Discount Mr. Coffee Espresso and Cappuccino Machine, Stainless Steel, Programmable Coffee Maker with Automatic Milk Frother, 15-Bar Pump, Ideal for Home Baristas

Discount Mr. Coffee Espresso and Cappuccino Machine, Stainless Steel, Programmable Coffee Maker with Automatic Milk Frother, 15-Bar Pump, Ideal for Home Baristas

 

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just bought this
5.0 out of 5 stars RIP Mr. Coffee. 1,689 days old. We'll miss you!
Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2016
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
Wife makes a cup a day for the last six months. No issues so far. She runs the cleaning cycle every time she uses the frother. We have not run any cleaning solutions through the water, and we have not noticed any decrease in performance.

The frother bugs me a bit when I make hot chocolate, but if I stir the milk in my cup as it's being poured, it seems to cut down on the frothiness of it.

*UPDATE*

Running strong for over a year now! I should probably clean it sometime... Haven't noticed any decrease in performance yet due to not cleaning.

*ANOTHER UPDATE*

We ordered this on December 5, 2015. Today is September 27, 2017. Why the update? The frother stopped working on latte mode!

I first cracked open the milk dispenser top to see if there was a clog. Turns out, it's super simple in there, and not much to clean. I paged through the manual, and there's a section in there about cleaning. Hey, wouldn't you know, Mr. Coffee says to run vinegar through the thing once every forty-eighty cups to delime it! My wife has been pretty regular in her coffee habit, minus missing a few days, plus making a few cups for guests, so I would estimate we're about 660 cups in so far! Just a little bit over the eighty cups they recommend a cleaning at for those of us with hard water.

Anyway, I (sorta) followed the deliming instructions, ran a half gallon of vinegar through it using both the espresso and cleaning cycles, and the latte setting on the frother works again.

And for those of you who are wary... this thing works great! My wife isn't a coffee snob, but this machine is helping her to become one. She's (mostly) sworn off that overpriced star place's coffee, as she's come to find it's very bitter, unless there's a pound of sugar in it, then it's too sweet. While the Mr. Coffee Cafe Barista doesn't have all sorts of fancy features as you may see in more expensive models, this bad boy reliably delivers what it promises, and can save you tons of money! Just think... We've spent maybe $100 on espresso pre-ground coffee, $300 on cocoa (it's good cocoa) & syrups. Compare that with the, at very least, $4/cup, and we're looking at $540 for 660 cups with the Mr. Coffee, compared to $2,640+ for coffee from that star place. Pretty good deal!

*FINAL UPDATE - RIP MR.COFFEE*
We orderes this on December 5, 2015. It finally stopped making espresso on July 19, 2020. That's 1,689 days of coffee. We didn't make coffee every day, so let's say one cup every three days. Over the years we've ordered 39 1lb bags of fancy imported Italian espresso ground coffee, at about $7/lb, spent maybe $100 on flavorings/cocoa, let's guess $300 on milk/creamer (though probably way less), and add $10 on vinegar for cleanings. That puts us up around $700 for ingredients, plus the cost of the unit (let's say $200, but it's less).

So! If we say an espresso is brewed every three days, that's 563 uses (mostly double shots). If we assume the average bucks coffees are $4, that would be $2,252 spent at the bucks for burned coffee loaded with sugar. Compare that with with the $883 on making coffee at home. Divide that by the 563 cups we made, and that's $1.57 per drink! That's a savings of $2.43 per drink!

So if you're wary about spending so much money on buying this thing, or just can't afford such a large purchase in one go, I would urge you to save up for this purchase. It's easy to use, mostly automatic, not too much of a pain to clean (buy some little pipe cleaners! Makes life easier), and saves you a ton of money compared to buying coffee from a barista. Granted it's not as convenient, but would you rather make your espresso a day in advance so it has a chance to chill in the fridge before you make your 64oz gut buster iced mocha, or would your prefer spending an extra $3 ever work day to spend ten minutes in the drive through?
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Phil Clapham
5.0 out of 5 stars Great little machine that's good for a year of daily use (see durability update at end)
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2013
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
The fact that you're reading this review means that you're looking for an espresso machine (yeah, I know - duh). The fact that you're looking for an espresso machine means that you probably want either the convenience of making fun little coffee drinks at home, and/or you want to save money because you've been spending a significant portion of your disposable income on similar concoctions at the overpriced coffee house down the street. To which concern I can most assuredly relate - we have the misfortune to live half a block from what is arguably the best coffee shop in Seattle, and I don't even want to think how much of the owner's retirement fund has come out of my pocket. Good thing he's a friend.

So anyway, here you are on Amazon, trying to filter - ha ha, please note clever pun - through the endless product choices, which range from cheapo plastic crap to espresso machines so expensive and complicated that you wonder if you'll need a degree in engineering to operate them. Your head is getting ready to explode as you read about things like burr grinders, with some Amazonians subtly implying that if you don't use one of these for your home-roasted gourmet coffee beans - the ones you import weekly on a private jet from an exclusive estate in the Ethiopian Highlands - then your intellect must compare unfavorably with that of certain lower primates. And then there are the reviews that provide detailed instructions regarding this or that machine's temperamental foibles and intolerance of idiots, advising you sternly that if you don't do X, Y and Z in a very particular order, accompanied by ritual chanting and animal sacrifice, your $2000 espresso machine will never perform in the optimal way.

Or so it sure seems sometimes.

So here's the key question: WHY do you want an espresso machine? Do you truly want to become an espresso master, the envy and talk of all your Yuppie friends ("Wow, Bob has a Lockheed-Martin X-320 Parisian-Bistro-Espresso Cafe Super-System with built-in burr grinder and rocket launch module, and he sure knows how to use it!") Or do you just want a machine that costs (way) under a thousand bucks that'll make a tasty latté or cappuccino in the morning, and in so doing save you from supporting your local coffee shop owner's boat payments?

If it's the latter, then I humbly recommend this fine little machine. It's easy to set up, and if one uses decent ground espresso (for the record, I use Lavazza) it makes excellent coffee drinks with a minimum of fuss. You don't need to fiddle with frothing yourself - just hit the right buttons and it will turn out coffee that will have you saying "Mmm, that's good!" before you proceed with your day. Unless, of course, you're a coffee snob who wouldn't dream of using anything smacking of "automatic" that doesn't involve multiple complex steps, a $300 grinder, manual frothing, a degree in engineering and animal sacrifices. But then if you're that person you're probably not looking at this machine.

Put the machine through a clean cycle regularly, and DO delime it at least once in a while. It's a tedious procedure but not doing so may affect performance (we had some issues a few months in and deliming fixed them).

Do follow the setup instructions carefully, especially with regard to priming the machine the first time. And don't do what I did, which is to wonder why nothing was happening - specifically, why no water was coming out - and then finally notice the sticker on the back of the water tank that said "Remove plastic plug before use".

Duh.

UPDATE, SEPTEMBER 2021: we have now owned several of these machines over a period of 8 years, so I can tell you with confidence about their durability. Bottom line: they're good for about a year of daily use.

Eventually, the frother stops working well. Despite deliming, it will have a harder time getting up to pressure and producing froth. Eventually it ceases to be functional. Since there's a one-year warranty, you might want to trigger that before the year is up - we did that with a previous machine and Mr Coffee's customer service was terrific - they immediately sent us a new machine for free. So, basically, you get two years of use out of one purchase.

Key point: despite the durability issue, this machine has saved us a ton of money and I'd still highly recommend it (and will likely buy another when our current one dies next year).

P.S. As some others have noted, the reservoir sometimes leaks water; we had this on one unit. My stupid but effective solution to this was to insert a strip of thin cardboard (part of the flap of a small cardboard box works) between the machine and the reservoir (i.e. behind the reservoir). Apparently this "pushes" the reservoir back enough to set it right, and it fixed the issue.
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EroCo
5.0 out of 5 stars This Is Perfect For My Needs
Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2024
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
I really like this machine. I realize that this is an "older" version, but it's just perfect for my needs. I have never made espressos at home before, and the Mr. Coffee Cafe Barista has made it easy and fun. Here are a few quick points I want to make about it:

1) For its capabilities, it is on the relatively cheaper side of espresso machines.
2) I really love the frother. In addition to capaccinos and espressos, I have been using the frother to add some love to hot chocolate and black teas. It's really awesome. I keep the milk container in the fridge after use.
3) For some reason if you just want frothed milk, it always lets a few drops of water out from the espresso filter. So unless you want a little bit of espresso in your non-coffee drink, you need to take the filter away. (This happens because I tend to make the kids tea or hot chocolate with frothed milk after I make espresso)
4) Cleaning it is relatively easy.
5) The water container holds a lot of water, but there is no indicator that I know of to tell you if it is empty. So you only know because no espresso comes out. It's on the back so you can check, but you have to go to the effort of looking...no big deal.

All in all this is a great machine that I thoroughly enjoy.
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Writer Girl
5.0 out of 5 stars Impressive machine!
Reviewed in the United States on November 14, 2019
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
Okay, so I just got this machine yesterday but so far I absolutely love it!!!
I have been researching machines for weeks. And I have several saved but I wanted one now that wasn't super expensive. I also didn't want one that used pods because my last one did and putting the pod in was always hit or miss. The way the machine was set up the pod would drop down too far and not allow the panel to close, so I had to keep it held up with one finger inside the machine until the process was started. Pain in the butt!!! Plus, the espresso shots always came out too watery!
So, this machine was on my saved list but it turned out to be the deal of the day yesterday, so I decided it was now or never and bought it. I also saved $50 since it was the deal of the day!!! Yay!!!!!!!
It was packed really well to protect from damage and I received it in perfect condition! The machine came with a scoop/tamper and a single and double shot interchangeable porta filter.
First thing I did was read the instructions which were very clear and made set up super easy. I didn't realize that there were 2 separate pieces for the single shot and double shot espresso until I read the instructions either, so that was helpful. Also, if you don't read the instructions, you might not realize that you have to move the steaming wand from the down position and aim it in the center of the cup. Then you'd have a huge mess! It's a little hard to see the wand at first.
I successfully made several kinds of drinks yesterday within 15 minutes of setting the machine up and plugging it in. I love when a company makes set up and instructions a breeze!!!
Things I love about this machine!!!
First, it's very appealing to the eye. Call me girly, I'm but I love the stainless panels and the lights around the buttons!
There's a single and double for espresso shots, cappuccino's and latte's.
If you hold the cappuccino button down for three seconds, it will bypass the cappuccino and just do milk and frothing only, which is perfect if you want to add vanilla chai tea mix but don't want a shot of espresso!!! By far my favorite feature!!!
You can adjust the amount of froth with the knob on the front of the milk reservoir! Genius!!! And it works really well!!! I'm talking gobs of froth for the froth lover!!!
Cleaning the frothing wand out is a breeze. You just adjust the frothing knob to the down position where it says clean. Press and hold the latte button till it clicks and the pump starts then release the button and it runs hot water through so milk doesn't clog the wand!
Plus, the milk reservoir comes out and you can store it in the fridge so you don't have to dump the milk and waste it!!! Again, genius!!!
Also, I only used bottled water on my last machine and I never had a problem with lime scale or hard water, so I will only use bottled water on this one as well.
I also made some home made caramel whipped cream for a delicious topper!!!
There's no grinder but that's not a big deal. I am using Starbucks ground espresso roast and the result is a strong and perfect espresso shot!!! Not watery like my last machine.
*My advice, read the instructions. They will most likely teach you a few things you didn't realize you needed to know.
So far I am super giddy over this machine!!!👍
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Brian
5.0 out of 5 stars Makes very good espresso, cappuccino and latte
Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2024
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
This is our first automatic espresso maker so it definitely took some getting used to. I will say that making really great tasting drinks is really easy with this machine. .. easily as good or better than superstar coffee shops if you use good coffee, cream, etc (Our family and friends are super impressed by Pisgah Roasters "DuPont Dark" coffee in this machine). The espresso and froth are both nice and hot. The machine will get a little messy from normal use which bothers me a bit but the machine, including the frother is all very easy to clean. The frother Auto clean function works great. The frother control feature (foam density) also works good. The function that allows frothing additional milk or cream is nice. The user manual and recipe book are also very nice. Coffee choice and grind size makes a huge difference in strength and flavor.
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O. Fagan
5.0 out of 5 stars For the price, very satisfied
Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2024
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
1. Bur grinder with fine grind setting 2. Always use freshly ground 3. Don't buy out dated or old coffee beans

Made a double espresso cappuccino with froth, it measured at 10 ounces (just as the user manual stated). The taste was so good, I had to have a second one. I was totally wired for the rest of the day (4 espresso shots in total). I like how it is a no-brainer, easy to clean machine that makes good espresso drinks. Since it was fairly inexpensive compared to similar machines, I don't know what to expect in the long run. For now, I will enjoy it.
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The Rancher's Wife
5.0 out of 5 stars TIPS THAT WORK! From an average person, not a barista.
Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2016
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
I'll give tips after a little background info, what wasn't right and what customer service said to do, that WORKED!

First off my background. I am not, nor have I every been a barista. I am an average person who likes mochas from the coffee shop, but I live 80 miles from town, so I don't get them very often and wanted to try making them at home. This is my first espresso machine. I read a lot of blogs and watched online videos from real baristas giving tips how to make good espresso drinks at home before purchasing this. I got this thing and things didn't taste right to me, bitter. So I did more research and figured out the problem, it wasn't heating up well. I checked temperature and it was only getting to 157*F on average (too cold) and took 14-15 seconds to make one shot (too fast). NOT what the online advice says you need. Online advice says 170-180*F and 27-30 seconds is about right. So I called Mr Coffee for help before I sent it back to Amazon. GLAD I did.

The call: In short, customer service told me to run a cleaning cycle per directions from page 16 in the user manual. Which is 1/2 tank of white vinegar, hit the button for double shot. Repeat as many times as you need. Also run a cleaning cycle through the milk dispenser. My thought was, "what the heck, its a new machine! I did the priming as directed before use, how can it be dirty?" But I had to give it a try or send it back. Well I'll be go to heck, it WORKED!

While directions said you only need to run it few times. I had the time, so I ran the whole 1/2 tank white vinegar through (double shot at at a time) since I has to toss the vinegar anyway, so why not really clean it eh? Anyway, after a couple times running the double shot espresso button the temperature went from consistent 157*F to 175-182*F. Wahoo! It seemed to matter how long I let it warm up between shots. Running two times consecutively got the 175-177*, which is just what you want. Letting it sit and warm up a few minutes before runs got it 180-184*, which is getting a little too hot. BTW, I was using a good quality quick, calibrated thermometer that I use for caramel making, which is a very exacting process to do right. So I figured it could accurately measure the espresso before it cooled from air temperature, which by the way is mere seconds I found out.

NOTE: The higher temperature is NOT for drinking comfort (how hot you like it) it is what the espresso NEEDS to properly extract and not be bitter. You can let it sit a few minutes if you don't like it that hot, personally I don't want a burned tongue, so I wait a little. Coming out of the machine perfect drinking temperature is NOT a good thing.

SECOND NOTE: Running the vinegar through is NOT descaling, it is cleaning. Descaling is something else you do, read the manual on how. The vinegar clean is NOT priming, it is cleaning. Don't know why you need to clean the new machine in addition to priming, but DO it anyway. Make sure to rinse the reservoir out, then run some PLAIN water through to remove the vinegar afterwards, do it as many times as it takes to get the smell out, mine took a full reservoir. Honestly though it's faster shipping it back and waiting for a replacement machine because it doesn't get hot enough, this WORKS.

When I first got it, as I said it was taking 14-15 seconds to run the shots through. During the cleaning process they got longer and longer. Now that it's clean, it's about 28-30 seconds. Again, just what you want. I use my cell phone stop watch feature to be accurate.

In summary, based on what I've read and how I got it to work well, at least for "normal" person standards. This a good machine. Here's my TIPS TO GET IT WORKING RIGHT:

1. Learn to grind grounds well. Do NOT buy pre-ground, buy beans and grind them yourself. It has to do with when the oil is release one how well it works. If you are going to the trouble to use a machine like this (rather than just normal a coffee machine) you can go to the effort to grind as well, it's just part of the process.

You can use the hand held cone burr grinders for the most accurate fine ground. Or you can spend a bundle on an electric burr grinder. From what I read, you REALLY do need to get a good one if you go electric. In fact that is almost more important than the machine they say. Inconsistent size of grounds will yield inconsistent shots. Too fine (Turkish grind, which is like flour) and it clogs the filter making the machine unable to push all the water through. Too course (regular coffee machine grind) and the water goes through too fast making it bitter. Espresso grind has to be the consistency of table salt.

I'm cheap, so using the hand grinder does work and I advise it for other cheap people. However, in the morning I am cranky and impatient, I'm also lazy, so I've ordered a couple different electric burr grinders to see if that works as well. I plan to return which ever (or both) that don't grind as the espresso NEEDS (good ol Amazon prime and their return policies). No, I did not take the online baristas advice and buy a $200 burr grinder (I am cheap after all), but I did spend about $50 on a burr grinder and $20 on a blade style. Will update when I have decided what works or not, which I kept or if I end up just doing the hand grind.

2. Learn how full to fill the cup. At least to the top of the rim, or a little higher. You want the end result about 1/8-1/4" from the top. The amount in the cup DOES matter.

3. Learn how to pack your grounds to 30lbs of pressure. How to do that, put your bathroom scale on the counter. Use your tamper to push until you get the feel of 30lbs pressure. Repeat several times until you can push it pretty accurately. This is very important. Also, but a metal tamper, the plastic one isn't sturdy enough for 30 lbs pressure, it bents and packs unevenly. You can get metal tampers cheap, it's worth it.

4. Before you make your cup each morning, warm the machine as directions indicate, but ALSO run a shot of plain water through first. The second time through will be hotter, and it only takes 30 seconds.

5. Even though it's a new machine, and you did the priming as the manual says, run 1/2 tank of white vinegar through it (directions on page 16 of manual) and it will make a tremendous difference. Don't argue, just do it.

6. You can open the lid and fill the reservoir with it ON the machine with a pitcher if taking it on and off is too hard.

NOTE: I did NOT receive this at a discount in exchange for an honest review. This is a good machine for the average espresso based specialty coffee drinker. I gave it a full 5 stars because it's pretty idiot proof (I'm not the most mechanical person) and it makes mochas that are pretty darn good in my average persons opinion. I have no idea what a real coffee expert would say, and really, shouldn't they have a professional machine anyway? [...]
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Sheri
5.0 out of 5 stars I love this machine
Reviewed in the United States on May 14, 2024
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
This is a fabulous coffee maker and you can get really fancy with fixing your coffee. I love the steamed milk feature that comes with it. You can make an expresso, latte or cappuccino. It did take me a few tries to get the frothing feature just right. The use of the cleaning button can be tricky but after a few times and reading the instructions, that is all it took. THis machine does exactly what it is supposed to do!
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DanniB
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing
Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2024
Color: SilverStyle: ModernVerified Purchase
I brought this for my brother as a gift and he absolutely loves it. He says it’s very easy to use easy to clean the only thing he says it’s a little big but that’s fine because he loves he loves it and the convenience of it instead of him having to stop at Starbucks or some coffee shop every morning he just can make his own and be on his way to work.
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esdad697
5.0 out of 5 stars 4,380 lattes later
Reviewed in the United States on March 30, 2024
Color: WhiteStyle: MakerVerified Purchase
I've had Mr. Coffee for 4 years. We average 3 expressos or lattes each day, mostly lattes. That is for 3 adults. Over 4 years, or 1460 days, that is 4,380 drinks. A latte costs about $1 per drink with a disposable cup. A reusable cup will save 25 cents and the environment. At the local price of $4.75 a latte, that would be $20,805. We have saved about $16,000. I would not have believed it.

Our preferred bean is Lavazza Expresso Barista. Fresh is better, but this is easier. We have a Mueller Conical Buff Grinder, and a metal tamper. We use distilled water. We rarely clean the machine.

We bought Mr. Coffee before the pandemic. For one of us who works in office everyday, he is the first latte of the day. We still go to Starbucks maybe once a week, but Mr. Coffee has us happier.