Cafe Quality Coffee at Home with the Breville Barista Pro

When I was offered the chance to review the Barista Pro espresso machine, you know my coffee-loving self heard angels sing and felt the sun shine down. I absolutely did want to make Cafe Quality Coffee at Home with The Breville Barista Pro.

Yet I have to admit, I was so very intimidated.

After all, I’m not a barista and don’t play one on TV. I drink coffee like a boss and can make a mean cup carafe of joe {thanks to the Precision Brewer}.

Yet a professional espresso machine with all those knobs, dials, and specs? Hold up. It must be insanely complicated and only left up to the masters, as evidenced by the price tag that comes with a cup of specialty coffee.

… Right?

Well, we assume so much. Let me clear that up for you with this Breville Barista Pro espresso machine review, while I sip on my just-made delicious Americano.
 

Barista Pro Design

The Breville Barisa Pro is absolutely gorgeous. When I took this machine out of the box, I had to step back and fully admire what was before me, it really is a stainless steel glory.

As I leafed through the manual and considered a kitchen re-model to better compliment such a fine accessory, it dawned on me that this one machine did the work of three.

• The Smart Grinder Pro is attached, so there’s no need to have this as a stand alone.
• It brews espresso
• Has a steaming arm that replaces the need for a stand-alone milk frother

The beauty is that you can simply move left to right, doing each of these three steps; and in a matter of minutes that specialty coffee is all yours. 

The Barista Pro design allows for a generous sized water tank located at the back of the machine, meaning you won’t have to fill it too often. Inside is also a convenient reminder of when to change the filter as well. 

The LCD display tells you everything at first glance, and the settings allow you can change grind size to water temperature, and much more. As a newbie, I appreciate the recommended settings as I don’t think I’d have any idea on my own. Thus far the Breville experts’ suggestions are bang-on for my tastes.

It also has a storage tray behind the drip tray, which is fantastic for storing the filter baskets. Even the tamper has a home attached to the machine via magnet. In the past I’ve turned up my nose at home appliances that have to many solo parts that are difficult to keep in one spot. They usually get lost or take time to retrieve, and just not a convenient item to have in the home.

I love that for such an intricate and multi-featured machine, everything included with the Breville Barista Pro is properly stored at hands reach. This is important to me, when it comes to a smart design.

Barista Pro Grinding

As I mentioned, the Barista Pro comes with the Smart Grinder Pro, so you can grind your favourite fresh beans the right way. In my post on the 6 Simple Rules for Perfect Coffee, I shared why it’s all about the bean. So if you need advice on what type to get, why you look for that ‘roasted on’ stamp, and how much to grind – head on over and get caught up.

The Barista Pro grinder {as regulated by display settings}, delivers the right amount of ground coffee on demand. For those more apt when it comes to grinding and making espresso, there’s 30 grind settings on this baby, so they’re leaving no taste out when it comes to that perfect shot. Again, I’m taking the advice of the masters when it comes to my setting, and am currently using the recommended mid-grind.

Once you have beans in the hopper and your chosen grind and dose are selected, you then pick which of the 4 filters to use with the portafilter. There’s 2 {1 cup and 2 cup} single wall filter baskets for when you’re using the grinder. Then there’s 2 {1 cup and 2 cup} dual wall filters, for when you’re using already-ground coffee.

You can either dose the coffee grind automatically by pressing in the portafilter into the cradle once, or holding it in to manually pick how much you want. Once dispensed, you can use the included razor to level grounds if you want, but make sure to use the tamper to press the grinds down into the basket if anything.

Barista Pro Brewing

Once you place your portafilter of grounds into the grouphead to brew, it’s as simple as pushing a button for one cup or two. That is, as long as your setting for brew type have been chosen already. I’m using the suggested for now, with the exception that I increased the shot temp.

I was actually very surprised at the incredibly fast heat up time, thanks to the ThermoJet heating system. It took just seconds!

Barista Pro Steaming

Moving along to the steaming arm of the machine, the two dial choices are either to steam, or simply disperse hot water.

I love the texturizing feature on the Barista Pro, since I now don’t have the need for the separate {and quality-lacking} milk frother that has been pushed to the back of the cupboard from neglect. The few times it was used, it took a long time to make sub-par froth. What’s that saying? Oh right. Bye, Felicia!

To texturize milk using the Barista Pro: purge the steam wand, turn off then place into the included stainless steel jug of milk and turn back on. When the head is submersed, the milk will thicken. When the head is just below the surface, it’ll froth. Easy!

For just how intimidated I was, I’m so surprised, relieved and very pleased at just how user-friendly the Barista Pro is. It’s built to make cafe quality coffee at home whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned connoisseur. Who knew it was this possible, quick and easy!

How to Make Cafe Quality Coffee at Home

I went into this convinced that I wasn’t and wouldn’t ever be a professional barista. Now I have the Breville Barista Pro espresso machine, and can easily make a wide range of specialty coffee at home, and on the daily. Well, someone make me a name tag, because I was wrong!

While in text it may seem too detailed, yet watch my coffee-making video and see just how easy it is when you’re not explaining each step. Yet what can you make with this espresso machine? You might not be aware of many of your options. Here are the most popular in the chart below.

Specialty Coffee Drinks

How to make cafe quality specialty coffees using the Breville Barista Pro espresso machine at home.

Espresso - Strong concentration of black coffee on it's own.

Americano - A single shot of espresso with hot water

Latte - One part espresso with three parts steamed milk and froth on top

Cappuccino - Three equal part of espresso, steamed milk and froth. Oftentimes with flavored syrups such as vanilla, caramel or hazelnut

Cafe Mocha - One part espresso, two parts steamed milk and one part chocolate syrup or powder

Chai Tea Latte - One shot espresso mixed with chai tea

Cafe Au Lait - one shot of brewed coffee or espresso, and an equal part of steamed milk

Macchiato - 3 parts espresso to one part steamed milk

Frappe - Cold espresso blended with sugar, milk and a flavouring to resemble a milkshake

  

 
While I’m confident I’m off to a good start, I would love to learn the manual settings and eventually take myself off auto. That and foam art, because my abilities need that extra pizzaz that we all love from baristas.

Did you know that Breville offers Masterclasses?

There’s two options for Breville Masterclasses right now, with plenty of dates and locations across the country. Register for your opportunity to increase your skill and knowledge straight from the source. It’s perfect for your own interest or a night out with friends.

1) Breville Barista Masterclass – Learn the art and science behind making third wave specialty coffee at home from professional baristas in an engaging session. This hands-on learning covers coffee preparation, measuring, extraction, and milk texturing.

2) Breville Pizzaiolo Masterclass – Learn how to make and stretch dough, how to correctly top and cook pizzas like the experts and more. This class is a hands-on session taught by professional pizzaiolos who will share the secrets behind their amazing pizza creations. Make a pizza with the Breville Smart Oven Pizzaiolo, and enjoy an incredible evening with this culinary event.

Purchase Information

You can get your Breville Barista Pro online or at stores such as Hudson’s Bay, Best Buy, and Bed Bath & Beyond. It retails for about $900, so it’s one of those items you might want to start hinting for as a gift. To shop and save, watch for holiday sales and don’t forget those in-store coupons.

Disclosure: Product and compensation was supplied to facilitate this post as part of my affiliation with the brand, yet as always, all opinions are my own.