Breville Barista Pro review: One of our favorite all-in-one espresso machines

Having a high-quality burr grinder is essential when it comes to making espresso, and one of our favorite things about Breville's all-in-one espresso machines is that they come with a Smart Grinder Pro. This is by no means a perfect grinder (there are almost always concessions when it comes to two-in-one anything), but it's entirely sufficient and would run you $200 on its own.

Having more settings allows you to make the necessary adjustments to accommodate different roasts and levels of freshness. There are 30 fine grind settings on the new Barista Pro, more than the Express's 18 and the Express Impress's 25, not to mention the dozen-plus internal grinder adjustments you can make. You can read our Breville Barista Express review, as well as our Breville Barista Express Impress review, for more information. 

(Note: While testing the machine out with old, stale beans — they're more affordable, and some of us will inevitably use them — I called Breville's customer assistance and left them with my number, not letting them know who I was. A call came back within an hour, and a representative walked me through making these finer adjustments with a whole lot of grace and patience.)

The portafilter you see directly above and below was only temporarily included with the Barista Pro, and the original portafilter also included with the Express, which we find works better, is now what you'll get with the Pro, too.

We have to tip our hats to Breville's research and design team. Espresso nerds everywhere praise this tamper not just because it's real and heavy steel, but because it's magnetic and fits tidily into a slot beside the grinder so you never misplace it. 

Our only bone to pick here is that the portafilter measures 54mm as opposed to the commercially standard 58mm, so if you want to upgrade baskets or the portafilter itself, you'll be stuck with Breville or the few after-market brands that design products specifically for Breville machines. Still, this is part of what keeps the machine so compact. (Check out our guide to the best tampers if you want to learn more.)

Breville's machines also come with their proprietary Razor, a precision leveling tool. It's something many baristas will argue is even more important than tamping. Here's a video by Breville on how it works.

The portafilter baskets are expertly designed so that they empty swiftly and tidily, even if you forget to do so for a few days — something many other designs fail to do. They're also made of high-enough grade metal that they don't tarnish and scratch only minimally if you do find yourself having to dig out grounds (though it's best not to use metal with them if you can help it).

The Razor, as mentioned above, is also a nice touch to help even out the grounds before tamping (though some experts recommend using a WDT tool instead). The milk-frothing pitcher isn't our favorite design (the spout could be more pronounced), but it works well besides that.

The cleaning tablets work with the backwash disc to clean from the front end of the group head (where the hot water is delivered to the portafilter), and while there is a single packet of descaling powder, you'll want to buy a stock if the stuff (like Cafiza's), and be sure to do it every couple of months or so to keep your machine in working order.

Rather than the cylinder heating coil that Breville has been using for years in other machines, the Pro comes with a faster, quieter, and more powerful "ThermoJet" heating block. If speed is of the utmost importance to you, Breville's models containing the ThermoJet heating element like this one will fill your cup fastest.

The LCD interface also shows you how far along the infuser is to prove that the water is hot and ready to go at the touch of a button. But, more importantly, it times your shot, which should give you a very good idea of whether or not you've dialed your grinds and tamped them properly. If your double shot finishes pouring before the 25- to 30-second range (Breville recommends about 20 seconds for a single shot), you either need to set your grinder to produce finer grounds, or tamp your shot better (chances are your grind settings are off).

Still, we miss the pressure gauge, which always did well by us.

Breville's representative explained to us that the milk wand on the Pro is still manual, but a bit more robust, which does make frothing a little easier and more pleasant. That said, there wasn't anything wrong with the frother on the Express. If you aren't satisfied, we've tested the best milk frothers and found solid alternatives.

The Pro Express is among the most convenient all-in-one machines for most people because it's the quickest to start, intuitive, and not overloaded with functions. Among the Barista line, we also like the Breville Barista Express Impress. With a nanometer and semi-automatic tamper, the Impress makes home espresso even easier, tidier, and more foolproof. Check out our full Breville Express Impress review.

Outside of Breville, our favorite semi-automatic machine is the Gaggia Classic Evo Pro. It requires a bit more practice, but once you're dialed in (pun intended), the espresso will blow your mind. Find the rest of our top picks in our guide to the best espresso machines.

Inherently, this machine is a big improvement from the Barista Express. The thermal coil has been updated, the LCD screen lets you time your shot and grind time more accurately, and you'll get your morning shot a good bit faster than you would with the Express.

The main difference between the Express, Pro, and Express Impress is that the Pro doesn't have a pressure gauge. Granted, the nanometer (pressure gauge) is really just a guideline, and you'll be able to tell a decent pour from a poor one in no time, but the meter makes things easier. If you're like me and blearily dialing the machine at six in the morning before work, you might consider the slightly slower but more foolproof Express Impress over the Pro.