Best coffee machine for flat white lover?

[Fieau]

My OH has mentioned in passing he quite fancies a proper coffee machine. Perfect idea for a Christmas present for him.... But I know absolutely nothing about coffee! If we are in a cafe he almost always has a flat white, very occasionally an espresso.

I've had a quick look at machines online and found it a bit overwhelming for a coffee novice. Would prefer a machine that uses ground coffee or coffee beans rather than those pod things. Budget is up to about £150. Any suggestions?

A flat white is about the steamed milk so you'll need a good steam wand on the machine, and also enough pressure to get a decent espresso.

The Sage by Heston is good, maybe out of budget, but have a look on eBay.

I always order a flat white but at home I have a delonghi espresso machine which is great and I make it by microwaving the milk first then pouring the coffee onto that. It is delicious and gets loads of compliments when friends come

I have a delonghi espresso machine which is great and I make it by microwaving the milk first then pouring the coffee onto that.

That is exactly what I do.

Mine is a Delonghi Dedica and I can't fault it at all.

The most important thing is the quality / freshness of the coffee used! If your OH is serious about his coffee, don't go down the Nespresso / Tassimo etc route (although these machines tend to be cheaper than ones which use ground coffee / beans).

As already suggested, Ebay is a good place to hunt out deals - have a look at Gaggia Baby or Classic machines, you may be able to pick one up for your budget on Ebay.

I would say don't worry about getting a machine with a milk frother as they tend to malfunction sooner than the rest of the machine. Focus on a machine that uses proper freshly ground coffee to make a good espresso. I then have a separate stainless steel jug to warm milk on the hob and use what looks like a cafetiere plunger to froth milk.

This was our problem exactly.

We have gone through;

A Nespresso Clit

A new Nespresso type with big pods

Nespresso milk frother x2

Dualit milk frother

A lavazza milk frother

Full Gaggia classic coffee machine (eye waveringly expensive) but too big for my tiny kitchen.

After selling the lot I have found the perfect solution to amazing coffee.

I now use an induction stove top coffee maker from John Lewis. This produces perfect coffee and will take coffee you grind yourself if needed.

I also invested in a Dualit commercial milk steamer from Nisbet. It's a little like the commercial coffee machines but the boiler only steams milk rather than trying to make coffee as well. So it's compact and does the job in hand really well.

I was finding the smaller milk frothers do not steam the milk and the coffee misses the sweet undertones from caramelised milk sugars.

It's truly superb. I haven't looked back. I appear to be a coffee snob.

I might add it was the least expensive solution in the end, after all our failures.

This machine is great-Seen it cheaper than this though so keep an eye out.
De'Longhi Caffe' Corso ESAM2800.SB Bean to Cup, Silver and Black www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00LB8FHJ4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_KsC1Bb4Z7N30V?tag=mumsnetforum-21

I too have a (not expensive) deLonghi machine and do the microwave milk thing. The coffee is very nice. I buy Sainsbury’s own espresso blend that is not only relatively cheap but tastes very like the coffee you get in Portugal, which I really like.
Is there really a machine called the Nespresso Clit?

I’d go for the stove top option too & separate frother.

Agree with the poster above that good coffee is about fresh beans.

Also, it doesn't matter how fresh the beans are if they're not freshly ground. Only grind how much you need when making the coffee.

Link to the Clit, please!

Oh yes. A grinder would be a good addition to the gift!

I'm too scared to Google Nespresso Clit.

must be a typo

Can totally picture Clooney advertising the clit.

Thanks for the suggestions, have had a look and the delonghi espresso maker looks like it would be ideal. Also love the idea of a separate grinder.

I've taken one for the team and googled the nespresso clit... It's actually the citiz but I am absolutely gutted I won't be seeing an advert for the clit staring George Clooney

Well done fieau

I have a DeLonghi as well, we only use it for espresso but I think it is capable of other things. We have had a Nespresso before, and another cheaper pod thing and they weren’t half as good, despite the DeLonghi being about the same price as Nespresso. It is the coffee as well though, you have to buy the good stuff!

I always use this coffee from ocado but probably available elsewhere in my delonghi