Breville Barista Touch Impress Espresso Machine
$799.99
Description
Breville Barista Touch Impress Espresso Machine BES881BSS, Brushed Stainless Steel
| Brand | Breville |
| Color | Brushed Stainless Steel |
| Product Dimensions | 13.62″D x 14.09″W x 16.42″H |
| Special Feature | Integrated Coffee Grinder, Milk Frother, Programmable |
| Coffee Maker Type | Espresso Machine |
|
|
||||
|
|
Additional information
| Title | Default Title |
|---|
Pat in Wisconsin –
What can I say? We treated ourselves to this machine after having looked at various options and done our homework. There was a nice sale and an additional benefit related to Beanz.com which is helping us to learn about and enjoy beans from various small roasters. There’s a very slight learning curve but the machine itself guides you through the process as well as videos online. Pretty much every day, we say to one another “This coffee is fabulous!”
HNIC215 –
I purchased this Breville Barista Touch Impress twice. The first one I had kept getting a ER09 Error Code, so I returned it since it was still within the return period. I read horror stories regarding Breville Customer Support when looking up ER09 error code online and didn’t want to go through that trouble.The return by the way was still a hassle – Amazon doesn’t make it easy to return large appliances. I returned it and never received my refund. I had to contact customer service multiple times – who then told me to “just wait another week” 3 times – very annoying. They took many weeks to give me a refund and eventually had to get an exec to override and issue a refund because “the return was stuck in processing” – whatever that means.Due to the fact that my wife and I both enjoyed the first one when it worked, I gave it another chance and ordered a replacement.The second one has now stopped working after 7 months.Breville customer service is terrible. In order to honor their own warranty, they need to see video proof, have a video call with you, watch you use the machine, make you sing a song and dance like a circus clown. Last two are a joke by the way lolThe point is… Breville makes you run around and jump through hoops for them to honor their own warranty on a well-known defective machine. There are countless sites and threads online where people complain about this exact model having so many issues. I honestly don’t even know why Amazon sells this model.Please do yourself, your family and your wallet a favor and skip this model. It is nice while it works but it breaks down extremely easily. Then you are out of $1500+ and your only solution is to pay money to return the product to Breville after they make you jump through hoops – only to get another one that will break again.Rinse, wash, repeat. Heed the warnings of myself and many others – STAY FAR AWAY FROM THIS DEFECTIVE MACHINE.I would give this product ZERO STARS if I could. Never going to purchase another Breville product again.
Chris Van Dervort –
I purchased the Breville Barista Touch Impress because of my interest in having third-wave cafe quality espresso at home. As a beginner, I wanted a machine that would be easy to learn on. After watching reviews online, I decided to purchase the Barista Touch Impress, and absolutely loved the machine. The espresso drinks rival the best coffee shops in town, and it was a great way to dip my toe into learning more about coffee. I loved the machine so much that I purchased a second one for my office. Unfortunately, the second machine was a very different experience. The grinder is much slower (about 40 seconds vs 18 seconds on the previous machine), and milk steaming stops at 132 degrees as opposed to the 150 degree setting, and I have received the dreaded E09 error during steaming. My first machine, on the other hand, has worked flawlessly. The only difference I see is that my first machine is running firmware v1.7 and the second, not so great machine is running v1.6. I’m still happy with the end result, so I haven’t tried returning it, but as a consumer, if I would have gotten the lesser machine first, I wouldn’t have bought a second. My advice would be to wait until Breville works out the kinks and maybe wait for the second generation of this machine, or check to see if the machine is running v1.7 of the firmware before purchasing (not sure how you would do that, though).
Vanessa Da Silva –
I’m new to the espresso world and let me tell you about this little gem! I’ve always loved coffee but brewed the regular cup with the regular coffee brewer and whatnot. Finally, a couple of years ago I purchased a moka pot and realised how much better my coffee tasted! I’d still get coffee from starbucks like 5-7 days/week. Started to realize my coffee tasted burnt and decided to ditch starbucks and go on a journey of finding better coffee. I visited a local coffee shop and had the best cappuccino I had ever had until then and I was set on getting my coffee from there. Only problem is they open at 6am and I go to work at 4:30am so, back to square one on the perfect coffee. This place did, however, open my eyes to espressos! So one day, scrolling through amazon, I found this machine on sale. Researched it a lot, the different models and after a few days I decided to get it. I decided on this one because I had absolutely no experience making espressos, there’s a certain way to make it and it all looked way to intimidating. I just wanted something simple I can make in the morning to go to work and this machine is it! So easy, it walks you through every single step and yields you the perfect espresso, latte, cappuccino EVERY SINGLE TIME! I’m super satisfied with this and would totally buy it again. It took about 3 tries to dial in the best settings but, like I said, the machine walks you through it all. If you’re a beginner and you’re on the fence about this, get it it’s worth it!
Gregg –
[update at end] When the machine works, it’s great, but I am currently on my second unit, and about to return this one. The first unit would randomly shut down, and/or, do a factory reset while frothing milk. I called support and they advized that it would be best to return it to Amazon. I did, however it cost me an extra $300 because the first one was purchased on a Christmas sale that was now over. Since when it works we liked it we went ahead and got another unit.The second unit arrived and the frothing now works every time, however the hopper keeps complaining that there are no beans even though there are. The original never did this. I followed the instructions and removed the burr and completely cleaned all beans and coffee grounds out, then put it all back together. It only took it 2 times to fail again. We did notice that the grinding times are a lot longer on the second unit even when it does work. Everything looked fully functional when I cleaned it, including the hopper which I tested while it was off.Another interesting thing is that the firmware on the “newer” unit is an older rev than the first unit we bought a month ago. Support says there is no way to upgrade the FW at home, so it’s strange they display it. We have to wait until the credit shows up for the first return before we can order the 3rd replacement because this is a hefty chunk of change.Hopefully someone from Breville reads this and can improve their quality control, because I feel that if I had a system that worked every time, it would be good. I’ll update this review as the coffee drama progresses.[update] I just got my unit back from Breville and I was very impressed with them. When I called them they set up a video chat so they could see the problem. She immediately said it was faulty and e-mailed me a return shipping label. From the day I shipped it I had it back in 1 week (maybe I was lucky). It grinds faster, brews faster, and tastes better (although the latter may be because I’ve been drinking coffee from a pot for the last week). It also has a newer firmware version so that probably fixed a lot of problems too since I was an early adopter of a brand new design.
Wintered Girl –
Still trying to learn how to use this machine. I wouldn’t advise it for beginners.
David Dufault –
First, let me start with the positives… we loved this machine for the first 10 months (when it worked). The espresso was great, the machine is easy to use and produced consistently high quality results. As a bonus, it was a wonderful hospitality option to treat our guests. These positives were awesome and ultimately why I still give this two stars.Unfortunately, our machine suddenly stopped turning on (blank screen… no obvious reason) about three weeks ago, and our Breville story has turned into a customer service nightmare since that time.First it takes a lot of time to work your way through their glitchy call in system. They clearly use an international call center which led to a difficult communication environment to start with. What should’ve been the easiest part (Shipping back the product which was thankfully still under warranty) was NOT, as we were given INCORRECT instructions at the beginning (said they would send a shipping box in 2-3 days, only to receive a call three days later saying they didn’t have shipping boxes and we would need to take care of this ourselves). When we finally did get the machine shipped at UPS, it took over one week for them to receive the machine at their warehouse.It then took almost A WEEK just to confirm what we already knew – the machine didn’t turn on… but Breville customer service didn’t communicate the results directly to us. We received a very short and confusing email essentially saying “our order was back ordered and wouldn’t ship for 1-3 weeks at the soonest. Upon again braving the call in center labyrinth, I found out the details including the incomprehensible statement that the stainless steel model we owned wasn’t available (note: checked Amazon and it could deliver one to us in 1 day) but they did have other colors. Upon me telling them I’d take other colors, they said we’d hear back shortly… but now over 24 hours later, I AGAIN called only to hear that 1. “The warehouse hasn’t responded yet and there’s nothing the rep can do to expedite” and 2. Upon requesting a supervisor to lay out the frustrating customer service facts of the last several weeks, they said “we can only put you in a queue to speak with a supervisor and it will take 24-48 hours”.After all this, all the positive good will Breville build over 10 months has been eroded in weeks. For a $1,500+tax premium consumer product, I’m horrible disappointed by this experience. Hopefully we’ll get a machine soon… Will update this post if anything materially changes.
Kim –
I kept debating whether or not to buy this machine because of the price that and between it and a bambino and separate grinder, but I bit the bullet and couldn’t be happier. I like how it guides you through dialing in the beans and telling you when it’s been tampered enough. Coming from a Nespresso, I am quite happy with my purchase.
mike892 –
Fun and easy to make lattes.Went through the setup and tutorial, now a latte is grind, brew, milk, pour and drinkSaves time, results are great.only thing missing is a knockbox, breville one works great.
Franklin MatosFranklin Matos –
I originally bought the Breville Impress and tested it for 2 weeks. It was a hit and miss dialing in the perfect grind size, regardless of the roast of the bean. It often over grinded, though I followed the instructions for priming and cleaning the burr with each bag change. Not having temperature control on the original led to more time to brew and froth the cappuccino. Now, this baby in contrast takes away 95% of the guess work! it only took me 3 tries on the grind size to come up with the perfect cappuccino extraction and milk frothing. My wife is extremely picky about her coffee, but she was sold on the first brew! Now I will take the time to create customized brews for each of us and stop the tug-o-war for the machine…
Glider –
Ok, I use it every morning and can’t imagine going back to my Nespresso capsule machine. It does everything it claims to do. But, it takes a log of care and feeding.Example, small water tank means frequent fillings; which is awkward to fill unless sliding heavy machine out from under top cupboards, which is had to do because of sticky rubber feet. Feed-back after brew says brew is too fast or slow but adjustment is in terms of size, not speed. Confusing. There’s a large plastic trim piece across the front that doesn’t clip on, falls off regularly. Daily cleaning of drip tray and grill necessary. Tray is attached to a pull out accessory tray annoyingly, but if you don’t detach, reattached each time, tray is stuck in the bowels of the machine. Change coffee beans, figure on the first few wasted as you fiddle around finding right adjustments, even if same beans. So, if you can deal with this, you can get a nice looking machine that produces a fully satisfying espresso drink. Oh, and the milk steaming/foaming aspect with flawless.
Sena B. –
I really wanted to like it because the fast warmup time is nice, but it just doesn’t make a great cup of espresso and its not warm enough. It’s going on ebay. I’m way happier with my recent purchase- the new kitchen-aid fully auto espresso machine.
Chris Cravens –
Customer service is INCOMPETENT! The woman that answered, named Wanda spoke english with an accent and didn’t seem to understand me when I would answer her simple questions. When I told her the steam was coming out of the group head and not the steam wand (even though all was clean per manufacturer’s instructions) she wanted to do a video call (while I’m in my PJs.) Really? Then she asked how we descaled it. When I told her, she asked again & again & again. My answer was the same all 4 times. Then my husband tried to talk to her, same thing. She started asking the same things over and over. It was becoming rude! Did she think we were lying to her? I am disgusted with the unprofessional service we experienced from Brevilles so-called “customer service”. Please start hiring people that can communicate better. This woman may be better fit in another position that doesn’t require speaking or understanding the public. Not sure how to get actual customer warranty repair service. Why does Breville make this so difficult? W usually like Breville, now we aren’t so sure. After we paid $1500 for a product, it should last longer than 4 months with us completing the factory-suggested maintenance regularly. Perhaps a better design for the 3 way solenoid or a way to clean it separately from the other cleaning processes. This is the “weak link” in this product. Take heed before purchasing it. $375 per month is what we just paid for the use of this machine that no longer works. Not ready for Prime Time.
Neil D –
Any review that is less than a 4 star disregard. This is the single best piece of equipment I have bought in my kitchen, hands down. Not only is it beautiful to look at but it makes a great espresso. My only recommendation is buy a bottomless portafilter (easy to clean).
Josh –
This has been the most catastrophic customer experience I’ve ever had with a product costing over $1,600. I received my unit in September 2023. While it generally worked well, I noticed a few issues early on, like the milk frother not reaching the programmed temperature. It would stop at 130°F when set to 150°F, as if it was trying to keep my coffee lukewarm to match the lukewarm customer service I was about to receive.Recently, the integrated grinder decided to play hide-and-seek with my sanity. Despite my efforts to keep it clean, it kept throwing a tantrum with a fill hopper error. I had to push the grind button more times than I can count, just to make a single cup of espresso. Grinding coffee from this machine got to the point where it was like trying to get a straight answer from a politician—impossible.I contacted customer support and had a video call where we tried numerous solutions, none of which worked. They asked me to send the unit in for repairs and provided a 5-day ground shipping label from Houston to Chicago. For a $1,600 machine, I expected them to send it via teleportation, but alas, they chose the slowest, cheapest shipping option. Amazon offers same-day shipping for toilet paper, yet Breville chose the slowest shipping for a premium espresso machine. It’s like they’re saying, ‘Your coffee is important to us, but not as important as toilet paper.’Breville took nearly a week to repair the unit and sent it back with the same slow shipping. It took almost three weeks in total to get my machine back, and it was still broken. This time, the tamper decided to take a vacation. Not only was the tamper not working, but the machine also came back dirty, as if it had been partying in a muddy field. I called customer support again, and after another video call, I was told to send the unit back for repair—shocker!I requested a new unit, but they insisted I send back the machine first using the same 5-day ground snail shipping method. From there, once they receive the old unit, they would ship the new one, again using the slowest shipping method on the planet—it’s like they’re trying to test my patience. Breville’s customer support is the worst I’ve experienced for a premium product–EVER. Customers willing to spend $1,600 on a coffee machine deserve better, including priority shipping for issues beyond their control.Moving forward, I’ll purchase all my Breville machines from Amazon with product insurance to avoid dealing with Breville’s unprofessional and unaccommodating support ever again. And who knows, maybe I’ll even get a free roll of toilet paper with my next order.
Neil D –
Any review that is less than a 4 star disregard. This is the single best piece of equipment I have bought in my kitchen, hands down. Not only is it beautiful to look at but it makes a great espresso. My only recommendation is buy a bottomless portafilter (easy to clean).
Michael H. –
I’ve had this for 3 weeks now, and have definitely increased my coffee intake, because it is just so good! I replaced an older machine from another manufacturer, and there is simply no comparison – MUCH better espresso, so much quieter, very easy to learn and use, and much cleaner. I love that I could customize my drink (favorite milk product, hotter temp than the standard) and save the settings, so I get consistent results. Also, really nice design – it looks great on the kitchen counter. Yes, this is an expensive unit, but you won’t regret the splurge. Don’t let the incredibly obnoxious yuppie-guy in the Breville video scare you off. I wish I would have taken the plunge a long time ago.
Mr Peabody –
Great machine, and very easy to use once you get the grind settings dialed in. There’s a walkthrough in the setup menu for doing just that. The sweet spot for the grind setting and time will vary depending on the beans used. So you’ll likely need to make adjustments when using a new batch of beans. Early on, you’ll likely be prompted to grind a bit more one or two times after tamping, but the machine does learn quickly and adjust the grind level so eventually it will hit the target nearly all of the time.The self-purging feature on the steaming wand is a gift from the gods, and there’s a very handy storage tray to hold brushes and filter baskets that fits behind the drip tray, which itself has a nice roomy capacity. It’s great not to be constantly emptying the drip tray.A few minor things worth knowing:In the pre-set drink menus, there’s no indication of the amount of milk to use. The milk pitcher has minimum and maximum levels marked, but it’s left up to the user to decide how much to use. The minimum mark is about 4 ounces, more than needed for some drinks. Smaller amounts can be done manually.When filling the water reservoir, the max level is quite high, so water can slosh out if you aren’t very careful when carrying it by the handle. It’s also a bit cramped for normal size hands when you’re washing it before initial use as the manual recommends or inserting/replacing the filter cartridge. The lid gets in the way and I see no way to completely remove it.During the grind calibration process, the puck did sometimes stick to the group head when using the double-walled baskets.All in all, very happy with this machine. For the price, I certainly hope it proves reliable.
Marvin Paul –
My wife and I enjoyed drinking coffee regularly but this espresso machine was a game changer for us. In the past, we stayed away from espresso at home because it was intimidating but this machine helped break it down in a way that’s approachable and easy. For the past several months we’ve been trying out coffee from various local roasters and enjoying 2 cups of latte a day. We really can’t live without it.
EyeDoc –
Hesitant with some of the reviews, but absolutely love it! My daughter is a Starbucks barista and is thoroughly impressed with it. For extra peace of mind, we purchased the 4 year extended warranty.
Allie –
Yes, this machine is expensive but it works great! I make my own coffee every morning and it’s better than coffee I could get at Starbucks or other coffee shops. I love that it shows you the steps and does them for you (no tamping yourself!). I also love that it adjusts for the type of milk you want, as I like almond or oat milk. The only thing that is annoying is when you fill the water tank, it’s a bit hard not to spill the water when putting the tank back in the machine but maybe that’s just because my machine is under cabinets on the counter.All and all, a great espresso machine!
Brandon PBrandon P –
Went through 2 machines in 2024 and both would intermittently power off during frothing displaying ER09 error. The most recent machine shocked my hand through the jug while manually steaming. Customer support says “as the number of these machines that have issues is an extremely small percentage of the many we sell, there is not a documented trend indicating that any engineering change needs to be made.” My experience was 2 of 2. Highly recommend reading all of the reviews and searching the issue on Reddit before purchasing this machine.
MitchMitch –
This machine is great. I got it for $1200 on sale. Overall I think it’s perfect for someone who really enjoys cafe quality coffee, but doesn’t necessarily want to add coffee to their hobby list. I’ve been using it for 2 weeks 2-3x a day. It’s great
Dee Carpenter –
I purchased this machine in June when it’s price was $1500.00. By August it had to be sent in for repair. The computer touch screen quit working and there is no manual way to operate this machine.The company then sends me a “remanufactured” machine saying the computer needed to be “updated”.The machine I received has the same serial number so I don’t know if they transferred my number or just sent me back the same machine.It worked fine until the latter part of November. It gives a message when it needs to be descaled, etc. So I followed the onscreen instructions to descale using the Breville solution. Not long after that the machine started again with the computer failing. I found information on the internet that descaling can cause a fuse to blow and it’s a known problem.The machine will undoubtedly have to be returned to Breville again. We are trying to talk to customer service but haven’t been able to get through. If they are going to make us pay this time, i’m taking the machine to the dump despite what I paid. I’ll buy something different.When I searched Google for “Best espresso machines”, this model came up several times as “best overall” back in June. Not anymore but now they say the Breville Express Impress is the best. I don’t know if I want to buy another one. I think i’ll check out other brands.
David Dufault –
First, let me start with the positives… we loved this machine for the first 10 months (when it worked). The espresso was great, the machine is easy to use and produced consistently high quality results. As a bonus, it was a wonderful hospitality option to treat our guests. These positives were awesome and ultimately why I still give this two stars.Unfortunately, our machine suddenly stopped turning on (blank screen… no obvious reason) about three weeks ago, and our Breville story has turned into a customer service nightmare since that time.First it takes a lot of time to work your way through their glitchy call in system. They clearly use an international call center which led to a difficult communication environment to start with. What should’ve been the easiest part (Shipping back the product which was thankfully still under warranty) was NOT, as we were given INCORRECT instructions at the beginning (said they would send a shipping box in 2-3 days, only to receive a call three days later saying they didn’t have shipping boxes and we would need to take care of this ourselves). When we finally did get the machine shipped at UPS, it took over one week for them to receive the machine at their warehouse.It then took almost A WEEK just to confirm what we already knew – the machine didn’t turn on… but Breville customer service didn’t communicate the results directly to us. We received a very short and confusing email essentially saying “our order was back ordered and wouldn’t ship for 1-3 weeks at the soonest. Upon again braving the call in center labyrinth, I found out the details including the incomprehensible statement that the stainless steel model we owned wasn’t available (note: checked Amazon and it could deliver one to us in 1 day) but they did have other colors. Upon me telling them I’d take other colors, they said we’d hear back shortly… but now over 24 hours later, I AGAIN called only to hear that 1. “The warehouse hasn’t responded yet and there’s nothing the rep can do to expedite” and 2. Upon requesting a supervisor to lay out the frustrating customer service facts of the last several weeks, they said “we can only put you in a queue to speak with a supervisor and it will take 24-48 hours”.After all this, all the positive good will Breville build over 10 months has been eroded in weeks. For a $1,500+tax premium consumer product, I’m horrible disappointed by this experience. Hopefully we’ll get a machine soon… Will update this post if anything materially changes.
TinMan –
Returned, more involved than described
Ben R –
If you want an easy entry point into at home espresso while leaving the door open to eventually learn more advanced barista skills this fits that bill.Using fresh beans makes a big difference. They offer an easy way into that with a beanz.com special offer for some free fresh beans.
MadelaineMadelaine –
It makes coffee just as good as Starbucks. Easy to clean too. I make hot chocolate with it for my grandkids too. I bought it for my son as housewarming gift and I use it every time I visit him. Going to buy one for myself. Much, much, much, cheaper than going to Starbucks. In the long run it is worth every penny even though it cost a lot to buy. Happy with the purchase for my son and he LOVES IT!!!
Justin B.Justin B. –
My wife picked this one out due to the straight forward design and instructions. We love it and use it daily. It makes great coffee and is easy to use once you get the hang of it. Very easy to clean and looks beautiful in our kitchen.
Raquel –
Delicious drinks at the push of 3 buttons. The tamper feature makes a perfect puck every time with no practice needed. Easy to use and perfectly frothed milk. Best cappuccino I’ve ever had. Pricey but worth it!
Erin E. Larson –
I’ve had different espresso machines in my lifetime and this by far is our most favorite! I didn’t think I needed such an upgraded espresso machine but it’s so totally worth it, 100%
Night Owl PhotographyNight Owl Photography –
For those hesitant to spend this much money on a coffee machine I’ll tell you this – it makes way better coffee than a regular coffee maker. Part of the reason is the ability to froth the milk. But the coffee is very good – better than you can get at Starbuck’s or Duncan and you can get it right at home. So calculate how much you spend on your favorite coffee in a drive-thru and multiply that by about how many days of the year you think you go thru a drive-thru for a coffee. If you do it every day that’s 365 x maybe what? $5? Is your coffee more? $6? Let’s just do $5… 365 x $5 is $1,825 a year you’re spending on coffee. Probably more, right?Buy one of these and you have even better coffee at home, no need to sit in a drive-thru, and you’re saving money. Even if you had to buy a new machine every year it’s still cheaper than going thru those drive-thrus!In my case in my family my 3 teenage daughters were going out for coffee almost every day. This machine is saving me so much money! And my kitchen looks and smells much cooler than it did before I got it.Buy this machine! You won’t regret it!
SkylerBrobro –
This is my first espresso machine, and I love how it introduced me to being a barista. I can’t even imagine trying to learn this on my own initially. As the machine guides me, I feel like I’m slowly understanding what it means for a shot to be under extracted or over extracted and how the grind and tamp can impact it.Anyhow, so far so good.However, USE FRESH BEANS. I tried to use an unopened bag of Starbucks espresso beans as well as an unopened bag of lavazza beans. However, both bags were very old, and the extractions were wildly inconsistent. One brew would be extremely watery, the next wouldn’t even push through the portafilter, causing me to change grinds and keep trying to calibrate the machine. Eventually I threw out all the old beans, cleaned the burrs, went to a local place and bought beans that were roasted just a week ago. I switched to the single wall double filter. The results are completely different. Much more consistent, much better aroma, better crema, and of course better taste. Initially I didn’t really believe the age of the beans mattered much, I would French press or make cold brews before and it didn’t seem to matter to me anyhow. However, for espresso and at least my experience with this machine it absolutely matters. Strongly recommend using freshly roasted beans!
Amazon Customer –
*Seller was at no fault*Amazon made this a hassle to buy. I purchased at a certain price and amazon promised to refund me a certain amount if i purchased again at a higher price. I got this in writing and after hours on the phone with multiple supervisors telling me they couldnt do that, i finally got to someone who helped.Great machine though
Cp –
I’m becoming a barista! Easy machine to operate & clean; coffee comes out great.
Joseph C. Bartron –
Purchased this as xmas present to myself. It’s quite a splurge and so far I’m glad I did. Setting it up was easy. The machine walks you through the whole process. Dialing it in only took three tries with the machine telling you what to do each time. Now that it’s dialed in to the coffee I use, it’s a breeze to make my favorite drink every morning. Customizing drinks is also very easy..I would give this machine 5 stars for ease of use and flavor. Overall I gave it 4 stars due to the weight. This weighs 22 lbs and more when the water tank is full which makes it hard to move around on the counter. Mine is kept on the counter but underneath an upper cabinet which means I need to pull it away from the wall to fill the tank or add beans. I have since changed the rubber feet to the wheel rollers by Crema Coffee ($22). These are a game changer and make it incredibly easy to move the machine now. They should be provided as standard equipment by Breville. Note; the wheels add about 1/4″ to the overall height of the machine.I also recommend getting a puck screen ($9) because it really helps with keeping the group head screen clean. Breville should have provided this as well. That’s the reason for the one star downgrade. Otherwise, I really like the machine. It’s very intuitive and also allows for just enough hands-on work to make me believe I’m really doing something when I’m not. I still take the credit for the “delicious” comments from friends and family (lol). Fresh beans are the key to success.
user22272403 –
Good but not sold on keeping it. I have beens that are typically 30 to 60 days old and after almost 30 days of using it I still can’t get this to dial in correctly without producing bitter espresso. The milk temperature never works, I have it set to 170 degrees and it always stops well short of that even though the temperature sensor shows only 130 or so. I tried placing it differently but it always cuts out at the same temp. Not sure why they even have it adjustable to that hot if it will not produce milk at that temp. For context I have a Gaggia Accademia that is at the end of its life. That only takes a few shots pulled to dial it in for the beans, that also couldn’t produce hot milk. Not sure if the added extra steps and not getting a better quality shot is worth the hassle.
MoulhamMoulham –
I used to own the Barista Touch before, and the Barista Touch Impress is a big step in compare (Specially, for the beginners in their coffe game)Using this machine is so simple, and you end up with a very good quality cup of coffee without efforts.
Kindle CustomerKindle Customer –
I’ll get to the point. This machine is the answer to years of research and waiting for a machine with everything we were looking for.; easy to use, with the ability to use manually for more customization, high quality equipment, and at a price point we could afford. Mind you, we got this for 1200 because of black friday and that was still high for us (plus the insurance) but worth every penny. We’ve had it for 3 months and could not be happier. I’m really sad to see the negative reviews that almost kept me from buying the machine – boy, am I glad I did!
Go Blue 91361 –
Absolutely love this machine. So far no problems other than the blue paint chipping on the drip tray. I love the blue color but was unaware it was prone to chipping. If you are concerned about that, get the machine in stainless steel. I use it daily and it makes amazing espresso. I am enjoying trying the different coffee options from their beanz.com website. Coffee is roasted and shipped right away for the freshest beans.
hummingbird –
Could’ve been great but lots of issues.1-it’s constantly telling you to fill the hopper when it’s already full.2-after you grind the coffee, it frequently says ‘add a little more’ sometimes several times for one cup.3-For the Americano, it occasionally decides not to dispense the water. Then if you select the water, it not only dispenses, but then also brews a second time.4-it’s messy. We purchased this one to avoid the manual tamping and mess but this machine constantly drops grounds and is messy.5-The coffee puck frequently doesn’t come out with the portafilter and then makes a big mess6-removing the filter basket is difficult and has sharp edges. You have to pry it out with a knife to remove it. Forget about switching to a single.Unfortunately, these are not returnable once used, otherwise we’d be sending it back.Very disappointing
Justin B.Justin B. –
My wife picked this one out due to the straight forward design and instructions. We love it and use it daily. It makes great coffee and is easy to use once you get the hang of it. Very easy to clean and looks beautiful in our kitchen.
G Morton –
It makes great coffee drinks and it’s easy to operate and clean. The only con which isn’t that big of a deal is that the machine glitches sometimes and turns off in the middle of steaming milk. Not a huge deal. It turns back on pretty quickly. I love how it looks on the countertop.
Dodo –
I got it for my daughter and son n-law as a house warming gift. They enjoyed the daily cups of gourmet coffee and their house smells like Starbucks coffee shop, lol. We also get to enjoy our latte when we come over for a visit. And my 3y/o granddaughter enjoys the fancy warm cinnamon honey milk her daddy made for her. It’s their best gift ever.
David20200David20200 –
Almost flawless. It’s beautiful and simple to use. The Baratza conical grinder is sooo good! It lets you get the full potential out of your freshly roasted bean of choice! The “impress” auto-tamp lever takes the variable out of tamping by hand for super consistent performance. The instant feedback is super nice letting you know if you have enough grounds or too much. The fact it learns and auto-adjusts is so helpful! Overall this machine takes all the annoyances and burdens out of making fabulous espresso drinks. If you have the budget, get it!
Alex –
I really wanted to like this machine, it is incredible how a lower end model from Breville such as the bambino has the option to configure to brew consistently for x amount of seconds, there is no such option in the impress touch. You can only configure based on predetermined volume which is nowhere near precise and is the biggest flaw of this “espresso” machine. BTW this setting of brewing against volume cannot be turned off.One could think that since you can save different presets you can have multiple beans, single dose accordingly, and press a button, WRONG. Since you cant brew for predetermined seconds this is simply not possible, who wants to brew against a volume setting that doesn’t work? Then there is the Baratza grinder using M2 burrs, which is “ok” as it is the same one found on the encore esp. There is just one big problem when manual grinding based on predetermined seconds, just one second can throw off a few grams more, this can be fixed by simply adding to the software 0.5 second intervals or 0.25 seconds instead of one second intervals so that each dose can be as precise as possible, again this setting is not available.Unfortunately I was looking for an espresso machine that I can customize and save presets for others to use around the house based on grinding dose and brewing time, this is not that machine.Most of the issues can be fixed via a software update, but again this 1,500 USD machine can only be updated by an authorized technician.Recommendation, stay away from this espresso machine, buy a bambino and a good grinder, it will be way more consistent.
robert bowler –
My husband surprised me with this for Christmas. I thought it was too much of a splurge until I made my first latte. I usually buy a latte 3-4 times a week. Maybe more if I’m honest. Now I make them at home and will never go back to Starbucks. Also doing the math I am saving money with this machine
Sokysock –
Works great. Wife loves it. I would get the Barista pro. But for my wife it’s perfect
Raquel –
Delicious drinks at the push of 3 buttons. The tamper feature makes a perfect puck every time with no practice needed. Easy to use and perfectly frothed milk. Best cappuccino I’ve ever had. Pricey but worth it!
HNIC215 –
I purchased this Breville Barista Touch Impress twice. The first one I had kept getting a ER09 Error Code, so I returned it since it was still within the return period. I read horror stories regarding Breville Customer Support when looking up ER09 error code online and didn’t want to go through that trouble.The return by the way was still a hassle – Amazon doesn’t make it easy to return large appliances. I returned it and never received my refund. I had to contact customer service multiple times – who then told me to “just wait another week” 3 times – very annoying. They took many weeks to give me a refund and eventually had to get an exec to override and issue a refund because “the return was stuck in processing” – whatever that means.Due to the fact that my wife and I both enjoyed the first one when it worked, I gave it another chance and ordered a replacement.The second one has now stopped working after 7 months.Breville customer service is terrible. In order to honor their own warranty, they need to see video proof, have a video call with you, watch you use the machine, make you sing a song and dance like a circus clown. Last two are a joke by the way lolThe point is… Breville makes you run around and jump through hoops for them to honor their own warranty on a well-known defective machine. There are countless sites and threads online where people complain about this exact model having so many issues. I honestly don’t even know why Amazon sells this model.Please do yourself, your family and your wallet a favor and skip this model. It is nice while it works but it breaks down extremely easily. Then you are out of $1500+ and your only solution is to pay money to return the product to Breville after they make you jump through hoops – only to get another one that will break again.Rinse, wash, repeat. Heed the warnings of myself and many others – STAY FAR AWAY FROM THIS DEFECTIVE MACHINE.I would give this product ZERO STARS if I could. Never going to purchase another Breville product again.
jfrich –
The machine is working well so far, it’s only been a month. Easy to dial in, the included tamper makes it easy to create a nice puck. Espresso is delicious and flavorful. Recommend using fresh, dry (not oily) beans. We order from online coffee shop or get from a local roaster. Can use manual grind and brew and steam functions also – very easy to go between manual and nearly full auto. This is as close to a full automatic with the ability to do custom shots.
Constantin Radacenco –
Good quality and yeasy to work with fast shiping
Gregg –
[update at end] When the machine works, it’s great, but I am currently on my second unit, and about to return this one. The first unit would randomly shut down, and/or, do a factory reset while frothing milk. I called support and they advized that it would be best to return it to Amazon. I did, however it cost me an extra $300 because the first one was purchased on a Christmas sale that was now over. Since when it works we liked it we went ahead and got another unit.The second unit arrived and the frothing now works every time, however the hopper keeps complaining that there are no beans even though there are. The original never did this. I followed the instructions and removed the burr and completely cleaned all beans and coffee grounds out, then put it all back together. It only took it 2 times to fail again. We did notice that the grinding times are a lot longer on the second unit even when it does work. Everything looked fully functional when I cleaned it, including the hopper which I tested while it was off.Another interesting thing is that the firmware on the “newer” unit is an older rev than the first unit we bought a month ago. Support says there is no way to upgrade the FW at home, so it’s strange they display it. We have to wait until the credit shows up for the first return before we can order the 3rd replacement because this is a hefty chunk of change.Hopefully someone from Breville reads this and can improve their quality control, because I feel that if I had a system that worked every time, it would be good. I’ll update this review as the coffee drama progresses.[update] I just got my unit back from Breville and I was very impressed with them. When I called them they set up a video chat so they could see the problem. She immediately said it was faulty and e-mailed me a return shipping label. From the day I shipped it I had it back in 1 week (maybe I was lucky). It grinds faster, brews faster, and tastes better (although the latter may be because I’ve been drinking coffee from a pot for the last week). It also has a newer firmware version so that probably fixed a lot of problems too since I was an early adopter of a brand new design.
Rok Yu –
I sent the machine in for repair and it was returned about a week later. Looks like they know what’s causing it because the machine now appears to work correctly. Something I noticed was that before the repair, the steaming would end when the temperature was around 140 instead of the target temp of 150. I thought that this was because the machine was accounting for the fact the steaming doesn’t stop immediately. With the repaired machine, the steaming continues until 150 is shown.Updated the rating from 3 to 4 stars. 5 stars for the actual machine, but -1 star because of the inconvenience of having to send the machine in for repair for what appears to be a known problem. —-When it works the machine is great, but the ER09 while steaming is very frustrating. Plugging directly into the wall outlet instead of via a heavy duty powerstrip seems to have reduced the frequency of the error, but still see it once a week or so (~15% of the time). Customer service is sending someone to repair so we’ll see how it goes.
Josh –
This has been the most catastrophic customer experience I’ve ever had with a product costing over $1,600. I received my unit in September 2023. While it generally worked well, I noticed a few issues early on, like the milk frother not reaching the programmed temperature. It would stop at 130°F when set to 150°F, as if it was trying to keep my coffee lukewarm to match the lukewarm customer service I was about to receive.Recently, the integrated grinder decided to play hide-and-seek with my sanity. Despite my efforts to keep it clean, it kept throwing a tantrum with a fill hopper error. I had to push the grind button more times than I can count, just to make a single cup of espresso. Grinding coffee from this machine got to the point where it was like trying to get a straight answer from a politician—impossible.I contacted customer support and had a video call where we tried numerous solutions, none of which worked. They asked me to send the unit in for repairs and provided a 5-day ground shipping label from Houston to Chicago. For a $1,600 machine, I expected them to send it via teleportation, but alas, they chose the slowest, cheapest shipping option. Amazon offers same-day shipping for toilet paper, yet Breville chose the slowest shipping for a premium espresso machine. It’s like they’re saying, ‘Your coffee is important to us, but not as important as toilet paper.’Breville took nearly a week to repair the unit and sent it back with the same slow shipping. It took almost three weeks in total to get my machine back, and it was still broken. This time, the tamper decided to take a vacation. Not only was the tamper not working, but the machine also came back dirty, as if it had been partying in a muddy field. I called customer support again, and after another video call, I was told to send the unit back for repair—shocker!I requested a new unit, but they insisted I send back the machine first using the same 5-day ground snail shipping method. From there, once they receive the old unit, they would ship the new one, again using the slowest shipping method on the planet—it’s like they’re trying to test my patience. Breville’s customer support is the worst I’ve experienced for a premium product–EVER. Customers willing to spend $1,600 on a coffee machine deserve better, including priority shipping for issues beyond their control.Moving forward, I’ll purchase all my Breville machines from Amazon with product insurance to avoid dealing with Breville’s unprofessional and unaccommodating support ever again. And who knows, maybe I’ll even get a free roll of toilet paper with my next order.
Ed 007 –
The quality is as stated, some metal some plastic. Metal where it should be and plastic where it doesn’t matter. It looks awesome on my counter I like how it is “wider” than “deeper” than other units. As for use, well, I am new to the coffee world but know a good cup when I have one. I noticed a barista can make my coffee perfect (for me) one day and ok the next which prompted me to invest in this espresso machine. After a few weeks (yes, weeks) of having fun making an Americano I have to say I have not gone back to a coffee shop since. Once you understand the basics of dialing in and tweaking which this machine makes it so easy and teaches you along the way then you’re off to other drinks to master. Keep in mind if there is anything I learned most it is that of coffee beans — BY ROASTED ON DATE ONLY!. Coffee enthusiasts, which I am not, are correct the beans are highly important. Is it a loud machine? No, not at all. I actually thought it was going to be loud but it is not. Also, the bottom feet are some sort of rubber which seems to keep vibration down I guess, IDK, but what I do know the feet keep the unit stable and does not slide. I have not had an issue as of yet but kept the box with a bunch of unpacking pictures incase I need to repack and send back to the manufacturer for repair under their two year warranty. I like the unit so much I really do baby it by cleaning, flushing, keeping up with filtered water etc. I will provide an update in the future but for now I need to go make a cup of Americano MY way the same WAY which is NEVER inconsistent which only this machine does for me.Six Month Update: Still going strong. Unit acts like it’s still new. I run a back flush after each session and unit rewards me with a good cup of coffee every time.
Night Owl PhotographyNight Owl Photography –
For those hesitant to spend this much money on a coffee machine I’ll tell you this – it makes way better coffee than a regular coffee maker. Part of the reason is the ability to froth the milk. But the coffee is very good – better than you can get at Starbuck’s or Duncan and you can get it right at home. So calculate how much you spend on your favorite coffee in a drive-thru and multiply that by about how many days of the year you think you go thru a drive-thru for a coffee. If you do it every day that’s 365 x maybe what? $5? Is your coffee more? $6? Let’s just do $5… 365 x $5 is $1,825 a year you’re spending on coffee. Probably more, right?Buy one of these and you have even better coffee at home, no need to sit in a drive-thru, and you’re saving money. Even if you had to buy a new machine every year it’s still cheaper than going thru those drive-thrus!In my case in my family my 3 teenage daughters were going out for coffee almost every day. This machine is saving me so much money! And my kitchen looks and smells much cooler than it did before I got it.Buy this machine! You won’t regret it!
Michael H. –
I’ve had this for 3 weeks now, and have definitely increased my coffee intake, because it is just so good! I replaced an older machine from another manufacturer, and there is simply no comparison – MUCH better espresso, so much quieter, very easy to learn and use, and much cleaner. I love that I could customize my drink (favorite milk product, hotter temp than the standard) and save the settings, so I get consistent results. Also, really nice design – it looks great on the kitchen counter. Yes, this is an expensive unit, but you won’t regret the splurge. Don’t let the incredibly obnoxious yuppie-guy in the Breville video scare you off. I wish I would have taken the plunge a long time ago.
Allie –
Yes, this machine is expensive but it works great! I make my own coffee every morning and it’s better than coffee I could get at Starbucks or other coffee shops. I love that it shows you the steps and does them for you (no tamping yourself!). I also love that it adjusts for the type of milk you want, as I like almond or oat milk. The only thing that is annoying is when you fill the water tank, it’s a bit hard not to spill the water when putting the tank back in the machine but maybe that’s just because my machine is under cabinets on the counter.All and all, a great espresso machine!
Larry –
I enjoyed this machine a great deal (did not appreciate the plastic around the brew head/shower screen).. Its easy to program and pull a shot.. Milk frothing was easy and the foam was excellent.. The machine will help tamp for you and if there isn’t enough ground coffee in the portafilter, the machine will grind until the perfect portion of ground coffee is reached and the machine will remember the next time.. Perfect blend of features from a super automatic and semi auto espresso machine; you can manually do things or allow the machine to do everything for you except move the portafilter and your cup!!! Easier cleanup than a super automatic machine..