Description
Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine BES500BTR, Black Truffle
| Brand | Breville |
| Color | Black Truffle |
| Product Dimensions | 14.25″D x 7.5″W x 12″H |
| Special Feature | Manual |
| Coffee Maker Type | Espresso Machine |
|
|
||||
|
|
Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine
$299.99
Additional information
| Title | Default Title |
|---|
Elizabeth –
I absolutely love my bambino plus by Breville!First let me tell you that I ordered a Philips and that was too complicated and too many buttons/options plus I couldn’t even figure out how to get it to work! Then I ordered a jazzy. No way. Horrible piece of junk. Then my daughter said I have a juicer made by breville why don’t you try one of their machines? So I opted for the bambino plus. Well it does a beautiful job making my two to four capachinos a day! After a year of owning it I’ve become quite good at understanding beans/shots roasting dates the two main types of beans/ tampers /baskets etc. then I bought the breville grinder and what a great move! Both machines are awesome! Easy to use I’m going on two years now with bambino and one year with the grinder. Did I mention there’s no waiting for water to get hot? Lovely and when you’re ready you can buy a bottomless coffee portafilter with an Italian basket( ims) 14-18 gram and what a beautiful sight to see that rich crema flowing straight out into a honey colored thick stream into your clear glass coffee cup! I use Tony’s sugar bee espresso beans or roasters 7 beans hapuna espresso blend. Both have roasting dates and both are divine in taste(medium roast)if you want a stronger blend the upsetter by thanksgiving coffee is very nice! No bitterness but full and rich flavor. Oh I could talk about coffee all day and night! lol anyway bottom line is breville bambino plus ROCKS! Oh one more thing if you’re not so good at making milk froth this machine does it for you! The only negative thing I can think of is the learning of how to clean and descale was a bit confusing. My advice is to watch utube videos on how to do it and you’ll be fine:) thankyou for reading and remember to laugh every day 😊!
keiki45 –
We have owned espresso machines (even the Barista model) in the past and never had this many problems. As many other reviews have indicated, there is an ongoing problem with espresso shooting out of the top of the portafilter head, which makes it impossible to split a double shot into two cups. We tried for several weeks to work with Breville to fix this and they send us another portafilter head and the problem persists. Other reviewers indicate purchasing a different brand portafilter basket fixes it, but really? We are just living with it at this point. Now, months later, additional issues and pains are popping up through no fault of our own. I’m tired of dealing with the slow customer service responses and ready to just give up.
Elizabeth –
I absolutely love my bambino plus by Breville!First let me tell you that I ordered a Philips and that was too complicated and too many buttons/options plus I couldn’t even figure out how to get it to work! Then I ordered a jazzy. No way. Horrible piece of junk. Then my daughter said I have a juicer made by breville why don’t you try one of their machines? So I opted for the bambino plus. Well it does a beautiful job making my two to four capachinos a day! After a year of owning it I’ve become quite good at understanding beans/shots roasting dates the two main types of beans/ tampers /baskets etc. then I bought the breville grinder and what a great move! Both machines are awesome! Easy to use I’m going on two years now with bambino and one year with the grinder. Did I mention there’s no waiting for water to get hot? Lovely and when you’re ready you can buy a bottomless coffee portafilter with an Italian basket( ims) 14-18 gram and what a beautiful sight to see that rich crema flowing straight out into a honey colored thick stream into your clear glass coffee cup! I use Tony’s sugar bee espresso beans or roasters 7 beans hapuna espresso blend. Both have roasting dates and both are divine in taste(medium roast)if you want a stronger blend the upsetter by thanksgiving coffee is very nice! No bitterness but full and rich flavor. Oh I could talk about coffee all day and night! lol anyway bottom line is breville bambino plus ROCKS! Oh one more thing if you’re not so good at making milk froth this machine does it for you! The only negative thing I can think of is the learning of how to clean and descale was a bit confusing. My advice is to watch utube videos on how to do it and you’ll be fine:) thankyou for reading and remember to laugh every day 😊!
Y.S. –
My heat exchanger machine took at least 10 minutes to warm up. The Breville takes a few seconds. The coffee from this machine is not as hot as from the big machine, and you can’t adjust the brewing temperature on the Breville. Medium roasts tasted sour. Vienna roast tastes much better. I grind the coffee so that I get 35 seconds brew time. With a shorter time, the coffee started to taste sour. I run the machine once without a portafilter to warm up the brew head. Only then I brew the coffee.The milk frother makes life easy and difficult. I had milk overspill many times when I used the supplied frothing jug. The solution was easy: use a bigger jug. Just make sure you get a stainless jug with a flat bottom (not concave), so it touches the temperature sensor that’s embedded in the drip tray. No more spills!The worst thing about the machine is the drip tray. It’s tiny and you need to clean it practically after every drink, especially if using the frother. The machine purges the frother after each use, and the drip tray gets filled with diluted milk. I think there is room for aftermarket vendors to make a better drip tray.Because of the ubiquity of Breville, there’s a huge aftermarket for portafilters, baskets, tampers etc. I got a bottomless portafilter and a spring loaded tamper. If you want to improve your machine, the first thing I would recommend is a better tamper. Mine was $12 and it works so much better than the original.Finally, there’s a lot of technology in this machine for a relatively reasonable price, and it can make decent espresso and cappuccino drinks. But with a group head made of plastic, I just wonder how long it will last.
Lauren –
I loved this so much that I bought a second after the first one died. I do wish it had been easier to repair. But my calculation is that the cost per drink over five years is less than 10 cents per drink that I made. And it was more than worth it. I greatly appreciate that I can switch between automatic and manual depending on my schedule and how alert I am in the morning.
Cristal Rodriguez –
Down side is its light weight. That makes you almost embrace it to properly close in the porta filter.
Lauren –
I loved this so much that I bought a second after the first one died. I do wish it had been easier to repair. But my calculation is that the cost per drink over five years is less than 10 cents per drink that I made. And it was more than worth it. I greatly appreciate that I can switch between automatic and manual depending on my schedule and how alert I am in the morning.
Karen K –
UPDATE: We have had this Breville espresso machine for 3 months and lights started flashing on it, looked at the manual but could not find a remedy for the flashing, so called the Brevet customer service. I described what was happening and she then said I needed to mail the machine back to them for them to repair. After spending a lot of money, I was hoping they would just send us a new one. But no, she said they could not. If they couldn’t fix it they would send us another “re-conditioned espresso machine” and would extend the warranty another 6 months! WHAT??? We are not happy about this situation. Plus it is going to take 3 weeks or more to have it fixed and sent back. This is really unacceptable. I will update once we get our machine back.We fell in love with espressos while traveling in Italy. Got home and really missed having our daily shot. I found a Cuisinart model at a thrift store, it lasted us 4 years (got it for $20 bucks), looked around for another used Cuisinart and found the same model on FB Marketplace…Anyway we decided to take the plunge, saved our money (waited for a sale forever, which never happened) and bought this one! We love it! The espresso is fantastic, the machine easy to use. It is compact, doesn’t rattle like our old ones when brewing, made from stainless steel and so glad we got it! Now, let’s hope it lasts forever for the price!
ASmith –
Small footprint is great for a machine with a pump that makes such great tasting espresso.It’s ready to brew or steam in an instant. The auto froth feature works perfectly and isn’t any louder than frothing will necessarily be.They ought to call it the Maialino and paint it pink from the cute little “oink-oink” noises the pump makes. 🥰The lighter weight of it makes it necessary to brace the machine with one hand while removing the porta filtre with the other.Reservoir is easy to refill, even without removing it from the machine (which is also an option) but be careful as the opening is flush with the top of the machine; if you’ve got demitasse or a tamper up there, they’re prone to falling in. Ask me how I know 🙄.The auto-clean feature for the steam wand is nice in keeping it cleared out and, for idiot proof avoidance of a clogged wand, probably better to have than not, but it can be a little annoying because it clears automatically whenever you retract the wand back into operating position after removing the pitcher from a steam. If you forgot and put it right back down into the next pitcher, you’ll get flush water in your next milk 😜. Also, it tends to fill up the catch pan after a few uses. What I do is put my wipe rag over the grate of the catch pan before lowering the wand to flush so the rag soaks up the flush water and then I have a hot damp rag to wipe off the wand.All in all, it’s a simple, compact, quality espresso machine.7/23/24 edit: had to do the automated clean cycle and had my first encounter with breville’s weird support setup. Their own video was inaccurate on how to initiate the clean cycle (found the solution on Reddit) and there’s no way to provide them feedback on the info error without having a breville account to log in or taking time to call, neither of which I’m messing with. It’s a bit of a convenience fail. Sorry if that makes me a bit of a Princess Karen. Still an awesome machine.
prime lover –
This makes delicious espresso! I got this for my 20 year old daughter who is a starbucks junkie. At $7 a pop, plus a $5 bacon, gouda and egg, to go with, we are saving $12 a day! I don’t know what that actually works out to be, but I feel confident that this was a great investment. In a blind taste test, you could tell the difference between starbucks and kitchen made caramel macchiato! It was easy to set up, easy to use and easy to clean. I bought the breville grinder to go with it, and it works just fine for what she needs. Buy it and you’ll be happy you did!
llshen –
As a newbie coffee enthusiast, this was my first espresso machine. It was very easy to set up and get started. The color is gorgeous, and the footprint is small, which is great for people with limited counter space. The machine is overall fairly quiet and brews quickly, and the instructions are clear. My first two brews have been pretty good, so I’m excited to continue experimenting!
Matthew –
This machine is really great and impressive in a lot of ways. But don’t expect to get a cafe quality drink from it without some work and good quality beans and accessories.I had been making latte-like drinks for a while with strong drip coffee, warm milk, and a little hand frother gadget. They were pretty good, but obviously not the real thing. I decided to try making lattes at home and went with the breville because of all the features, such as auto milk frothing.First off, the auto frothing is amazing! I would pick this machine over others just for that. I am not a morning person and want as little work as possible in the morning, so having it stream and froth the milk for me was great. It made excellent quality milk! I can’t complain about that at all.As far as the coffee, I first tried pre-ground espresso from the grocery store with the pressurized basket. It was definitely drinkable, but a far cry from what you can get from a cafe. I expected as much.So then I bought the breville smart grinder pro. I spent a lot of time studying dialing in your beans and everything. I bought the best quality espresso beans available at my local grocery store. I used the single walled basket and did all the weighing and timing and probably brewed 10-15 shots before I got it about as good as I could. This was much better quality than the pre-ground stuff, and definitely an enjoyable drink. But still, nowhere near as good as what I get at a coffee shop.The next for me would have been to buy freshly ground beans from a local roaster or something like that. But at this point I had so much money and time invested in it, and I don’t get out much and don’t want to start making regular trips to buy special beans. So I returned it all and went back to my drip coffee.It was a fun little hobby for the very short time I owned this. But not being a morning person it was too much prep and cleaning in the mornings. There were always coffee grounds everywhere I was constantly cleaning up. I was buying so many different accessories like wdt tools and dosing funnels. And I found myself stressing about perfecting the process and could see myself going down a deep rabbit hole with specialty beans and everything. And I’m mostly being facetious here but I did not like the person I was becoming. There was a huge sense of relief as soon as I returned it all.This hobby just wasn’t for me in the end. But if I did decide to stick with it, I would have kept this machine and not felt a need to upgrade to anything beyond this. It is really classy and elegant and looked great in my kitchen. I loved walking by it and looking at how nice and shiny it was. And I feel like the features all made it about as easy a process as it could be without going to something more automatic.
Alex D. –
The machine is light enough that you need to hold it down as you put in the portafilter- but you won’t want to do that for fear of breaking it. Most of the time that fear is unfounded, but if you happen to grab hold of the handle on the water reservoir in your pre-coffee morning haze you absolutely WILL break it. Then you’ll find out that Breville would sell you a new reservoir- if they had it in stock, which they haven’t for at least 3/4 of a year. They still sell this machine as a whole though, with the reservoir. Then you’ll find out that their customer support site wants you to create an account and hides any sort of direct contact information from you- as if they are trying to discourage you from reaching out to them. You’ll find their contact info through a quick Google search, then proceed to fight their customer support for weeks until you finally are able to put a reserve order in. Then you’ll get an email every couple of weeks affirming that you don’t want to cancel your order, which you better respond to or they will.I’ve had a broken reservoir on this machine for a month now. I’m able to fill it enough to get a latte out of it, so I’m not completely without home coffee. This machine had problems before that though. Because of the aforementioned shoddy construction water leaks out of the bottom of the machine after every pull- not into the drip tray, mind you. That works well enough, so at least the water on my counter every morning isn’t soiling it as well. On at least one occasion without anything to prompt it, the pump started going non-stop. Unplugging and replugging had no effect, but fortunately a factory reset did. That was after it operating presumably all day while I was away before I was able to notice it though.Only two things keep me from giving this one star. The features and the fact that it does, in fact, make a decent espresso- when it works. The automatic steam wand is excellent for beginners, but you will soon be left wanting to be more involved in that process. The machine also is ready to brew remarkably fast.But these features are meaningless if I can’t use them because the machine is broken. Needless to say, I’m done with Breville for life- and will likely replace this machine very soon.
ASmith –
Small footprint is great for a machine with a pump that makes such great tasting espresso.It’s ready to brew or steam in an instant. The auto froth feature works perfectly and isn’t any louder than frothing will necessarily be.They ought to call it the Maialino and paint it pink from the cute little “oink-oink” noises the pump makes. 🥰The lighter weight of it makes it necessary to brace the machine with one hand while removing the porta filtre with the other.Reservoir is easy to refill, even without removing it from the machine (which is also an option) but be careful as the opening is flush with the top of the machine; if you’ve got demitasse or a tamper up there, they’re prone to falling in. Ask me how I know 🙄.The auto-clean feature for the steam wand is nice in keeping it cleared out and, for idiot proof avoidance of a clogged wand, probably better to have than not, but it can be a little annoying because it clears automatically whenever you retract the wand back into operating position after removing the pitcher from a steam. If you forgot and put it right back down into the next pitcher, you’ll get flush water in your next milk 😜. Also, it tends to fill up the catch pan after a few uses. What I do is put my wipe rag over the grate of the catch pan before lowering the wand to flush so the rag soaks up the flush water and then I have a hot damp rag to wipe off the wand.All in all, it’s a simple, compact, quality espresso machine.7/23/24 edit: had to do the automated clean cycle and had my first encounter with breville’s weird support setup. Their own video was inaccurate on how to initiate the clean cycle (found the solution on Reddit) and there’s no way to provide them feedback on the info error without having a breville account to log in or taking time to call, neither of which I’m messing with. It’s a bit of a convenience fail. Sorry if that makes me a bit of a Princess Karen. Still an awesome machine.
Arius –
Update…Make sure that you let the descale process run all the way through. If interrupted, your frother won’t work. So, that was me. not the machine. That said seller – MBM Brands LLC – was no help. Breville was willing but slow in responses to on-line help queries. I resolved the issue by reading the manual.This espresso machine has a built-in maintenance alert system that will flash lights when it’s time to clean or descale. Unfortunately, at least in the case of my machine, after you clean and after you descale and even after you reset it to factory settings, the frother will never work again.
Jerry –
I am not a rookie espresso maker, having brewed espresso at home for about 30 years. The last 15 years or so I have used the varying upgrades of the Gaggia Classic Pro which is in the same price range but is much more manual to use. When my latest Gaggia died , after much research, I decided to consider other options and settled on the Bambino Plus.I have used it for about a month now and I have to say that after experimenting with grind settings, the quality of the espresso is consistently top notch and tastier than I could ever get out of the Gaggia.Getting up to speed took a little while for me, but the videos in the BILT app were really helpful.As to milk texturing, one important task is not covered in the BILT app. You MUST purge the steam wand of gathered hot water before texturing. That process is covered in the how to videos on the Breville website.The Bambino Plus wand provides steam equal to much more expensive machines and does it virtually instantly. As to automatic texturing, the milk froth is fine for lattes but not airy enough for cappuccinos. For cappuccinos, manual frothing is required, but that is not a problem for me since I have been manually frothing for many years. When manually texturing, I insert a thermometer in the milk so I know when the milk is in the 140-150 degrees F range.The bottom line is that I really like this machine.
Alan L –
After reading many reviews on the Breville Bambino Plus and going back and forth whether to take a chance decided to let those undecided to know that after using every day since receiving it in May I am not sorry I purchased it. It is not 100% perfect, but I am not a pro and thus am enjoying my daily morning cappachino’s. I was unable to increase the two shot dose, so I just hit the one dose when the two dose is finished. As for the milk frothing, 99% of the time it comes out perfect. However, I believe when the milk is not real fresh it has bubbles and less foam. To date, I have not had any issues, no leaking problems. I did buy the Breville coffee grinder and use coffee beans with roasting date and the unpressured basket.I will say that when I have contacted Customer Service to help with the dose size, they called me back within the time frame given and did send me instructions, so either I did not do it correct or did not understand the directions correctly. I also had called them because I thought my machine had the top warming tray, they explained that this machine does not.I also did take out the extended warentee that Amazon offered since reading all the negative reviews felt better safe than sorry after spending so much money. Hopefully, will not have to use it.This machine was purchased to replace a Mr. Coffee totally automatic expresso maker that I had for over 5 years that finally died. I loved the Mr. Coffee expresso maker and would have bought another, just decided to get a machine that would make better expresso. Remember, I am NOT an expert and certainly not an expresso/cappachino connoisseur. Hope this was helpful.
M. B –
I had an Italian espresso boiler machine for years and it was great. Got this for the workshop and it is SO EASY. And it actually tastes really good. It’s not fancy Italian espresso machine good, but as good as any quick pickup espresso in my neighborhood. It will soon pay for itself. Almost there. I just may get another one for home and sell the Italian job. 😀
AJAJ –
I was so frustrated with getting coffee that tasted bad everytime I got to a Starbucks or coffee shop. It was hit or miss. I would make coffee the traditional way at home or with my French press. But I was still not satisfied. I just wanted a nice American, espresso, or cappuccino. But too busy to do it. But this machine is so easy to use and it was so quick. The instructions came with a video tutorial on how to use it. I was able to make my drink so fast and every morning it’s just so easy. I am beyond satisfied with my purchase. This little machine is amazing!!!! The taste is soooo professional and I can’t believe I made it!!! Every morning I can enjoy my drink now.
Stuart E. Schechter –
The Bambino indeed has a super-fast startup time for both making espresso and steaming milk. A machine that starts up quickly is much less harmful for the environment than one that you need to leave powered up over night, which most of the higher-end machines do.While the Bambino does start up in 3 seconds, the instructions specify that run a single-cup cycle without the filter before actually starting to make your first shot. This is not going to slow you down if you start up your machine and hit the single shot button before grinding your beans, and the Bambino will be ready before you’ve finished tamping.I love the materials and the ease with which the base slides off for cleaning and back on again. It’s got a deep tray for water so I haven’t had any spills carrying it over to my sink.However, you should know before you buy that:(1) There’s a good deal of necessary friction to overcome as the filter needs to lock in tight to be sealed under pressure, and the machine is so light that it will slide around your counter before accepting the filter. There’s no handle to grab, so the only way I’ve been able to make this work is by wrapping my arms around the whole (fortunately small) machine. Don’t welcome a Bambino into your home unless you’re prepared to give it two bear hugs for every espresso you drink. (It gets easier–see update below. A commenter suggested using olive oil as a lubricant, which seems sensible since water boils at 100C and olive oil doesn’t burn until ~190C.)(2) When the steamer self-cleans the tip of the wand, the initial spray often hits the edges of the hole it’s supposed to land in. That initial spray contains milk that is being cleared, and the milk splatters. You’ll need to keep the towel you used to clean the wand handy to play defense, and prepare to clean up splatter that you miss. Hopefully in v2 the hole will be slightly bigger and the alignment more precise. (Aside from this, the self cleaning function is great.)(3) The minimum amount of milk required to steam (the min line in the included steel milk jug) is a bit more than will fit in an 8oz mug, especially on the frothiest mode. Fortunately, I’ve not had any problems after filling a bit below the min line.I’d definitely buy this again as all the flaws are manageable and I love the quality of the espresso it creates, the ease with which it does it, the ease of cleaning, and the petite size. Having originally eyed the Barista Express, I have no regrets about getting a smaller machine that’s easier to clean and starts up more quickly. If my grinder breaks, I can replace it without replacing my espresso maker, and vice versa. I also have no regrets about not getting a double boiler, as having two fast sequential steps (espresso and steam) is just as good as two slower parallel ones. If really I wanted to make multiple espressos faster, I’d get another filter unit so that I can grind one cup while another is brewing.- – – – -Update April 21 2020After a few months the group head started locking in with less friction (but still makes a good seal), and so the bear hugs are now optional.I recently had the chance to compare the Bambino with the Barista Express, which I bought as a gift for friends I stayed with for a week. The Barista Express is a more impressive looking machine, also worked beautifully, and when offered for less than the Bambino as it was in January, it might be a better value. The one feature I missed was the automated milk steaming on the Bambino. With the Bambino, I can start milk frothing and move to another task, but steaming is a strictly manual operation on the Express. While the Bambino has a manual option, if I wanted to steam manually, I confess that if I were steaming manually each morning, I’d much prefer the more spacious Express which provides a more ergonomic experience if steaming manually is important to you. The Bambino’s automatic steaming does a great job, so manual vs. automatic may simply be a matter of preference.Only after a year into ownership did I re-read the part of the manual that mentioned tool for cleaning the four holes in the steam wand, hidden under the water tank. It’s beautiful industrial design to embed useful but rarely-needed tools where nobody has to see them, but Breville was a little too successful in hiding from. Don’t miss it. I had been using a needle from a sewing kit.When using the two-shot mode to make two small lattes, I found it helpful to have a 600ml (20oz) steaming pitcher so that I can steam enough milk for both. For shot glasses, I’ve come to greatly appreciate ones with spouts that help me cleanly pour the espresso shots into cup. I use these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GL55KSN.I've now descaled a few times. Step 8 in the manual instructs that “once the descale solution has been used up, the descale mode will pause.” It will actually pause BEFORE all the descale solution has been used up. I believe you can just toss the remaining liquid left in your tank.After my second descale, the machine started barely producing any espresso during a cycle. I tried another descale, with no luck. Then I tried the instructions under “reset factory espresso volume settings” at the bottom right of page 17 of the manual and everything suddenly worked like new.
Jayleigh O’Leary –
Love this one! It took a bit of trial & error, but I get consistent results now. Such a treat!
Christopher S. –
I love having the espresso maker. This machine brews espresso with the touch of a button. Great temperature controls for frother and gives you great options. Perfect fit on my countertop instead of another bulky machine, just a little bigger than my old drip machine. Easy, fast, and affordable smooth lattes at home!
Paula –
We’ve had this machine for about 4 months. It was hard to get it to work right at first but after about 10 tries of figuring out the grind size and how much coffee to use, it was great. There are some really annoying things that I haven’t fully figured out yet. The steam wand was great initially but now stops half way through frothing, needs to be manually purged, and then can be used again to finish frothing the milk. I just tried to descale, so will update if that fixed the issue.The programming is hard to use. To enter the descale mode, I had to try many times, read some additional steps on Reddit, and then got it to work. Same thing for doing a clean cycle. To reset factory settings i also had to try a lot of times before it finally worked. Unfortunately customer service is only open Monday to Friday, so calling them when I’m actually trying to clean my machine is impossible. If I ever can call them when they are open, maybe they will be able to help explain what is going on with my machine.So in short, I love the coffee it makes but hate the programming hiccups that make it hard to fix anything.Updating now that I called Breville about the steam wand issue and they had me ship the machine back for repairs. It’s been another month since then and so far its working great. Once I was able to contact customer service, they took care of it right away.
Art –
Update May 2022: I felt this needed an update – 3 years later, the Bambino is still working just fine, making 1-2 lattes and cappuccinos a day. I was somewhat harsh on the automatic milk frother function in my original review, it actually performs just fine. Setting 3 on volume and setting 2 for temp will produce decent texture if you don’t overfill the pitcher. Manual frothing will produce better results, but automatic will do just fine for 99% of people.I had to adjust to new coffee several times and it took a number of days to dial in grind size and extraction times but it is doable. No machine will do it for you with a random bean, if you require perfection.I am finally amending my rating to 5 stars as this machine has thus far performed above and beyond my expectation. the price, size and performance are just right and I couldn’t wish for a better machine at this point—————————————————————–Update April 23rd 2019: Bambino going strong after 3 months, with a few negatives that don’t really deserve a star taken off:- First the good: manual milk frothing produces absolutely gorgeous microfoam. The wand is great and easy to work withnow the bad:- portafilter is not that good, basket retention is poor. The basket gets sucked onto the group head so tight that the portafilter comes off without it.- machine chokes with moderate tamping pressure, it is definitely not designed for standard tamping technique- machine seems to be extracting by volume which makes dialing in and timing shots very difficult. Not sure if I am correct on this one, but different tamping pressure results in differently timed shots, but they also weigh differently, which is rather odd. One would think it’s one or the other. It takes good technique and practice to pull a consistent shot. I still haven’t mastered it- cleaning instructions are very confusing, you have to be patient and let the machine do its thing, LED indicators actually don’t seem to match the manualOriginal review:This machine is capable of producing great cappucinos and lattes, if you skip its main attraction/feature – automatic milk steaming and frothing. The automatic process produces weak bubbly froth, but thankfully you can skip it and do it manually.Pros:- slim profile, won’t take much counter space- enough space under the portafilter to fit a large mug, this is a huge plus as other machines would only fit a tiny espresso cup- heats up really fast- huge water tank- very decent steam want capable of beautiful microfoam (if done manually) very fast- pull a decent shot (more on that in cons)- steam wand auto purging- comes with a very decent milk pitcherCons:- tiny drip tray. It will overflow after 3 cappuccinos- cheaper portafilter design than the one that comes with 840 and up, but allows for more room under it- only comes with double wall pressurized baskets and extra baskets are ridiculously expensive ($50 currently)- milk autosteaming, one of the main features and contributers to the price of this machine is not very good. It simply is not capable of producing the microfoam you’d expect from a machine in this price range. Luckily you can do it manuallyTips:- push some steam and let it purge the water onto a cloth right after you’ve turned the machine on. Push some water through the grouphead onto the cloth to stabilize the temperature. You will use the cloth to wipe the wand. This process ensures the machine is actually up to the correct temperature- do not overtamp. Double wall baskets are not that sensitive to tamp pressure, but will choke if overtamped.- clean the basket and the grouphead of any grounds before and after pulling the shot
Moritz –
Great Espresso maker. Makes great espresso.How do you mess up Software on an espresso maker? You hide the cleaning and descaling functions behind cryptic button presses and blinking patterns. You then proceed to incorrectly document them in then manual. This is one of the most frustrating coffee maker I’ve ever used in this regard.
J. C. HowardJ. C. Howard –
Oh My Goodness (that needed to be spelled out)! My headline said “Must have but Beware ” the issue is once you get this espresso machine and learn how to do it just right you will never be able to drink just coffee again. Plain coffee is just too nasty compared to the wonderful beverage that comes from this espresso machine. Also to go stand in line to get a cappuccino or latte will no longer be something you will be willing to do. So just know if you get this machine you will never be the same. The machine comes with two pressurized filters, a one shot and a two shot. I happen to trip across a UTube that explained with these pressure filters you did not need to tap down the coffee grounds.That’s where I was going wrong, I could not get my shot extractions to come out properly.All I did was put the tap onto the coffee in the filter and applied a little pressure with a few spins just to polish the coffee, it worked perfect. From then on my extractions were evenly dispersed. I did want a larger shot (to me the 1 shot and the two shot just did not have enough coffee) it was a little weak when you did a lot of milk. I used the directions in the book to adjust the shots to my specifications and that is one reason I loved this machine, you can make adjustments for what you like. Good luck to my fellow Barristers!ONE YEAR UPDATE: it has had the messups other reviews have mentioned.1. Portafilter getting stuck – lift up on handle when twisting to the right and it releases to turn left and off.2. Cleaning head step never did work and 3 weeks ago it would not do extraction – head has screw that allows you to remove head plate and clean, getting perfect extraction again.Ok this machine can be a pain and Houdini would be challenged. When it comes to the lattes they are great. My family wanted me to buy another Bambino right away. Come on Breville stepup to the plate and correct this little bambino, we love it!
Chris G –
I was “ruined” by drinking real coffee in Europe for an extended period. When I came home, drip coffee seemed watery and flavorless, Keurig (excuse for coffee), and mass-sold, expensive coffee in cardboard was no longer appealing to me.Being the sole coffee drinker in the house, I didn’t want a fancy, expensive, fully automatic machine that took up a lot of counter space – the Bambino Plus was the machine I kept coming back to in my research as it seemed to fit the bill.High quality, relatively popular, meets standards for good quality coffee, compact, and had most of the features I was looking for. I have not been disappointed. My Bambino Plus was a Christmas gift and paired with a Baratza Encore grinder. I pull 2-3 double shots per day and have been loving the quality and flavor of the coffee. Typically, Americanos, some Cappuccinos, and the occasional Mocha.If I had any critique about the machine, the only things I would say is that the minimum volume of milk required for steaming/foaming still creates a fair amount of waste for a single-drinker household – I find myself tossing about 1/3 of the milk away each use. Beyond that, the only complaint I really have is the drip tray seems to leak onto the counter after just a few uses, while the indicator doesn’t really seem to indicate that it needs to be emptied – the remedy I’ve found for this is to empty after every use.The Breville Bambino Plus is definitely a great first Espresso machine for anyone.
N B –
Get yourself a good grinder and this machine will be just fine for a long time. I have a DF64 and don’t anticipate upgrading from the Bambino any time soon. It’s ready to go in literal SECONDS, which would be a big feature to lose upgrading to an expensive machine. The milk steaming feature is as good as everyone says. It’s a very agreeable machine.Oh, and I found out that Breville’s customer service is top notch! I’d heard that before, but it really is. The first machine I got had a cracked hose and gushed water out the bottom. I called them and there was barely any wait and everyone was super nice. To get it replaced they first recommended I go through the Amazon seller since it would be faster, but they were clear they weren’t blowing me off and were just telling me the best option for me. I couldn’t go through Amazon after all, so I called back a few hours later and they sent me instructions on how to take the bare base machine to FedEx with a case number, and FedEx boxed it and handled everything for me. I got the replacement once they saw FedEx had mailed them my old one, so it was quite fast on the whole. Defective machines happen so I don’t fault them for that, and they made the replacement process painless.
NoName –
I’m a daily coffee drinker. I was spending so much money at the coffee shop, going 6 days a week. I finally decided to buy an espresso machine, as it would pay for itself in about 2 months. The Breville Bambino Plus has been amazing. I’ve had it for 7 months now. It’s easy to use, easy to clean, and makes delicious drinks. It’s more than paid for itself by now.
K. Seaman –
I love this machine even with its quirks. It makes delicious espresso quickly and easily. I’ve diverged a bit from the standard setup which, for me, makes it an even better experience.I no longer use the pressurized filters that come with the machine. I’m using unpressurized, 54mm single wall, 2 shot baskets purchased directly from Breville. You have to email Breville and they’ll setup a purchase link. The baskets (BES860XL/11.4) are $19.99 each plus tax and shipping ($4.99 for me). I purchased 4. I grind and fill all 4 baskets, and pull 4 double shots, one right after the other—2 each for my wife and me for Americanos or just quad expressos—twice each morning. My grinder is the Breville Smart Grinder Pro and I set it for beans from my local roaster: 14.4 seconds at grind 20 which gives me 14 grams of grounds. I follow the Bambino instructions for tamping—tamping perfection is not required.We don’t do a lot of milk-based drinks but when we do the frother seems to work quite well automatically or manually.The quirks:I’ve read reviews that mention the filter baskets getting stuck in the group head. I haven’t had that problem. I only tighten the portafilter so that it’s snug and not tight. The grounds puck, however, will occasionally get stuck in the group head which requires putting the portafilter back on and jiggling a bit when taking it off again—not a big deal.The drip tray is a bit small but, again, no big deal.The biggest quick is the cleaning process which does not happen according to the instructions. I actually talked with a customer service rep about it and they confirmed that a change was made after the instruction manual was printed making the manual inaccurate (it may have been updated since—I don’t know). The original cleaning disk was made with a perforation in it which allowed water to course through the cleaning disk and into the container placed under the portafilter and steam wand. Apparently Breville decided that particular cleaning process wasn’t working well so they stopped perforating the cleaning disk in order to force more of the cleaning solution (from the cleaning tab) back up through the group head screen. As a result, the new cleaning method requires running the method outlined in the original manual followed by manually running the double shot cycle (pressing the double shot button) several (4 or 5) times. The cleaning solution backs up through the machine and exits through the drip tray—pretty messy but, again, no big deal. The cleaning tab is never completely used up but it seems to work. I follow that cleaning process by purging the group head a couple of times with couple of single shot cycles with just water. I’ve run about 5 cleaning cycles (once every 200 single shots) and the Bambino is still working beautifully.I would definitely recommend this machine to anyone who wants great espresso nearly instantly without all the fuss and headache of much more expensive machines.
IzzyIzzy –
I really liked what I had read about this machine and was so excited when it arrived. We followed all the directions as instructed. We did a water cycle first, and threw out our first couple pulls of espresso from the machine as was advised in many places.When we finally tried the first drinkable shot, it was a bit sour but we figured with a few tweaks we could get it to where we wanted it.We bought the Breville grinder to go with it.We watched all the help videos online.We read the instruction booklet making sure to do everything properly.We spent an entire day trying to make a decent espresso shot. This is where we saw it’s problems. After our first drinkable pull, every time after it was always to watery coming out, we tried different grind settings, different coffee beans, more coffee grinds, less coffee grinds, different tampers.I even called up a local Coffee chain for helpful hints on what we might we doing wrong, as we are new to the Espresso machine world. We also went down and got fresh beans from a local coffee shop. Wanting to try everything we could think of to achieve the best outcome.Every pull after the first one tasted sour no matter how we adjusted. We only got creme on the shots the first time. Every time after that the Portafilter would leak water out of its sides no matter how we adjusted; And the water never got fully hot, so we often had luke warm espresso shots.After speaking with Customer service they determined the machine might be faulty and offered a new machine. But we chose to return it and upgrade to the Breville Infuser and we are eagerly awaiting it’s arrival. After a day of using the Bambino plus we can see why a Gauge could be extremely helpful. Hoping our upgrade will fix some of the issues we had with the Bambino Plus.Pros – It is a cute machine, it took up less counter space and is smaller then the more expensive ones and took up less room. It’s ability to heat up so quickly was a nice thing. It had a lot of potential, and had ours not been faulty, it would have made a great starter machine. But I do kinda wish we had just gone with a higher level/priced machine from the start.Update – We have been using the Breville Infuser our upgraded machine for over a week now. We are very happy with it.If I could recommend one thing after trying both machines now, it would be to go with a machine that has a gauge, it makes all the difference!
Will PowersWill Powers –
This is by far one of the BEST things I have purchased on Amazon so far.I have worked as a barista at 3 different coffee shops, one in Guatemala, one in Malaysia, and one in Nebraska. With a myriad of coffee experiences, I was wary about purchasing an espresso maker for my home. Thorough research revealed this machine as one of the best candidates and I took a chance. Man am I glad I did!The espresso produced by the machine is high quality. Newer users will need to figure out how to tamp correctly, but there are tools and resources to help with that. The startup is QUICK and QUIET, which caught me by surprise. Every machine I have worked with took 15 minutes to warm up, and had a constant buzzing, whereas this one is a simple boot-up and only makes sound while brewing. It came with everything I needed, except for the coffee itself of course!One of the things that REALLY blew me away, was the automatic frothing feature. I have tried with multiple types of milk, and it takes some experimenting to figure out what works best with your machine, but it takes the most complicated part of making an excellent latte and does most of the work for you! I am a bit rusty on my latte art techniques, but the auto-froth steam arm gets the milk to the perfect texture for it! For my coffee purists out there, you do still have the option to control the steam yourself by extending the arm out while using your frothing pitcher.I have made so many coffees for my friends and guests. This is the perfect tool to offer unique hospitality to anyone in your home. It is perfect for making hot chocolates, and quick ciders as well.
Josh –
Editing old review because I’ve owned this for like a year now.I’ve had 1 or 2 cups of espresso + steamed milk out of this thing daily for a year and it has performed almost flawlessly with no issues. The learning curve was very low and maintenance is very simple.The only issue I’ve ever had is on occasion the auto-steam function will just stop halfway for some reason. When that happens your milk will obviously still be cold or partially warm but you can’t just hit the button to restart, you have to take your cup of milk out, set it aside, run the steamer again just to clear the wand – but then you still can’t put the milk and and hit start because the device thinks you’ve just steamed your milk so it has to run its cleaning cycle… I’d say there is a 10-20% chance that happens every time I make a cup so it’s actually almost worth docking a star but since the issue is easy enough to ‘fix’ (just pushing the button to restart with no milk followed by allowing it to run its cleaning cycle I only waste like 30 seconds once or twice a week). I’ll throw these guys a bone and keep it 5 stars because I’ve had a fantastic cup of coffee every day for a year. This machine has paid for itself.So yeah just that 1 weird quirk but aside from that I couldn’t be happier with my machine. Looks nice on the kitchen counter as well.Can’t say this will be the same for you but for me I use WAY less cream and 0 added sugar using this over my old drip coffee set up. I do drink more milk obviously with just the tiniest bit of cream but compared to what I was used to with drip coffee this is so much better and more satisfying.
V. Tarnavsky –
Easy to setup, run, nice cup of cappuccino, nice clean out. Warms up rapidly. Nice extraction. I like it.
D. Barnett –
I bought the Breville Bambino Plus about 6 months ago and within a couple of weeks the milk frother started giving me fits. I use the wand cleaning tool every other day, so that was not the issue. I attempted to force the machine into a cleaning cycle per the instruction manual to no avail so I used the cleaning tab and rubber stopper and hit the 2 cup button repeatedly to clean it and that worked well enough, but only for a few days. I decided to make an Americano and couldn’t get the wand to dispense water until today when just by chance I tried it with the wand raised. If your machine will not dispense hot water it only worked for me with the wand raised. The instruction manual says nothing about raising the wand to dispense hot water. I have to either force the machine into cleaning mode every few days and I’ve learned that if I try that operation repeatedly it will eventually work and go into cleaning mode. Sometimes I will try for a half an hour and sometimes it’ll go into cleaning mode after 10 or 15 attempts. It is very quirky but when it works properly, it makes good espresso. UPDATED 06 JULY 2023AFTER LESS THAN A YEAR THE HEATING COIL FAILED. This machine is HIGH MAINTENANCE which is okay if you can get it to do the maintenance by forcing it into cleaning and descale mode per the instruction manual but it rarely would go into cleaning mode! I had better luck with descale mode for sure but cleaning mode was always a challenge. Good espresso, unreliable machine. I have many Breville products and have had great success with all of them but this Bambino Plus has plenty of bugs that need to be worked out. I will move on to a company that makes espresso machines rather than stick with a company that happens to make espresso machines too.
tina –
If you’re just getting into espresso, then this is a good machine for you. It is convenient and produces decent espresso, and the milk steamer is great. With that being said, if you want to experiment with espresso by using different beans, different extraction times, heck even dialing in, the experience is not intuitive or enjoyable, the pucks always run wet, and the shots are mid. Locking in the portafilter is annoying because the machine weighs so little, you have to hold it in place with your other hand. The build quality is lacking. For $500, not bad. Be on the lookout, at times you can get it for less. I’m happy with my 9barista for the past two years and will be returning this.
Mark –
I received this machine as a birthday present. Initially I was worried about the learning curve but it wasn’t very difficult. It took about three tries before I became comfortable using it. I’ve been using the machine to make a couple of cappuccinos per day for five days now and feel like an expert using this machine.I wanted this for making cappuccinos. I found a barrister training video online and that was big help to understanding milk temperature, frothing technique, and making latte art which is fun.My first try I used the automatic frothing settings and that worked fine with no issue. Once I understood more about temperature and correct quantity of milk, I starting frothing manually and the results are much better for the cap I want to make.There’s really nothing I can say that’s negative about the machine. It works great and produces a great tasting cappuccino. Getting the milk temperature correct makes the milk sweet so I don’t need to add much if any sugar to the final drink.I strongly recommend finding an online video on how to make a cap correctly including frothing technique. This machine is straightforward enough that the manual tells you all you need to use the machine. You should take it a step further to learn how to make a good cap because there’s more to it than just pressing a button. Besides a great cap, the espresso produced is excellent too.I do appreciate the small footprint on the counter and the large volume water reservoir so you don’t need to fill it so often. It’s a very beautiful piece of equipment so I like having it on the counter.
Michelle HemingwayMichelle Hemingway –
I had read all the reviews on Breville and thought, this is where I want to start. Its a bit intimidating when you first open the box, but after taking all the parts out and going over the easy step by step instructions, I was on my way to my first delicious cup of espresso!! I make a double almost every morning and have added many other fun coffee gadgets to my collection for different daily coffees. The milk frother is amazing and after I used it all a few times, it takes no time to make espresso, a latte or build whatever you want.
SPHWSPHW –
I’ve thought long and hard about how to articulate this review as clearly and truthfully as I can.Ok, so I’m not predisposed to negative reviews but this overly expensive coffee machine is awful.The most important part of this machine is the troubleshooting manual. Keep it to hand – you will need it!The positives:1. It will make a nice cup of coffee*2. The cleaning capabilities for the wand are a good ideaThe negatives:1. True, it will make a nice cup of coffee…..IFIF you use the EXACT amount of coffee in the filter basketIF you don’t mind pressing the double cup 3 times to get a single espresso shot – even when you use the right amount and grind of coffee!IF the coffee machine doesn’t randomly go into cleaning mode (which it does even before forcing a clean every 200 button presses)IF you use ONLY the supplied milk jug. Using anything else causes the temperature sensor to fail, the steam will never stop and you milk will be boiled and overflowIF the aforementioned milk jug is placed EXACTLY in the perfect position to get the best contact with the milk temperature sensor2. As a practitioner of human centered design (making products intuitive and easy to use), I can tell you that this coffee machine is absolutely not easy to use. Too many failure modes, too many unintuitive error states and messages and good functionality ideas are executed poorly – example being the temperature sensor. It works but only IF you do 3 things perfectly first.2. The need for a cleaning cycle is too frequent. We are having to perform a cleaning cycle every 2 weeks! (And we aren’t coffee monsters!)3. Water wastage. The wand cleaning wastes SO MUCH water to perform. It could be done using much less4. The wand cleaning cycle is really messy. IF you position the drip tray in the PERFECT position, you might not have to clean your machine and own clothes from the spray back coming from the wand5. The wand cleaner is difficult to find, and beware! The sharp pin cover comes off really easily when you are unscrewing the wand tip. Have a bandaid to hand!In summary, can this machine make coffee? Yes BUT it isn’t easy to use, is highly temperamental and definitely NOT worth the money.…really wish I could get my money back…
John G. –
I purchased this off a recommendation from the NY Times Wirecutter and couldn’t be happier. The machine is fairly straight forward and consistently pulls balanced espresso shots and easily froths milk. The trickiest part is when the service related lights (e.g. clean and back flush the machine) start flashing – it can be a bit hard to decipher but easily solved with a google search. I had an issue with the 2 shot button running for an excessively long time. A very helpful agent at the service center walked me through how to solve the issue using a video chat. Great example of using technology to solve a relatively straight forward issue (once diagnosed). I’d hardily recommend this machine.
A. Becerra –
To dispense hot water ,wand has to stick out away from unit. Frother, steam wand very hot. Does a very good job all the way around. Bought the Wirsh machine and that lasted about a year. This machine is better and very consistent. Good cappuccino, not loud, compact size and heats up very quickly. I thought I would dispense 1 cup of water 1st to heat the machine up to speed but no need.
Gloria Wang –
Edit: just wanted to add an update 3 years later that my machine is alive, kickin, and still churning out great lattes.—-I was a barista in a coffee shop for 3 years, and since the start of Covid, i wanted to improve my coffee quality of life by getting myself an espresso machine. I have a few thoughts and tips on taking care of your espresso machine.Portafilter remove/attach difficultyI saw a review point out that it is hard at first to get the portafilter on and off, at first. I had the same experience initially, too. After running a few drinks (and also bambino bear hugs) It becomes really easy. I make two cups of coffee a day for myself and my partner so it only took a few days to loosen. No need for oil, but you can if you’d like.Steam wand careAfter you’re finished making your coffee for the time being, remember to rinse out the milk jug, fill it to just bout half inch above the top with water, then push in the steam wand into the jug and let it soak for a while. The self-cleaning system will spit out all the remaining milk into the jug, and just by practice from working a coffee shop, soaking it for a few hours makes it very easy to wipe off the rest of the milk that sticks to the wand from the high temps. Make sure not to soak it for more than 24 hours (since milk could get nasty).The autosteam and espresso is great. Although I’m used to manually steaming, it’s really nice to kinda leave it and let it do its thing. I also picked this machine specifically because I can grind the coffee separately; having coffee grounds travel through tubes in an espresso machine over time will cause buildup and maintenance. This machine, u only worry about changing out the water and keeping the wand clean. Different milks foam at different textures so its nice having the foam setting.I’m sure this goes without saying, but purchasing quality beans (and grinding fresh) goes such a long way with this machine vs cheap grounds.Only critique is I wish it had a bit more weight to it. Being a little light, it can be moved kinda easily. luckily it has rubber grips to prevent general sliding.For those who are true beginners, a really nice cohesive care/crafting guide is included (and laminated) in the box.
DavidCDavidC –
I have been looking for upgrade for my gaggia classic after few years of use because I wanted something better and easier to use for my wife. The classic is a reliable machine but it’s old school. You need to master it and even then, pulling perfect shots is hard. You need to make sure everything is perfect.Luckily I stumbled upon on the breville bambino when I was browsing for more expensive Italian espresso machines and lot of its features piqued my interest.Small and compact? Perfect . 3 second startup time? Amazing compared with the 10min warmup time from the gaggia. PID and temperature control? Excellent and a decent milk frother. Wow, amazing they could fit al those features unto a small machine. I bough it right away without waiting for the reviews to come in.It uses a pressurized basket but the shots taste the same as good as one pulled from a marzocco that my favorite shop makes by pushing a button. Very consistent quality unlike the gaggia classic that you need a lot of practice to master it. use a good quality coffee from a good grinder though. If you don’t own a quality grinder DONT buy these machine because is not worth it. Get a barista expressThe only bad thing I can see is that the dip tray is too flimsy. It won’t hold a lot of water and may spill when removing it from the machine. But overall the silver casing is very shiny, beautiful and easy to clean unlike my old dull stainless gaggia.And because it’s new and being a breville product, reliabity is a big question mark.
SPHWSPHW –
I’ve thought long and hard about how to articulate this review as clearly and truthfully as I can.Ok, so I’m not predisposed to negative reviews but this overly expensive coffee machine is awful.The most important part of this machine is the troubleshooting manual. Keep it to hand – you will need it!The positives:1. It will make a nice cup of coffee*2. The cleaning capabilities for the wand are a good ideaThe negatives:1. True, it will make a nice cup of coffee…..IFIF you use the EXACT amount of coffee in the filter basketIF you don’t mind pressing the double cup 3 times to get a single espresso shot – even when you use the right amount and grind of coffee!IF the coffee machine doesn’t randomly go into cleaning mode (which it does even before forcing a clean every 200 button presses)IF you use ONLY the supplied milk jug. Using anything else causes the temperature sensor to fail, the steam will never stop and you milk will be boiled and overflowIF the aforementioned milk jug is placed EXACTLY in the perfect position to get the best contact with the milk temperature sensor2. As a practitioner of human centered design (making products intuitive and easy to use), I can tell you that this coffee machine is absolutely not easy to use. Too many failure modes, too many unintuitive error states and messages and good functionality ideas are executed poorly – example being the temperature sensor. It works but only IF you do 3 things perfectly first.2. The need for a cleaning cycle is too frequent. We are having to perform a cleaning cycle every 2 weeks! (And we aren’t coffee monsters!)3. Water wastage. The wand cleaning wastes SO MUCH water to perform. It could be done using much less4. The wand cleaning cycle is really messy. IF you position the drip tray in the PERFECT position, you might not have to clean your machine and own clothes from the spray back coming from the wand5. The wand cleaner is difficult to find, and beware! The sharp pin cover comes off really easily when you are unscrewing the wand tip. Have a bandaid to hand!In summary, can this machine make coffee? Yes BUT it isn’t easy to use, is highly temperamental and definitely NOT worth the money.…really wish I could get my money back…
Y.S. –
My heat exchanger machine took at least 10 minutes to warm up. The Breville takes a few seconds. The coffee from this machine is not as hot as from the big machine, and you can’t adjust the brewing temperature on the Breville. Medium roasts tasted sour. Vienna roast tastes much better. I grind the coffee so that I get 35 seconds brew time. With a shorter time, the coffee started to taste sour. I run the machine once without a portafilter to warm up the brew head. Only then I brew the coffee.The milk frother makes life easy and difficult. I had milk overspill many times when I used the supplied frothing jug. The solution was easy: use a bigger jug. Just make sure you get a stainless jug with a flat bottom (not concave), so it touches the temperature sensor that’s embedded in the drip tray. No more spills!The worst thing about the machine is the drip tray. It’s tiny and you need to clean it practically after every drink, especially if using the frother. The machine purges the frother after each use, and the drip tray gets filled with diluted milk. I think there is room for aftermarket vendors to make a better drip tray.Because of the ubiquity of Breville, there’s a huge aftermarket for portafilters, baskets, tampers etc. I got a bottomless portafilter and a spring loaded tamper. If you want to improve your machine, the first thing I would recommend is a better tamper. Mine was $12 and it works so much better than the original.Finally, there’s a lot of technology in this machine for a relatively reasonable price, and it can make decent espresso and cappuccino drinks. But with a group head made of plastic, I just wonder how long it will last.
DanDan –
The media could not be loaded.
Review from a First time espresso maker. I scoured the internet and kept being lead toward more expensive machines. But I ended up getting the bambino plus. I’m glad I did. Out of the box- using the pressurized basket and preground lavazza coffee from the store- it made pretty good espresso and great lattes and capps. I ended up getting a decent grinder and adding a naked portafilter and now it’s producing even higher quality espresso. Better than our local shops and way better than chain options. And my wife uses the auto milk steaming with great easy results.
mbcoats –
I was so excited to get this! But. First, the box was damaged, but hey, shipping, right? Then I realized it arrived without the instruction manual, not a syllable of instructions, and this machine may make terrific coffee but it isn’t specially user friendly. Then I realized the box didn’t include the tamper either (sure, I could BUY a replacement for $25) but for a $500 device, I expect all the pieces to be there. Maybe sloppy packing? But then I noticed coffee stains on the packaging. Just Nope. I paid for a new machine, expect to get that. I’m glad Amazon’s return policy is easy but it looks like somebody else already appreciated the return policy on this machine
DM –
The posted dimensions must be for the Bambino, not the Bambino Plus. The Plus is 14.25″ deep, and you need enough space to also access the water tank, which is accessed from the rear. This machine is weighty enough that you’re not going to be sliding it forward into thin air with one hand while you access the water tank with the other.Very easy to use and keep clean. Appreciate the adjustable liquid volume settings for single and double espressos.
Ron Hirshman –
I love this little guy. Tactiley it’s very pleasing and it looks cool. The frother is amazing and the temperature controls are perfect for switching between real milk and oat milk. Now here’s what you need to know: you’re going to have to buy an aftermarket single wall basket as the pressurized ones this comes with won’t make good espresso. Also buy a dosing cone because the grinds will go everywhere due to the basket size. You might as well upgrade your grinder too (I upgraded the burrs on my Baratza Encore but it’s barely enough), or else you’ll be trying in vain to pull a good balanced shot. The little Razor it comes with is also useless so buy an adjustable distributor and both your shots and your countertop will thank you. Now if you’re stictly making milk drinks and you’re not picky about the taste and you just wanna get your buzz on, then this will work just fine as is. But if it’s a pandemic and you’re perfecting your coffee at home experience, then you need to spend a little extra on the Amazons. The other negatives are that I wish the drip tray was a little deeper and that the cleaning alerts were set up for the fact that your priming and rinsing the basket in addition to pulling shots. It’s set to alert you after 200 shots but really it should be 600 to account for the priming and rinsing you do. Also engaging and removing the portafilter is hard at first and you’ll have to man handle the machine, but after a couple weeks it’s a smooth one handed operation. For the price, even with the additional options, and for the size it’s really a cool machine.
JO MAMA –
This is just a small version of the big boys toy downtown love it.!!!
Christina –
I’ve used this machine for a few months now, and I love it. The machine gets to heat and pressure quickly, ensuring both hot espresso and perfect milk. Once dialed in, the espresso has a great crema and yield. There is even an option to manually time your espresso. The milk steamer has various options and always comes out great, it can be a bit loud but usually if you bring the pitcher closer against the wand it will soften.
pebble –
My initial machine worked fine for about 9 months. It made good espresso and the frothing function was good.Then the water tank level indicator spontaneously broke off in the plastic tank. It’s very difficult to reach, so the only logical reason for it to break was probably some hairline crack in the connection point, perhaps by over tightening the screw holding it in place. I called Breville and they sent me a new water tank free of charge because my machine was under warranty. It took 10-14 days for the tank to reach me, so I had to jerry-rig the broken tank to work in the interim. Breville could not under any circumstance expedite delivery. Not good.Then, a few months later, the buttons on the face of the unit stopped working. I’d have to press several times, sometimes to the left of the button, sometimes to the right to get the machine to work. I called Brevile again because my machine was still under warranty. They agreed to send me a refurbished machine after they received my machine–a month without coffee? Not acceptable for a machine I paid $500+ for. I ended up paying Breville about a $180 deposit, and they immediately sent me a refurbished machine. They gave me some period of time to send back the broken machine and refunded my money once they received it.Fast forward about 6 months. The refurbished machine is still under the original warranty, but now, it will not allow me to bypass cleaning. That means if I’m in the middle of making coffee, I have to stop, set up the machine to clean, wait for that to end, throw out the coffee I was in the middle of making, and start over once the machine finishes cleaning. VERY ANNOYING, especially when you’re running out the door to work. I thought I could live with the malfunction, but no, it’s becoming a huge problem because there is NO warning that a cleaning is coming up.I called Breville. Apparently, in their infinite wisdom, Breville decided to eliminate the ability to bypass cleaning “because it only takes 7 minutes” and customer have continuously bypassed cleaning and damaged their machines (hint, it’s your fault we have to punish you). Seriously bad decision.Dear Breville Engineers, It doesn’t take 7 minutes. When you unexpectedly hit cleaning mode in the middle of making your coffee, you’ve lost the time you used to start making your coffee, then you need to set up the machine to clean itself, throw out your half made coffee, wait for the machine to clean itself, rinse everything after the cleaning is finished to make sure there’s no cleaning tablet solution in your filter, and THEN you can make your coffee. It took about 20 minutes the last time this happened. Breville’s customer support’s response: “wrong, it only takes 7 minutes.”I’m done. No more Breville machines in this house.
George by the sea –
Love this coffee maker. We debated spending this much on a kitchen appliance and worried if we would use enough. We do (husband did four double shots of espresso before I got up on the second day and another three during the day but learned not to do that when he tried to sleep).It took two days for me to figure out my favorite combo of hot milk to espresso and once I perfected it, there was no going back to coffee houses unless I was meeting somebody.My only problem is my husband and his refusal to read the instructions to understand when the machine is going to clean itself. Every time the machine goes into cleaning cycle, it is like his world is ending. He bitches, moans, and wanders around the kitchen until it is completed like a lost little boy which is kind of amusing since he usual not a drama queen. My only recommendation is read the instruction manual (it really not that difficult if you read the instructions but he takes as a point of pride not to).Better than buying coffee while out. We have already saved enough to payback the cost of the machine by making our preferred drinks at home.
Bepobas –
I like this machine, and find it easy to use. Still fine-tuning the grind of the coffee, but it works well. I debated about whether to get the BambinoPlus, and glad that I did. The overflow tray is easy to clean, and I like the options for the steam/froth.
sweet_chai –
It’s been working great with everyday use over the last several weeks. I mainly drink lattes so being able to pull good espresso and milk frothing are both important; also I live in a small apartment so the small size is much appreciated. Couple of suggestions on getting the most out of this machine:- Get a good grinder capable of dialing in espresso grinds- Order the non-pressurized 54 mm 2-cup basket direct from Breville.com (about $10 + shipping/tax). Nicer shots than what’s possible with the included pressurized basket, but does require better tamping technique and properly dialed-in grind size. If no interest in fiddling with grind sizes then stick with the pressurized baskets.- Ignore the automatic functions and just use it manually (brew time and milk steaming) to get the best possible results (I actually haven’t tried the auto-functions so will not comment on them in this review).PROs:- Rapid heat up time, as advertised. I purge and run a blank shot to get the group head/portafilter warmed up before pulling an espresso shot and I can start doing that pretty much after turning it on.- Capable of pulling an excellent espresso shot (i.e. pump pressure and temperature control is good). The quality of the beans and grinder will be the main variables in your espresso and not the machine, as it should be.- Milk steamer is excellent with 4 holes and steams milk quickly with minimal wait between pulling the shot and being able to steam milk (basically a few seconds to purge the wand). I always manually steam my milk as it only takes a few seconds. I also don’t think a vortex is formed during auto-frothing just looking at the position of the steam wand and jug, so I doubt the foam and milk would be as well integrated as manual steaming. It’s pretty easy after some practice and there’s plenty of video tutorials so definitely give it a try.- Big water tank, easy to remove and fill- High clearance lets me easily fit my cup and scales directly under the portafilter- Simple to use. Dials and stuff would be cool but honestly so long as it pumps out adequate pressure and maintains a consistent temperature between shots, being able to monitor those variables is nice but redundant. Use a timer and cheap scales to dial-in shots, then taste, adjust grind/dose as needed, and you’re all set.CONs:- The group head on my machine is really tight and I need to hold the machine down with my free hand when attaching/removing the portafilter. No big deal, but it does mean I cannot store cups and stuff on the top of the machine without risking a big accident one day.- Plastic group head. Probably fine but time will tell how well it holds up with daily use.- Non-pressurized baskets should have been included with the machine (it comes with 1-cup and 2-cup pressurized baskets). It totally makes sense having pressurized baskets given the target buyer but I really wish they had just included the non-pressurized baskets to save me contacting Breville to order one.- 54 mm portafilter/group head is a nonstandard size (unlike the 58 mm on Breville’s more expensive machines) so you cannot use third-party baskets/portafilters- Drip try fills up quickly and needs regular emptying. I put a big cup under the group during purging/blank shots so I don’t have to empty the try as often but it still seems to keep filling up quickly.- Tamp is maybe 1 mm smaller than the basket. Just annoying (to me).Overall, I highly recommend the Bambino to anyone looking for a simple espresso machine that is very capable of making great milk coffee drinks (with a little effort). I would have considered it perfect if it was made cheaper by getting rid of the auto-milk-frother, had all steel 58 mm group, and included non-pressurized baskets (but realistically that machine probably would have had a smaller market and ended up being even more expensive hah).
Bob Lasiewicz –
This is a quick and easy to use espresso machine, you just have to be OK with some of the choices Breville made and put up with a few quirks. First the good things: Almost instant espresso pulls which are programmable to your time preference…frothing works well and gives you good choices on heat and amount of foam. Now for the choices and quirks: Yes, the portafilter is very tight to put in…I just don’t insist it the handle has to end up at 90 degrees…just stop when it’s tight. Yes the pod often doesn’t come out along with the portafiliter…I just jiggle it a little after turning it to the left but before lowering it from the machine…voila, it comes out every time. It does leave water on the counter after each use but I believe that’s because it’s flushing the internal mechanism into the drip tray and it’s not the best fit…I use the same sponge to wipe the counter as I use to clean the steam wand for my lattes…I wish I didn’t have to empty the drip tray so often…Overall, including grinding my beans each time I can get my latte in five minutes, which I think is pretty fast and due to programmability of the machine. After about 6 months and perhaps 1,000 cycles my machine stopped creating espresso. After Breville quickly got on the phone and confirmed that I’d been cleaning according to instructions (you want to tell them you used their cleaning products) they sent me a prepaid shipping label and had a new machine back to me within a week or two. I hope this review has been helpful for you. I think it’s hard to beat the quality of both the machine and the drinks at this price point.
Debra –
Love this machine!!! Easy, simple & great foam!!
Bubble Metropolis –
I recently upgraded to the Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine, and I couldn’t be happier with my purchase. Here’s why this machine has exceeded my expectations:Sleek Design: The brushed stainless steel finish gives the Bambino Plus a sleek and modern look that complements any kitchen decor. Its compact size also makes it perfect for smaller spaces without sacrificing performance.User-Friendly Interface: The Bambino Plus features an intuitive interface with easy-to-use controls, making it ideal for both novice and experienced baristas alike. The buttons and dials are well-placed and responsive, allowing for precise customization of each shot.Consistent Results: One of the standout features of the Bambino Plus is its ability to consistently deliver high-quality espresso with every brew. The pre-infusion function ensures even extraction, while the automatic steam wand creates velvety microfoam for perfect lattes and cappuccinos every time.Quick Heat-Up Time: With its innovative ThermoJet heating system, the Bambino Plus reaches optimal brewing temperature in just 3 seconds, allowing me to enjoy my favorite espresso drinks without the wait.Easy Maintenance: Cleaning and maintenance are a breeze with the Bambino Plus. The steam wand automatically purges after each use, and the removable drip tray and water tank make it easy to keep the machine clean and well-maintained.Overall, the Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine is a game-changer for beginner espresso enthusiasts. Its combination of sleek design, user-friendly interface, consistent results, quick heat-up time, and easy maintenance make it a standout choice for home baristas. Whether you’re a coffee connoisseur or just starting your espresso journey, I highly recommend the Bambino Plus for an exceptional espresso experience.
FRC –
The Bambino Plus requires some attention for maintenance but turns out a nice cappuccino in record time and with minimal effort. I have heard that this machine is the best you can do “out of the box” for less than $500; I don’t doubt that. And you can frequently find the machine for $400 from reputable dealers. I also don’t doubt that you can get better espresso from some more sophisticated and more expensive prosumer machines but this machine makes the right compromises for me for satisfying results, cost, ease of use, ease of maintenance and size,I had used a Starbucks Barista machine for more than a decade (a just adequate starter) and had to do manually things that this machine does for you. The Bambino Plus has programmed shot size and frothing temperature – although you can vary the programming and easily restore factory presets. Out of the box, I found the shot too small but the steamer right on (producing small-bubbled, silky froth from 2% milk).The machine is ready to produce in about 3-4 seconds from powering on, and you do not have to wait between pulling a shot and steaming your milk. (It’s magic to me.) The frothing is controlled as to temperature by a sensor on the device (so long as you use the provided stainless steel frothing pitcher) and the degree of air-infusion can be set – so you can froth hands-free with excellent results. After steaming, the machine automatically purges the steam wand on your command – but you do, of course, have to wipe it down after frothing. The machine comes with a “device” to unclog the frothing wand (with a tiny, pointed needle to clear the frothing head) which I found to be needed long before anticipated but it is a quick and easy fix.The machine supposedly wets the grounds before pulling a shot. The water temperature is relatively even from shot to shot. But to get a cup of espresso or cappuccino at the right temperature. you really have to start with a heated cup so it doesn’t cool the output. And the Bambino itself will not do that IMO. (I fill my cups with water and microwave first.)The biggest design drawback is a tiny drip tray which, if you rely upon it for anything more than the occasional “oops”, should be dumped after each use. A second shortcoming is that you have only a visual cute (if you can see the reservoir at the back) to know your water is low. The machine can get too low to function without emptying the reservoir so it may unexpectedly stop midway through brewing or steaming. That is not a tragedy but it is annoying.The machine comes with two cleaning tablets and two descaling tablets, and it will signal when they are needed.
Joshua Baker –
This is one of the best purchases I have made. While pricey, it produces excellent results with both the shot extraction and the milk texturing. I purchased this along with the smart grinder and am happy I bought them separately. I find the operation much easier than the combined machines which I have used occasionally. My only complaint is when the machine says it is time to clean, there is no way around it. This is a bit of a nuisance when you are trying to get out the door and it notifies you between extraction and milk steaming. However I would absolutely recommend this espresso maker and would purchase again.
Mr. ATLMr. ATL –
So I’ve gone down the rabbit hole of figuring out what espresso machine I want. Given the limited counter space, the unknown experience of how much I will enjoy this new hobby, I settled on the Bambino Plus.The main reason to choose this over the regular Bambino is the solenoid that releases the remaining water to the drip tray. The auto milk froth feature is also a nice to have, so you can focus on dialing in your espresso without having to learn everything on day one. It’s been a few weeks and I mainly manually froth my milk now, but every now and then the automatic feature comes in very handy.Yes, the drip tray is tiny and I need to empty it out daily, but honestly with all the gunk of milk from the steam wand in there, you really want to clean it daily anyway.If you watch any YouTube review of this machine and the influencer mentions that they don’t know why the water tank is bigger than the one on the basic Bambino: because the steam wand does auto purge and that uses water. To accommodate this, we need a bigger thank. Thanks brain for figuring this out, what others couldn’t.Now my main reason for the low rating: I got two brand new machines and both leaked from the group head seal with the bundled ports filter and group handle. At first I thought it was a defective seal or something, then I found reports online of people experiencing the same issue with three (!) brand new machines.A friend was able to let me use his group handle for a test and no leaks at all. Since I got a third party setup I’m able to pull fantastic shots without any leaks. I just wish I didn’t have to spend another $100 for this and the thing would work out of the box. Big big flaw in Breville’s end.If you think I did something wrong, Google it, there’s plenty of posts on Reddit showing the exact same issue.Anyway, with that setup I’m very happy with the machine but it stinks that it’s broken out of the box. Now let’s find out how long it’ll last.
shirles –
Love this bambino, I have owned many express o machines, I decided to down size and try the delongi ec680 which made a pretty fair cup of express o but the taste was still lacking. I did some comparing and when the bambino came up at 299 dollars sold was damaged cosmetic I decided to buy,so glad I did,itLooks perfect works perfect!! At first it was so hard to put in the portafilter ,I almost returned but my husband helped me,this has been complained about in reviews ,I had a rubber mat for a curling iron I used it to sit the machine on pretty much solved the problem, it doesn’t slide around while you hog hold to get the filter off. This machine makes out this world coffee better then my high end coffee machines I’ve had in the past!!!! I got it for a great price, knowing what I know now this machine is worth the regular price!!! Love ltupdatemy title should be coffee snob!!!still love this machine, just forgot to add about frother, it really works well butttt!!! you should always be there to watch because it tends to over =flow should not fill above the first mark- because it froths so well it does over flow , works well to make your best coffee dessert there must be a reason that the portafilter is so hard to get in and out but its so worth the best cup of coffee from a home expresso machine that ive ever owned.you can purchace the non-pressure 2 cup filter for only 10 $ from the breville company, they have been out for a long time but I just bought mine there and because of cov-19 it was shipped free and I have to say that my coffee is even so much better when I get to control my coffee with the 54mm non-pressureized filter.ENJOYING MY CUP OF JOE!!!!
Jerry –
I am not a rookie espresso maker, having brewed espresso at home for about 30 years. The last 15 years or so I have used the varying upgrades of the Gaggia Classic Pro which is in the same price range but is much more manual to use. When my latest Gaggia died , after much research, I decided to consider other options and settled on the Bambino Plus.I have used it for about a month now and I have to say that after experimenting with grind settings, the quality of the espresso is consistently top notch and tastier than I could ever get out of the Gaggia.Getting up to speed took a little while for me, but the videos in the BILT app were really helpful.As to milk texturing, one important task is not covered in the BILT app. You MUST purge the steam wand of gathered hot water before texturing. That process is covered in the how to videos on the Breville website.The Bambino Plus wand provides steam equal to much more expensive machines and does it virtually instantly. As to automatic texturing, the milk froth is fine for lattes but not airy enough for cappuccinos. For cappuccinos, manual frothing is required, but that is not a problem for me since I have been manually frothing for many years. When manually texturing, I insert a thermometer in the milk so I know when the milk is in the 140-150 degrees F range.The bottom line is that I really like this machine.
megaman17us –
I bought this machine after lots of research. Worth the money, easy to use, get for first time users and experienced users a like. Big water tank that is easy to fill. Simple to use but can also be manually used to customize your cup of espresso. As per my title love love love this machine. Note I’m writing this after almost 3 months of owning it.
Mark D. –
I have had this espresso maker for a few weeks now and so far I am very pleased with the results. I have always enjoyed a Latte, Cappachino and everything in between. Just getting the right grind of the coffee itself is the secret. After doing some research on the web about making espresso and frothing the milk I feel like a barista. I really like the frothing capabiliy and the fact that it is automatic and senses the temperature.
dingleberry –
Didn’t even last a year, and the entire time, it was so high maintenance. I have spent so much time messing with this machine. In the end, despite all the descaling and cleaning, it just doesn’t work anymore. I fill it with water and press the button, and a tiny little blast of steam comes out, and that’s all. I don’t have the patience to take the entire machine apart with a screwdriver and try to unplug all the tubes to see if any of them might have an issue. It just doesn’t work. I don’t know why. I was constantly having to steam the steamer and use a special type of blue liquid to clean the steam wand, and going back and forth between running water shots and running real shots because somehow that was the only way I could froth the milk. The milk was never getting frothy enough or hot enough, despite all the ways I tried to clean it, and I tried them all. Yes, I descaled it. I did all the things. It just doesn’t work. I regret buying this device. Woe to me on a weekday morning when, surprise! It’s time to run the descaler! And you can’t make any espresso without sitting there for 15 minutes watching the machine descale itself into 64 ounce glass container which OF COURSE I TOTALLY HAVE ON HAND at 5am in the morning. Even when I descaled it as recommended, it still wouldn’t run water through the espresso shot thingy. I descaled it multiple times in a row, didn’t make a difference. Now it just doesn’t work anymore.
Jewel A Masters –
I’ve been making my own espresso drinks for over 20 years. My old machine died and I just wanted a simple machine without a bean grinder. THIS MACHINE WORKS SO WELL. Auto temp on steam milk (I can throw out my old thermometer). Auto purges the wand after steaming. Creates a thick foam three inches high and a perfect espresso shot every time!
llshen –
As a newbie coffee enthusiast, this was my first espresso machine. It was very easy to set up and get started. The color is gorgeous, and the footprint is small, which is great for people with limited counter space. The machine is overall fairly quiet and brews quickly, and the instructions are clear. My first two brews have been pretty good, so I’m excited to continue experimenting!
HowAboutNope –
I bought this on Black Friday in 2022, so I’ve been using it almost a year now. It’s my first espresso machine and I really hemmed and hawed on whether I wanted to spend a tiny fortune on this thing. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be overkill for a total beginner like me, who has been using a moka pot since the dawn of time.Happy to report that I think it’s the best thing I bought all year last year. I’d buy this again in an instant.I did end up having to get a fancy grinder to go with it ($200). I bought some cleaning tablets and some syrups, but otherwise have not needed to buy anything but beans. It’s saved us a ton of money because we make 1-4 drinks a day with it and haven’t been to SBX in a year.I’ve never pulled a shot but found it pretty easy to figure out. The frother is very nice to have and I often just make steamed milk before bed. The cleaning and descaling is clearly explained in the manual and there are videos online, too.I wish it was a tiny bit taller so it could accommodate a wider variety of cups. I often want to pull a shot or two for a 16oz travel mug, and have to use a shorter glass first and decant it. But that’s not a big deal.All in all, I’m so glad we got it.
Erin –
Easy enough to use, but harder to get a good pour than with some other machines. I’m very picky, so being able to get my shot strong enough with a decent crema is important to me. So far, “Cafe La Llave Espresso Dark Roast ” works the best and is super cheap. Been using it for months in several machines and it’s unsurpassed. But… this thing sprays milk and water everywhere when it self purges. It’s also self purged when the spout is up, spraying everywhere. Don’t think it’s supposed to do that. The auto milk steaming works great and produces a beautiful result but the mess is really annoying for what I consider to be a pretty high price for an entry level machine. I haven’t decided whether or not to keep it…
CalinCalin –
Have this since 2019. Using daily (2x per day).High level: will make you great coffee beverages while saving you thousands of $$ IF you learn few quirks. (min 3000 beverages in this timeframe)Pro:- great taste beverages even if you just use factory presets (I strongly recommend with time that you try various coffees and grinds to see what fits you as well as the tamp pressure you need to apply and extract time)- starts fast and easy to operate (will beat the more expensive full automatics in extract quality as well as milk frothing and ease of cleaning)- big water reservoir and cleans easy- small footprint- high end beverages after you find out what coffee/grind size/milk type fits you and do all manualBad:- drip tray way too small and needs rinsing frequently- cleaning reminder (the 200 beverages one) malfunctioned after about 2-3 years, it always shows I need to perform a cleaning cycle even after I run it (no biggie, you just have to remember to run that cycle ever couple of months or so)- should be $100 cheaper
LA_Shannon –
This little powerhouse of an Espresso maker just continues to impress. I was considering it’s pricier sibling the BES920XL but could not justify spending $1,600 on a coffee machine. When this one went on sale I thought at $400 it was worth a try. Am so glad we got this one. The coffee is excellent and the ease of use for this machine in amazing. Turn the machine on and it’s ready to brew in literally 3 seconds. No waiting for the boiler to come to pressure. And after it’s extracted the espresso, it is instantly ready to froth the milk. Again, no waiting for the boiler to adjust. And the preprogrammed milk frother does an excellent job, no need to hold the carafe at the right angle and keep the frothing tip just below the surface. The machine produces excellent frothed milk all on it’s own. Do yourself a favor and get one. You won’t be disappointed.
Amazon Customer –
After 1-month of use, the Bambino has struck out (apologies to Babe Ruth). Noticed the temperatures of the extraction was not where it should be. They say 200 degrees, but you’re lucky to get 145 to 165. At that temperature not good for making quality espressos. Weak, bitter, acidic, and downright nasty tasting due to low temperature and extraction. High end grinder so that isn’t the problem. I attempted different methods of getting the temperature higher. I tried self-troubleshooting and got nowhere. Heating the portafilter, heating the cups, prefiltering the outlet, and anything that would raise the temperature. Nothing would get it past 145. No way, without sending it back, can you regulate the temperature. A feature other similar machines have. Contacting somebody? Good luck finding someone to take your call. Not sure if Amazon will take it back, but in that price range, consider something else. Watch this spot for updates on this machine!UPDATE: Finally reached a Breville assistant. She indicated that 145 is “normal” and the heat-up temperature is 200 degrees BUT the actual extraction is 145. Yet all other quality espresso machines yield between 195-205 (90-96 C). The lower temperature means less coffee at a slower rate. This results in a bitter more acidic yield as water remains in contact with the bean longer. With 195-205 temperature you yield a quality espresso that tastes like an espresso should. My choice? I doubt Amazon (or Breville) will accept a return and refund so I’m stuck. My option is to “bench” this machine and look for another one that you can actually get the correct temperature with and experience a “good” espresso.UPDATE #2: If you’re more than an espresso lover, than think twice about getting this machine. Temps are extremely low. Should be at or near 200 degrees and you’re lucky if it gets to 145. Second, the pressures are way inconsistent. Same grind in three different espressos were either not coming out all, coming out to fast, or were too slow. Now I’m not a professional barista, but I do know that isn’t right. Grinding beans and having the extraction take too long (too fine) and changing the grinding to a higher setting (coarse) the coffee didn’t even extract. That’s two coffee grinds that went down the drain. Put the grinder back to the original mark (the first grind) and voila it was fine. The next espresso at the same setting didn’t come out (too fine). That isn’t normal and in my opinion this machine is totally useless. With the price of fresh beans I cannot afford to be feeding my septic system with espresso, even if it wasn’t made right. So avoid unless you want a machine that works with store bought espresso and you are not interested in quality.
Christopher S. –
I love having the espresso maker. This machine brews espresso with the touch of a button. Great temperature controls for frother and gives you great options. Perfect fit on my countertop instead of another bulky machine, just a little bigger than my old drip machine. Easy, fast, and affordable smooth lattes at home!
Maverick Phantom –
I’m only comparing it with what I would get from Starbucks. The lattes taste much better than what Starbucks and other coffee shops have to offer. Working with making the drinks more consistent and better tasting; but as far as comparing what I’m making with the $5+ lattes from Starbucks – staying home with my own drinks!
Mauro –
I’ve been using Breville for 7 years and it hasn’t given me any problems (espresso? It’s very good, it also depends on the quality you buy, me?) I recommend it in the future and I would buy it again!
Dog friend –
Easy and quick to use for a dark and tasty espresso. Coffee quality and grind matter a lot. Small footprint, attractive shiny little workhorse. I love my baby Breville!
J. Nowachek –
I purchased my Breville May 14, 2023. It was terrific for one year. Then it stopped steaming the milk. I did the descaling cycle and have done the cleaning cycles to ensure it lasted. I attempted to call Breville support. They have an automated message that tries to force you to leave a message saying they will call you back same business day. A week later I had not heard from them, so I called back and waited 30 minutes to speak with someone in customer service. They did a troubleshoot facetime with me and then said it was “user error” and that I should put the foam setting on the highest setting and run the steam cycle twice. I told the agent that the machine just stopped in the middle of the steam cycle, and he wouldn’t listen to me. He just reiterated that I need to run the steam cycle twice. Very disappointed. I am now running the steam cycle 3 times and then putting the cup in the microwave. I put the thermometer in after the 2nd cycle and it was 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Very disappointed in the product and the lack of support. When you spend almost $500 on a machine, you expect it to last more than one year.
Amazon Customer –
I previously owned a Breville BES870XL, which is a really great machine… until it isn’t. I owned it for 3-1/2 years. Very hands-on machine that made great coffee. I took good care of it and performed maintenance/cleaning religiously. I even used filtered water (in addition to the onboard water filter) to make coffee.I’ve had plenty of experience of adjusting grind, amount, tamping, etc, for different coffees, batches, etc. But in the last few months, the quality of the coffee just went down, down, down, even though everything (including pressure according to the gauge) indicated everything was ok.So now to this machine — Breville Bambino PLUS. I wanted to stay with the Breville, because I’ve owned a few machines over the last 12 years (including DeLonghi, which was good, and less expensive), and the Breville made the best coffee of all of the ones I owned. I wanted to simplify — get separate grinder/maker — in case one or the other failed, so I wouldn’t have to replace the whole machine — and also I was hoping to have a steamer that I wouldn’t have to babysit. I considered the Breville Bambino, but decided to go with the Bambino PLUS because of the additional panel control, and I’m glad I did.Great coffee. And though I’ve always prided myself on being able to craft really good steamed milk, this one does a better job without having to touch the steamer. Just fill to the right level, and the steamer shuts off automatically when it reaches the right temperature.I had to fool around a little with coffee temp and milk temp until I got it to the right temp. But thanks to the front panel adjustments of the PLUS, once I did, it was awesome. Very nice not having to baby sit/hand handle the steamer.I should add that I also bought the Breville Smart Grinder Pro Coffee Bean Grinder BCG820BSS. It’s basically the same grinder as the one onboard the 870XL, but with digital controls. I like it very much.SUMMARY: Even with separate machine/grinder, they still cost less than the 870XL. The grinders seem to outlast the machines, so get separate. The two don’t take up that much more, if any, counter space. Great machine. Go for the Bambino PLUS. It’s worth the extra $100/$150 bucks you’ll pay for it.UPDATE 2 MONTHS LATER: Still love, love, love this machine. But make sure you use the pin tool (provided with the machine, under the water reservoir) to clean the wand steamer holes every couple of weeks — even if, when it self purges, it seem like the holes are not clogged. If you don’t, your steamed milk quality will go down, down, down. (You’ll notice it.) As soon as you use the tool, it will be just like new again.
Bubble Metropolis –
I recently upgraded to the Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine, and I couldn’t be happier with my purchase. Here’s why this machine has exceeded my expectations:Sleek Design: The brushed stainless steel finish gives the Bambino Plus a sleek and modern look that complements any kitchen decor. Its compact size also makes it perfect for smaller spaces without sacrificing performance.User-Friendly Interface: The Bambino Plus features an intuitive interface with easy-to-use controls, making it ideal for both novice and experienced baristas alike. The buttons and dials are well-placed and responsive, allowing for precise customization of each shot.Consistent Results: One of the standout features of the Bambino Plus is its ability to consistently deliver high-quality espresso with every brew. The pre-infusion function ensures even extraction, while the automatic steam wand creates velvety microfoam for perfect lattes and cappuccinos every time.Quick Heat-Up Time: With its innovative ThermoJet heating system, the Bambino Plus reaches optimal brewing temperature in just 3 seconds, allowing me to enjoy my favorite espresso drinks without the wait.Easy Maintenance: Cleaning and maintenance are a breeze with the Bambino Plus. The steam wand automatically purges after each use, and the removable drip tray and water tank make it easy to keep the machine clean and well-maintained.Overall, the Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine is a game-changer for beginner espresso enthusiasts. Its combination of sleek design, user-friendly interface, consistent results, quick heat-up time, and easy maintenance make it a standout choice for home baristas. Whether you’re a coffee connoisseur or just starting your espresso journey, I highly recommend the Bambino Plus for an exceptional espresso experience.
Charles C Hill –
I have held off getting an expensive machine for Espresso because you always need to dial it in a learn it like an art/hobby. This machine makes everything so simple. Only recommendation I could add is always grind your own beans, makes it better! GREAT product!!!
Amazon Customer –
This was the third espresso maker I purchased within about 18 months. The first (“G” brand) at about $200 made awful espresso, I think largely because the water never reached a hot enough temperature. The second (“D brand”) at about $350 also made poor expresso, because each double shot (my prefered size) was a full 100 ml vs. the standard of 60 ml. There is no programming option to change the shot size on this machine. I overcame that with more robust beans, but it was only satisfactory when dairy was added. I gave it to my daughter who only makes cappuccino.The Bambino Plus was the first Breville product I bought. The espresso was better, but the engineering of this product was not first rate. The base of the poor fitting drip tray is a separate piece than base of the rest of the machine, allowing a gap where water escapes pretty readily and often. After each shot is pulled, it evacuates water into the drip tray, and from there through the gap onto the counter where the machine resides.The use of cleaning tablets is required at certain intervals, or it simply won’t work. That was pretty embarrasing when dinner guests were offered espresso after the meal and I could not make the machine run. The next morning I read the instructions and performed the mandatory cleaning. The cleaning process was fairly simple, but took a while. Then I saw the large puddle of water on the counter surrounding the machine. Enough. It was returned, and I now have my 4th machine, another Breville, at about $600. The drip tray base of the new machine is an integral part of the machine, and leaks are not ocurring. I’m hoping for a better all around experience.
Dawn C. –
This is my third purchase, not because there’s something wrong with mine, but because it’s so wonderful I bought them for 2 of my kids who love coffee drinks! You don’t need to be a barista to work it!
Katie R. –
So first off, let me say that I absolutely love this coffee maker. We originally had the nespresso creatista plus and we exchanged it for this machine so that we could use our own coffee brands instead of the pods. Both machines use the same milk frothing technology. I drink lattes and I’m very happy with the coffee I have each morning. And I’ve converted my husband to a coffee drinker.Heres the trouble things for anyone thinking about buying:~The coffee filter is stiff and difficult to get on the machine. The machine sometimes slides around the counter and I have to basically give it a hug to get it on. I was hoping this would loosen up with age but so far it hasn’t~The Filterbasket gets stuck on the machine when you try to remove it. I often have to reattach and remove the handle several times to get it to come off. This problem actually seems to be getting worse the more we use it~The frothing wand isn’t properly insulated. Meaning the milk cooks onto the wand in the process of heating it up. We have to scrub it each time to get it to come off, and even with that we’ve somehow managed to get burnt milk onto the side of it that we can’t get off. And the wand doesn’t seem to be removable so we still haven’t figured out how to get it properly cleaned. We never had an issue like this with the nespresso machine (which again, uses the same milk frothing technology) so I know it’s not a function of all steam wands. I’m not sure how well this will age.Overall I love the coffee this machine makes and I’m willing to put up with the problems to get it. But if I was buying a machine again I’d probably wait for version 2 to come out and see if the kinks are fixed, or I would’ve tried harder to get the nespresso machine to work with reusable pods.
dereje –
about two years after purchase and following recommended care, all three lights started blinking and there is no fix to be found anywher (manual or online)…..no human behind the customer phone number. Feel let down by mi go to brand Not sure what to do…..update…..got through customer srvc. video chatted and they sent me a return shipment label. i shipped the product which was still under warranty. about week later Breville shipped me a new replacement.Thank you guys, have & willl always prioritize your products….
Jack Plane –
The media could not be loaded.
I spent too much money at Starbucks and wanted to get a home espresso machine. I’ve had a nespresso machine and didn’t like the pod system, the inability to use any coffee I wanted, or the frother accessory. It always made it all foam and I’m a flat white girl!This is EXACTLY what I was looking for. I got buried in the research with espresso people talking about microfilters and pressure etc etc. I can appreciate the nuances in great espresso but I just want a delicious, silky, milky drink. This machine is amazing! Great tasting espresso, super easy milk frothing/steaming functions. I can make my drink in the quiet moments I have before running out the door.If you are looking for a super user friendly experience that doesn’t take up a ton of counter space and you don’t care about all the granular details in coffee making, this is the machine for you!
Prof. Neil Larsen –
What I don’t like about this machine is that it simply will not make a decent cup of espresso–not by my tastes. (Note; the milk frothing tool is, however, great; But froth alone doth not a good cappuccino make.) I honestly don’t know whether this is a defect in the individual machine I purchased, but I tend to doubt it: it will simply not generate enough steam pressure to make a decent shot of espresso, of the kind that a bigger, more powerful but even similarly priced machine will be capable of doing. Almost exactly a year ago I bought and ordered a Breville Infuser Espresso Machine (BES840XL/A ). It was and continues to be a terrific product. But I needed to purchase a smaller machine for a friend who has limited counter space and, after first buying [at $234] one of Delonghi’s smallest machines, the EC680M DEDICA 15-Bar Pump Machine and watching while it simply stopped working on the second day of use, I returned the DeLonghi and, after reading and watching a favorable video review, and at almost twice the price of the De Longhi, I ordered a Breville BES500BSS Bambino Plus Espresso Machine. Here, too, I’m sorry to say, I have been bitterly disappointed. Without having the money or the time to be certain about this, I suspect that NONE of the smaller machines on the market, for less than a thousand dollars at least, are really worth buying at any price because–again, this is my speculation–they simply cannot generate enough steam pressure to do the job.Here’s what the happened with the Breville Bambino. My friend didn’t have the right kind of coffee grinder for whole beans, so she bought a few ounces of beans at a Peet’s Coffee and asked the barista to grind them to the consistency appropriate for making espresso. She brought it home, and we tried it with the Bambino and—nothing, almost no coffee came out, and what did tasted terrible. Even after making sure NOT to tamp down the coffee in the filter with too much pressure, the Bambino proved INCAPABLE OF ‘EXPRESSING’ A SINGLE SHOT OF ESPRESSO, GROUND TO ESPRESSO MAKING CONSISTENCY AT A PEET’S COFFEE coffee bean seller. It works ok if you are certain to grind your beans coarsely enough, but at the expense of any decent flavor. We tried using the manual ‘pull’ feature that is included with Bambino, but to no real positive effect. But for the lack of counter space, I’d return this defective model and buy another, bigger Breville Infuser (BES840XL/A )–and for only another $20 or so, at that.Lesson: I could be wrong about this, and the problem with the Bambino is a defect limited to the particular machine I purchased. But having already returned one machine (the pathetic De Longhi Dedica) I simply was too demoralized by the experience, and, so far, my friend and I have simply tried to adapt to the inferior Bambino. Perhaps we’ll change our minds, but I honestly suspect that the problem with the Bambino, as probably with the De Longhi Dedica, is that smaller machines simply DO NOT WORK due to a basic design problem: they end up being structurally incapable of generating the kind of steam pressure required. At least, this is what I suspect. Perhaps far more expensive, smaller machines don’t have this problem. I can’t afford to find out, and I’ve stopped believing in positive reviews.FINAL LESSON: if counter space is not an issue, spend a little extra money and buy one of the larger, ‘normal’ size Breville machines. Mine works great after a year. My daughter owns one too, and her experience has been the same, although she hasn’t had the misfortune of needing a smaller machine for lack of space..
yagas –
Bought as replacement for ailing 22 year old Rancilio Silvia. Coffegeek rates as ‘candidate for best espresso machine of all time’ (when price considered).Pros: Pull shot after 3 seconds, good steam wand, razor and good tamper, jug and excellent water reservoir. Automatic milk frother (if you need). PID.Cons: (with machine I received) Poor espresso with no full bodied taste – despite using fresh George Howell beans and adjusting grind on good burr grinder for a number of shots. Drip tray is ridiculously small. Portafilter needs to be heated separately and grouphead remains cold, possibly affecting brew temp.Really looked forward to owning this machine, based on many reviews but will now return. Looks like I may have to up my price to a Silvia or Profitec Go to get the robust espresso taste I’ve experienced with better machines.
Stuart E. Schechter –
The Bambino indeed has a super-fast startup time for both making espresso and steaming milk. A machine that starts up quickly is much less harmful for the environment than one that you need to leave powered up over night, which most of the higher-end machines do.While the Bambino does start up in 3 seconds, the instructions specify that run a single-cup cycle without the filter before actually starting to make your first shot. This is not going to slow you down if you start up your machine and hit the single shot button before grinding your beans, and the Bambino will be ready before you’ve finished tamping.I love the materials and the ease with which the base slides off for cleaning and back on again. It’s got a deep tray for water so I haven’t had any spills carrying it over to my sink.However, you should know before you buy that:(1) There’s a good deal of necessary friction to overcome as the filter needs to lock in tight to be sealed under pressure, and the machine is so light that it will slide around your counter before accepting the filter. There’s no handle to grab, so the only way I’ve been able to make this work is by wrapping my arms around the whole (fortunately small) machine. Don’t welcome a Bambino into your home unless you’re prepared to give it two bear hugs for every espresso you drink. (It gets easier–see update below. A commenter suggested using olive oil as a lubricant, which seems sensible since water boils at 100C and olive oil doesn’t burn until ~190C.)(2) When the steamer self-cleans the tip of the wand, the initial spray often hits the edges of the hole it’s supposed to land in. That initial spray contains milk that is being cleared, and the milk splatters. You’ll need to keep the towel you used to clean the wand handy to play defense, and prepare to clean up splatter that you miss. Hopefully in v2 the hole will be slightly bigger and the alignment more precise. (Aside from this, the self cleaning function is great.)(3) The minimum amount of milk required to steam (the min line in the included steel milk jug) is a bit more than will fit in an 8oz mug, especially on the frothiest mode. Fortunately, I’ve not had any problems after filling a bit below the min line.I’d definitely buy this again as all the flaws are manageable and I love the quality of the espresso it creates, the ease with which it does it, the ease of cleaning, and the petite size. Having originally eyed the Barista Express, I have no regrets about getting a smaller machine that’s easier to clean and starts up more quickly. If my grinder breaks, I can replace it without replacing my espresso maker, and vice versa. I also have no regrets about not getting a double boiler, as having two fast sequential steps (espresso and steam) is just as good as two slower parallel ones. If really I wanted to make multiple espressos faster, I’d get another filter unit so that I can grind one cup while another is brewing.- – – – -Update April 21 2020After a few months the group head started locking in with less friction (but still makes a good seal), and so the bear hugs are now optional.I recently had the chance to compare the Bambino with the Barista Express, which I bought as a gift for friends I stayed with for a week. The Barista Express is a more impressive looking machine, also worked beautifully, and when offered for less than the Bambino as it was in January, it might be a better value. The one feature I missed was the automated milk steaming on the Bambino. With the Bambino, I can start milk frothing and move to another task, but steaming is a strictly manual operation on the Express. While the Bambino has a manual option, if I wanted to steam manually, I confess that if I were steaming manually each morning, I’d much prefer the more spacious Express which provides a more ergonomic experience if steaming manually is important to you. The Bambino’s automatic steaming does a great job, so manual vs. automatic may simply be a matter of preference.Only after a year into ownership did I re-read the part of the manual that mentioned tool for cleaning the four holes in the steam wand, hidden under the water tank. It’s beautiful industrial design to embed useful but rarely-needed tools where nobody has to see them, but Breville was a little too successful in hiding from. Don’t miss it. I had been using a needle from a sewing kit.When using the two-shot mode to make two small lattes, I found it helpful to have a 600ml (20oz) steaming pitcher so that I can steam enough milk for both. For shot glasses, I’ve come to greatly appreciate ones with spouts that help me cleanly pour the espresso shots into cup. I use these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GL55KSN.I've now descaled a few times. Step 8 in the manual instructs that “once the descale solution has been used up, the descale mode will pause.” It will actually pause BEFORE all the descale solution has been used up. I believe you can just toss the remaining liquid left in your tank.After my second descale, the machine started barely producing any espresso during a cycle. I tried another descale, with no luck. Then I tried the instructions under “reset factory espresso volume settings” at the bottom right of page 17 of the manual and everything suddenly worked like new.
M –
It’s really very easy to use !We enjoy the simplicity of this machine . We chose to go with this model because it takes the guess work out of frothing your milk. I will say my latter comes out perfectly every time. It took very little time to learn to use and cleaning it is a breeze afterwards.My husband and I save quite a bit of money making coffee at home , and it still feels like a treat because the quality is so good.I will say , we buy nicer coffee beans to be used in espresso. If you buy poor quality coffee beans it really affects the taste of your espresso.Update :The machine isn’t even 6 months old and it will not work. .We descaled it and back flushed when prompted . Occasionally we’ve had difficulty with it but it usually resolved. But today it won’t run at all . It won’t even let me run a back flush.I’ve read all the instructions and forums and nothing works.