Ninja Luxe Café’s launch price was $499.99 (about £400 / AU$750), and at the time of writing it is only available in the US. It can be purchased directly from the manufacturer's website, or from third-party retailers including Best Buy and Amazon. This bean-to-cup machine was only recently released, don’t expect to find any major discounts for at least a few months. 

Sitting right at a mid-range price point in the wider market, the Ninja Luxe Café’s versatility, solid performance, ease of use, and stunning build quality punch far above its weight. I would’ve expected this machine to cost far more, and it’s sure to give the ever-popular Breville The Barista Express a run for its money, especially since Breville’s offering costs $200 more and does less.  

• Value for money score: 5 out of 5

Ninja Luxe Café review: specs

Ninja Luxe Café review: design

• Stunning, sturdy build
• Massive display
• Helpful storage features
• Lacks hot water line

Besides one glaring omission, I have almost no notes on the design of the Ninja Luxe Café. Like any bean-to-cup machine, it’s definitely not compact and takes up a good chunk of counter space and just fits under my kitchen cabinets, measuring 12.99 x 13.39 x 14.57in / 330 x 340 x 370mm (L x W x H). That’s just a little bit bigger than the most recent semi-automatic espresso machine I’ve been using, the Casabrews 5700Pro. At least Ninja’s offering is extremely versatile, making the most of that extra space it takes up. Weighing 25.73lb / 11.67kg, it’s also quite heavy, so I tried to move it around as little as possible. 

As soon as I removed the Ninja Luxe Café from the box, I was struck by its sleekness, offering a stainless steel finish with black accents. Even the packaging for the tools oozed elegance. It was far nicer than I expected considering the reasonable price tag. It truly looks and feels like something that should be twice that price. Each component was sturdy and built to last. 

Setting up this bean-to-cup machine was on par with others I tested, taking me just over 20 minutes to have my first shot of espresso ready to go. However, the Luxe Café is unique, as it calibrates itself, so you don’t need to experiment with different grind sizes for a great espresso pull. The hardness of your water is even taken into account, helping to perfect the extraction. If you’ve never used an at home espresso machine before, it’s a little overwhelming initially. A few instructional videos and an instruction book were helpful in navigating the Luxe Café.

After it was put together, I played around with the design features. Ninja thought of almost everything. The accessory storage was probably my favorite, as it’s a rarity on espresso machines. It drives me crazy to have components lying around waiting to be lost. A handy little door on the side of the machine opens up, letting you store a few cleaning tools, along with the double and Luxe baskets for the portafilter. The opposite side of the machine houses the tamper and funnel – which helps prevent grinds from getting everywhere while grinding – for ultra-easy access. 

On top of the machine sits the removable bean hopper/grinder with a UV-protective lid to keep the beans fresher longer with an easy-to-use dial for adjusting grind size on the side, while around the back is a removable 70oz water reservoir.  The water reservoir doesn’t appear to have any major filter, or the option to add one – a slight disappointment – and isn’t the easiest to reach given the location at the back of the machine under my cabinets. That’s not dissimilar to other coffee makers.  Still, it holds a good amount of water. I refilled it only a couple of times per week after making about three beverages a day. 

All the action happens at the front of the machine, and its most striking feature is the massive display running almost its entire width. The display lacks touch control, but a wealth of buttons and a couple of knobs made navigating relatively simple after familiarizing myself with the system. 

Above the grinder, the display informs you of the current and recommended grind sizes based on the type of brew. Red warnings will even light up if the funnel, hopper, or portafiler aren’t installed or the coffee beans are out. It’s honestly pretty foolproof. 

The center of the display right above the group head, which securely holds the portafilter during brewing, is where the type of brew is selected. On the espresso side, double, quad, and cold-press options are available, and the coffee side features a classic, rich, over-ice, and cold brew setting, along with various size options. Also at the center is the progress bar – a handy little tool that informs how far along in grinding, brewing, or milk frothing you are. Similar to the red warnings on the grinding side of the display, a rinse notification will display when the group head needs a quick clean. 

Finally, above the frother are the milk frothing settings. Unlike many semi-automatic brewers, this one lets you select foam levels and milk type: dairy or plant-based. I only had to add the milk to the jug with an integrated whisk and place it in its designated location with the steam wand inserted. The jug even has size markings inside and outside, so you get the proper milk levels. The steam wand automatically purges after frothing, though a 'purge' button is available. This side of the display also indicates when the water reservoir needs to be filled.

At the base of the Ninja Luxe Café is the main drip tray and a separate center drip tray. It felt unnecessarily complicated being two components. However, having a separate center drip tray makes it possible to use larger travel mugs. On the side of the main drip tray is a tiny indicator, letting you know when it’s full and needs emptying. I had to empty it every few days of use. Beyond the removable center drip tray, another sturdy adjustable cup tray can be set at different levels, depending on the vessel – a handy addition that prevents splashing. 

It truly seems that Ninja thought of everything when crafting the Luxe Café, except for a water line. I love having a hot water option to make an americano, tea, or other warm beverage. Integrating one into the steam wand or elsewhere would’ve brought the machine near perfection level in terms of design. Instead, I relied on a kettle, something I never had to do with my usual espresso machine. 

As for the accessories, the portafilter also doubles as a brewer for the coffee settings on the machine. It comes with two baskets: double and Luxe. When using the coffee settings or brewing a quad shot, the Luxe basket must be installed. Like most portafilters, it’s a bit of a struggle to swap baskets, but that ensures they remain securely in place when dumping grinds. Unfortunately, it costs extra for the knock box to remove the grinds. Luckily, the grinds come out relatively easy with just a few whacks against the garbage can. 

Beyond the portafilter, many of the other accessories deal with maintenance. A descaling powder, a cleaning disc, a cleaning brush, and a couple of cleaning tablets ensure the machine remains in tip-top shape. 

• Design score: 4.5 out of 5

Ninja Luxe Café review: performance

• Handy grind size suggestions and automatic weight-based dosage
• Consistently great espresso pulls and coffee brews
• Quick and easy to use 

The Ninja Luxe Café is far easier to master than other semi-automatic espresso machines; even novices should figure it out quickly. That’s, in large part, thanks to the machine’s ability to automatically suggest grind sizes based on the type of drink brewed, the weight-based dosage system for the perfect amount of grinds depending on the drink, and the hands-free frother to dial in the ideal amount of microfoam. 

Admittedly, the whole system is a little overwhelming initially, especially the large display and various controls. But, after a couple of brews, I had it down to a science and had to do far less experimenting with grind size than usual to pull the perfect espresso shot, wasting less pricey coffee beans and time.  Regular coffee always requires less effort for a solid brew, and this machine delivered a great classic cup of joe on the first try.

Seven different types of brews are available with Ninja Luxe Café. On the espresso side is a double, quad, and cold-pressed extraction, while coffee can be brewed classic, rich, over-ice, and cold brew. I tested out every setting to see how each stacked up. 

I started with the double espresso shot, my most used setting over the testing period. Installing the double basket on the portafilter required a little muscle while the funnel easily latches on top. Inserting the portafilter into the grinder will automatically adjust the brew setting options based on the installed basket.  With the double basket, only a double or cold-pressed extraction was available. Turning the large main knob lets you select the setting. If the funnel isn’t on when the portafilter is inserted into the grinder, a warning will pop up – I forgot to use it many times.

The machine then tells you the ideal grind size for the espresso pull, and you can adjust to the suggested grind size using a knob on the side of the machine. I adjusted accordingly and started the grind. The progress bar at the center of the display let me know how far along in the process I was. 

After grinding, it was time to brew. I used the tamper with the funnel still attached to level the freshly ground coffee. It did a successful job of keeping the grinds in the basket most of the time, but on several occasions, a good deal of grinds managed to escape. This usually happened when the basket was extremely full, or I inserted the tamper too fast. 

Placing the portafilter securely into the group head takes some effort, and I usually had to hold the body of the coffee maker to prevent the whole setup from moving. From there, I moved the handy little adjustable cup tray to fit my mug and pressed the large center knob to begin the brew, watching the progress bar begin to flash. Less than a minute later, a beep indicated that my double-shot espresso was ready. The whole process is quiet too, averaging about 60dB, so you don’t need to worry about waking others in the household for an early morning caffeine fix. 

The espresso shot had a thick golden crema that could briefly hold a small sprinkling of granulated sugar before falling through. The crema then reformed after; a tell-tale sign of great pull. Its taste was equally wonderful, rich, and smooth with a slight acidity. 

Without fail, each espresso pull after my initial yielded similar results, including the quad shot and cold-pressed extraction. However, the cold-pressed extraction only reached about 80°F compared to the 120°F for the other two espresso shot settings. It also took slightly longer to brew at 2.5 minutes but was perfect for my iced lattes and prevented ice melt. Of course, results will also vary based on the type of coffee beans used. I stuck with quality beans from Stumptown and Groundwork during my testing. 

Brewing coffee follows a similar process, although the larger Luxe basket will always be installed and there’s no need to use the tamper. The grind sizes for all the coffee brews were significantly larger than the espresso, and there are various brew size options from six oz to 18 oz. The Ninja Luxe Café automatically adjusts the amount of beans it grinds based on the brew size and weight. It’s honestly hard to beat the convenience of not needing to measure out anything ever. 

The coffee brews took longer than the espresso pulls, at around three to six minutes, depending on the setting and size. The results were consistently flavorful with just a slight bitterness, never watered down which was one of my fears. However, if you asked me to differentiate between the 'rich' and 'classic' settings, I wouldn’t be able to. Each tasted great and had a temperature of around 160°F.  The same goes for the 'over-ice' and 'cold brew'. Both settings brewed the coffee at a lower temperature around 100°F, but I couldn’t tell you the difference between the two. The Ninja DualBrew Pro I reviewed in 2023 had similar setting options and results. It all just seems sort of gimmicky on an otherwise awesome machine.

Beyond brewing espresso and coffee, the Ninja Luxe Café offers a hands-free milk frother for those coffeehouse-style drinks at home. It’s sometimes a struggle to get the perfect microfoam from a steam wand, and this takes all the guesswork away. The milk jug has an integrated whisk, and when combined with a steam wand on the machine, frothing was easier than ever. I could even choose between four presets: steamed milk, thin froth, thick froth, and cold foam. 

I tested all the froth presets with both 2% milk and oat milk. With 2% milk, the frothing settings worked just as expected (for the most part). The steamed milk yielded little foam just warming the milk, the thin froth had a nice bit of microfoam ideal for latte art and flat whites, while the thick froth had a nice fluffy foam on top that lasted the entire time I drank my cappuccino. Unfortunately, the oat milk struggled to form much of a microfoam, even on the thick froth setting. But these results aren’t uncommon for plant-based milks, so I don’t fully fault the machine.  I also failed to create a cold foam, as heavy cream is required for that setting. 

My biggest issue with the milk frother is you can’t control the steam wand yourself. I’m a big fan of extra hot beverages during the colder months, and with the Ninja Luxe Café, it isn’t possible to heat the milk a little longer for extra warmth or even test the waters of frothing milk with a steam wand unassisted. Sure, it’s nice to have everything pretty automatic, but sometimes, especially for the more experienced, the option for a little more freedom would’ve been a welcome addition.

When it comes to maintenance, the Luxe Café attempts to keep things as simple as possible. Besides rinsing the portafilter, emptying the drip tray, and wiping down the machine, there isn’t much hands-on cleaning that needs to be done. Even after several weeks of use, the machine looked is good as new besides a few splashes of coffee on the front panel and grinds in the drip tray. 

Occasionally, the coffee maker's internals will need a thorough cleaning, but the most you will have to do is either fill the water reservoir with a descaling solution or insert the cleaning disc and tablet into the portafilter, and press a few buttons after. It’s all very manageable. 

Overall, the Ninja Luxe Café delivered on its promises of uncomplicating espresso. It consistently created quality espresso and made things simpler by intuitively dosing and providing the correct grind level for the perfect pull, something you’d be hard-pressed to find on other semi-automatic espresso machines at this price point. The milk frother made it possible to create some near-coffeehouse-level lattes, cappuccinos, and flat whites at home, which in the long run could end up saving you a ton of money. Plus, it's a nice bonus to get delicious regular and iced coffee brews from the same machine — a feature you don’t see in most mid-range bean-to-cup offerings. 

• Performance score: 4 out of 5

Should you buy the Ninja Luxe Café?

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How I tested the Ninja Luxe Café

I used the Ninja Luxe Café for several weeks at home, making two to three coffee drinks per day using high quality Stumtown and Groundwork coffee beans. During testing, I noted flavors, consistency, temperature, time to brew, and noise levels. Beyond drinking the espresso and coffee black, I tried the different milk frother presets with both dairy and plant-based milk, observing the foam levels and differences between settings. In the end, I tested almost every setting on the bean-to-cup machine and observed how it held up to usage.