De'Longhi EC155 15 BAR Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Maker
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of De'Longhi EC155 15 BAR Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Maker
Customer Review: Amazing Cappuccino
Summary: 4 Stars
I love cappuccino and after just a couple days of owning this machine, my husband has really gotten it down and hopefully I too will soon be able to make a great cup! The pros for this machine are as follows - it handles the single pods which we like for the mornings when we are in a hurry. And we usually do the double (2 pods) to make a double espresso or cappuccino. We like to make ours as large as possible since espressos are normally very small (we're Americans, ok?!) Then I like mine sweetened with 2-3 Purevias (granulated Stevia available in normal supermarkets in the sugar aisle). So far no one has said anything bad about stevia as a sugar alternative and it tastes fabulous in this drink. I'm sure we will also use the ground coffee as well when we've had the machine longer.
We took the advice of another poster here and ordered the LavAzza espresso ESE coffee pods from online. I consider these pods to be an improvement over the Tassimo machine pods because they are made only with filter paper as opposed to the plastic pods on the Tassimo machine which I always thought could form dioxides in the heating process. Also for the milk foam, we ignored the advice to use skim milk (didn't make much of a froth) and instead used organic whole milk which made an amazing froth and is probably better for you as is less "messed around with" than a processed unorganic skim milk. We still need to buy the stainless steel frothing cup but will make a little shopping excursion out of that.
An imperfection of the machine as indicated by other posters is that with the filter holder it is indeed very difficult to rotate the handle to the front when it is holding the double (2) pods. Although we haven't tried it with the tamped ground coffee yet, we feel that it would turn into position much easier with the tamped coffee. It however turns fine with just a single pod. But with the 2 pods I had to position my machine on the countertop close to the edge of the counter so I could wedge it against the wall to hold it in position while I threw my body weight into turning the handle to it's front position. It was somewhat less difficult for my husband to turn into position.
Also it does work best when you honor the wait time for the machine to heat, but that works easily for us because we are usually in the kitchen doing our morning ritual stuff which takes a few minutes anyway. It is a very good idea to heat your mug well initially. I would also be careful of the metal part of the steam tube, not to burn yourself on it.
My husband likes his espressos very dry (a lot of foam) with no sweetener and this machine delivers that in spades porviding an amazing amount of light fluffy froth especially by using the organic whole milk.
So like anything worthwhile, it takes some practice and perfecting and working with a less expensive machine which
really does deliver an amazing tasting cup of authetic espresso or cappucino!! Get ready to dive into your day with a great lot of energy for hours!
Customer Review: Top performer for the price
Summary: 5 Stars
This compact pump-driven espresso maker produces excellent results for the one- or two-cup-a-day customer. If you drink more espresso than that, you should invest in a more expensive and larger machine. I've owned this machine for over a year now (as of April 2009) and it is still working great. I haven't had any problems with it at all, and some of the inconveniences described in some of these reviews can be easily overcome.
1. "the attached tamper doesn't do a good job" - it works fine if you take the time, but the pushing up motion isn't as easy as pushing down with a real tamper. Solution: an inexpensive tamper such as the RSVP Little Gem 49mm Espresso Tamper. The portafilter on this machine is 51mm wide but the 49mm size works just fine.
2. "the space under the dispenser is too small and I can't fit a coffee cup under there" - this isn't a Mr. Coffee machine, it's an Espresso machine designed for shot glasses, not coffee cups. Buy a couple of inexpensive glasses like the Bodum Pavina 2 oz thermals, they fit perfectly and keep the shots warm while you prepare the milk.
3. "the frothing wand doesn't work, is too small, is too short, etc." - the wand works perfectly if used correctly. Buy an inexpensive stainless steel cup like the Rattleware 12 oz Latte Art Pitcher. Fill it up less than half way, and be sure to hold the nozzle right at the surface to draw air into the milk. As the milk increases in volume, be sure to lower the cup to keep the tip at the surface. When the milk level is about a half inch from overflowing, raise the cup so the nozzle is deep and that will continue warming but not produce any more foam. You'll be able to feel when temperature is right (almost too hot to hold) or you can use a thermometer. You will have perfect microfoam this way. If you have trouble getting the cup out because of the counter top, either put the machine on a platform to raise it an inch, or use it on the end of the counter so the frothing wand is easily accessible.
Clean the machine daily by drawing a shot of plain water without the portafilter attached before you turn it off. Always shoot some steam through the frothing wand into an empty cup after steaming the milk to clean it. Wipe it down. Rinse the drainboard, it's easily removeable. Do this and the machine will last a long time. Also clean the portafilter basket daily: the bottom screws off, leaving the basket body, plastic insert, filter disk, and rubber gasket. 5 parts to rinse and let dry, reassembles in seconds.
POSTSCRIPT NOVEMBER 2010 - After 2.5 years of flawless operation, this machine has died. The heating element no longer works, when I turn the switch to "on," the green "ready" light also comes on immediately, but the water never heats up. Disappointing, but I certainly got my money's worth. I have a call into the DeLonghi service line, but if repairable, the cost is likely to be close to the cost of a new unit. The only question is whether to buy another model or an upgrade....
Customer Review: Less than perfect (better after first week)
Summary: 3 Stars
This is an update to my original review below. After running about 30 singles through the machine, the noise has been dramaticaly reduced. Apparently there was some air trapped in the system that caused it to run loudly. That worked itself out after about 15 shots and now the sound is a simple buzz as it should be.
Also I can now fully move the handle to the correct position where I get the optimum pressure. I'm guessing it took a while for this part to get broken in to where the gasket could be fully compressed.
I'm still not 100% happy with the short steam tube, but I've gotten a larger 20 oz frothing cup and this allows me to tilt it 45 degrees and not worry about spilling any milk.
If I could, I would rate this at 4 stars, with one star off for the unit arriving with a broken lid hinge.
Original review:
I received what appeared to be a new unit, although it had residual water inside of it. Perhaps the boiler was tested before leaving the factory. The top cover was broken at the hinge, so it can't be flipped back, but it comes off completely. There is no way to fix this. I suspect that every unit will have a broken lid in a matter of weeks. The hinge is poorly designed with two 1 mm long nibs holding the heavy lid on. Once one of the nibs breaks off, the lid won't stay on at the hinge.
The filter holder does not fit tightly enough unless you put on so much force that you think you are going to break the machine. If you don't force it, water will leak down the handle. You need to grasp the coffeemaker tightly with one arm like a football and use your other hand to force on the filter, otherwise the unit will leak. Even with extreme force on the handle, I can't get it to line up the 2 filter outlet holes with the drip basin on the bottom. It also means that if I use 2 cups, I have to align them very carefully at an unusual angle. I am thinking that something was not assembled correctly on this unit, but I didn't bother to look at it carefully to see if it can be fixed/realigned.
The machine is very loud. I'm not sure why it is as loud as it is, but you have to yell to talk to someone standing next to you.
The frother is poorly designed and will not take a standard sized frothing cup unless you tilt it at an angle so that you can only froth to half the depth of the cup. I also wish the frother was on the opposite side since it gets in the way when trying to lock on the filter cup.
In all, I'm disappointed, but then this is a low end machine so you can't expect perfection. The fact that it was broken from out of the box is annoying, but I doubt there is very good quality control at the factory in China and no one wants to pull a unit off the line for a broken hinge. However, I will not buy another DeLonghi product because this is not a good sign of quality. Yes, it does do what it is supposed to do, just with more complications, noise, and mess than one would expect.
Customer Review: Process of elimination
Summary: 5 Stars
First, a couple of disclaimers:
1. This is the first pump-driven espresso machine that we have owned.
2. We generally drink cafe Americano, which is an espresso with a little added hot water (or cold water with an iced Americano). We make an occasional cappuccino and have thus used the steam wand, but not extensively.
After doing a cost/benefit analysis in regards to our current cafe Americano habit (~10 per week), we realized that there would be some justification to buying a home unit. We first considered the Breville ESP8XL Cafe Roma Stainless Espresso Maker, but reviewers consistently lamented the unit's tendency to clog the filter, necessitating time-consuming cleaning. Also, not being completely sure that we would actually use the espresso maker, we balked at the $250 price tag.
We also considered moving up to one of the superautomatico machines that grind, tamp, brew and dispose of the grinds, but we worried about the reliability of technology that had only recently hit the consumer-grade appliances. After reading zillions of reviews, we realized that every mid-priced machine had some glaring flaw and, in the end, we decided to buy an inexpensive pump-driven unit and wait for the technology to catch up before investing a huge chunk of change in an espresso machine. Moving our investigation to low-end espresso makers, we were impressed by the reviews of the DeLonghi EC155 and purchased it from Amazon.
I put off writing a review in order to make sure that the DeLonghi was going to last until we had at least broken even on it. We received it in mid-July and since then it has produced about 200 double shots flawlessly. By my reckoning, that's about $400 worth of Americanos at the local cafe. Even considering the price of the coffee, we have more than broken even. So, here's our pros and cons:
PROs
- Price--we paid $91.28.
- Crema Production--this unit consistently produces a thick layer of delicious crema.
- Powerful Stream Wand--Easily froths milk.
- Mechanicals--After six months of nearly daily use this mighty-mite works as well as it did the day it arrived.
- Easy Cleanup--Filter cleans easily.
CONs
- Ergonomics--As other reviewers have noted, there could be a little more room between the area where the cup sits and the output nozzle. Also the steam wand could be longer.
- Features--No cup warmer. Not a big deal to us, especially considering the price of the EC155, but it will put off some buyers.
SOME THINGS WE HAVE LEARNED
- Using a coffee especially made for espresso, such as Lavazza, produces a much better espresso. Lavazza has the added benefit of allowing you to go for hours without blinking.
- Preheating the unit for 15 minutes and warming the cups in the microwave improves the results and experience.
Customer Review: Best you can get without spending A LOT more.
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought this item as an xmas gift for my girlfriend, I personally cook quite often and thusly have been exposed to quite a few kitchen gadgets and have a decent sense of what to look for quality wise. This machine is a solid 4 stars for the category of machines it's in. If you are simply looking to duplicate your local coffee house white chocolate mocha this will get it done with ease.
If this machine is too expensive for you, you need to make more then 2 drinks at a time(pods may help this I haven't tried them though), or you are a die hard coffee nut you will want to look elsewhere though.
I personally am not a die hard coffee nut, I don't need my beans next day shipped from columbia in an air tight bag. I just want a good tasting coffee, and know tasters choice isn't going to get it done. I spent some time looking at the super expensive 3,000 dollar machines to see what made them so great. And the biggest thing I saw between one of those machines and this one is the capacity. A more expensive machine will allow you to pull more shots and froth more milk faster. This obviously takes more powerful parts, which kicks up the price.
This machine is essentially the same thing, at a lower capacity. Two drinks seems to be the design limit for this machine, you then have to replace the coffee and re-tamp it. The frother is also smaller and lower capacity. You could compare it to a griddle, you can buy a medium sized griddle and cook 4 pancakes, or a larger size (which cost more) but cook 8 pancakes. Your pancakes are delicious either way, but for more cost you can cook more of them faster.
The good:
- Great price for a pump driven machine.
- Big water reservoir, won't have to refill water often.
- Fast heating up process.
- Good quality thick espresso, with good crema.
- Can use pods.
The bad:
- The height of the machine limits what size cup you can put under the spout. You probably don't own a cup small enough to fit right now. I use shot glasses currently.
- The frother is not the best feature of this machine, its short wand limits how much milk you can froth at a time. If you don't understand this, picture trying to drink from a cup with a straw that is too short. So you are limited to a smaller cup(less frothed milk).
- Built in tamper is garbage. A crucial part of espresso is compacting your coffee, this machine has a built in tamp which is almost useless.
Overall if you want espresso in your home but don't want to spend 100's - 1000's this is the best place to start. If you can't spend at least this much, I would get a french press and just make strong coffee. If you have the extra money, but don't need a higher capacity I would also recommend this machine, since the more expensive machine are really only about capacity and speed.