Easy To Clean New Machine

Question

I bought a Breville Barista Express machine about 3 years ago now, and I've been thinking about replacing it soon. I loved the quality and the cafe-style coffee, but I find the pieces of the machine difficult to clean. Do you have any recommendations for high quality machines that are easy to clean? Thanks in advance. Yotam

Answer 1

Firstly, cleaning would be a lot easier if you had a seperate grinder and a separate machine (which has the added benefit of being able to replace only one of both should something break). I found that the Barista Express has a lot of parts with a lot of grooves and holes which make cleaning a bit of a mess if there are grounds stuck everywhere.

Depending on your budget and your location you may have different options so it's difficult to recommend an exact model. Also your willingness - or lack thereof - to buy used machines or grinders would factor into the equation.

For a similar price range, I would recommend going with a used Lelit machine and a new grinder, like the Eureka Mignon. Gaggia and Rancilio also make machines in that entry level price range.

You might want to check out this video about espresso machines for under 500£ (TL;DW don't buy the delonghi Dedica) or maybe even this video about getting a whole setup for under 250£.

Answer 2

I would be hard pressed to recommend a better full operation espresso machine than the Breville line. Since you stated you still have the desire for a cafe-style coffee I would assume you would like to have the frothed milk option.

In this case the only option that comes to mind that fits this criteria would be the Nespresso Lattissima. I personally would stay with the Breville line as the ease of use combined with the quality of the result are quite good for the price point.

If you do not require frothed milk the best option for ease of cleaning would be a Chemex. Dishwasher safe and single user filters make maintenance a breeze.