La Specialista Opera Espresso Machine with Cold Brew EC9555M

The Delonghi EC9555 is really the only espresso machine here - as opposed to an automatic coffee machine - and while I don't particularly love it, that would be my choice It would be the most hands on, but you can get decent results and it would give you an opportunity to learn the process

We have the De'Longhi Opera and I hardly ever get coffee out anymore. I think it's also a Wirecutter recommendation.  Not sure if it currently below $800 but when we bought it in Jan it was on sale on Amazon for like $600 something and I bought it using a bunch of Amazon gift cards shortly before we started boycotting. I was nervous because they say you can't return them, but we bought direct from Amazon instead of a third party and it's the actual machine and has been fine. Though the cold brew maker is lame so don't get it for that reason.

Love the Aldi Columbian blend and Brazilian blend. Both under $25kg and both delicious. i have the De'Longhi La Specialista Opera Coffee Machine and it makes a cafe grade coffee

I have the Opera and I like it. What you didn't like about it except it started leaking?

Thanks for replying. I had Prestigio for 3 years and Opera for 1 year so far. Fortunately never had a single issue. But I agree that the non removable hopper is dumb - it was removable in its predecessor. I also have a Timemore Sculptor 064S and a Cafelat Robot. But I mostly use Opera and the internal grinder as it's most convenient to me. The workflow is fast in the mornings when I'm in a hurry. Today I dialed in new beans on the first try, but thinking about your post, I took out the Robot and dialed it in with the Sculptor. It took me 3 tries and still I like the espresso from the Opera better. I'll keep trying the Robot, but I already miss the easier Opera workflow. Between Prestigio and Opera I pulled a trigger on Ascaso Steel Duo PID Plus, 3x more expensive than Opera, had a bad luck and it was a dud right from the store, took it back and went back with DeLonghi, thinking I didn't actually need such an expensive coffee machine when the DeLonghi works for me. Anyways, your setup looks cool! 🙂

Story time: After a couple of years of not owning an espresso machine, my fiancee gifted me a De’Longhi Specialista Opera last Christmas because he thought it was practical and looked cute on the counter (blessed be his pure soul). It was a bit of a downgrade from a Linea Mini and some huge ass Mazzer that my previous partner who got me into home espresso had. Still, I got that thing figured out so that I could pull a solid shot and make a latte that was arguably better than most coffee shops. Fast forward a year later and it started leaking internally and servicing it in NY is super difficult apparently (if anyone has service recs please do let me know), so I wasted no time and got a proper setup (before he could get us another De’Longhi), risking a premature divorce and/or domestic violence for dropping 4k on a coffee setup. I was debating getting a Linea Micra but REALLY couldn’t justify the cost given we drink like 2 coffees per day before we leave for work. Went with Eureka Atom 65W for convenience – my fiancee is not a tinkerer and he wouldn’t have used the setup if it wasn’t dead simple. Guys, GBW is an absolute game changer if you like simplicity and don’t change beans often. I was also looking at the new Mahlkonig but saw a ton of mixed reviews and didn’t like the iPad at the front and app/wifi shenanigans. Another option I was considering was the Fiorenzato but we only drink espresso based drinks so don’t need the pour-over settings, it wasn’t as readily available, had fewer reviews, and seemed a bit slower (not that those few seconds matter) and clumpy. I was also considering waiting for the Mini-G but I got impatient so I pulled the trigger on Eureka and couldn’t be happier. The mirror finish looks absurd, even tho it will be a pain to keep clean. The Move is built like a tank, heats up quickly (one of the reasons I didn’t go for an e61 machine, along with looks) and steam goes crazy after I jacked up the temp; still getting used to all this power after a year of a sputtery thermoblock, so latte art is still a bit mid but getting there. After a couple of gushers, got everything dialed-in nicely and been pulling perfect shots. I’m a huge fan of simplicity so been just rawdogging puck prep, no WDT or any of that nonsense (WDT didn’t even exist when I started home espresso back in 2017 lol); super fluffy grind I get from Eureka definitely helps simplify the routine. The only other accessory I’ll get is a nice leveling tamper because the included Profitec one is a bit thin and my man struggles to do a leveled tamp. Happy to answer any questions if anyone is considering a similar setup.

Quality and consistency of the grinder was my biggest issue with it, but it’s a similar story with most espresso machines with integrated grinders. This one in particular is hard to dial in, steps are to wide apart, and it doesn’t hold the set grind size well (when it’s in operation you will notice the ring moves around a bit). Not being able to remove the hopper to clean / adjust the burrs is also criminal. Steaming milk would be my second gripe as we mainly do milk-based drinks; it’s quite underpowered so it takes a while to get a jug of cold milk up to temp and solid consistency. Overall, I thought it was an okay espresso machine; I could get decent espresso shots and lattes out of it. Plumbing a serviceability is clearly not its strong suit, or maybe I just got a dud idk.

Machines like the Opera consist of a normal semi-auto brewer bundled with a poor quality grinder. They add lots of bells and whistles for controlling brewing, to make the machine appeal to beginners, but are of little to no value for experienced home espresso afficianados. When brewing espresso, the grinder is the most important part of your setup; much more important than the brewer. If you are serious about making the best quality espresso, it's best to get a separate brewer (such as Bambino or Bambino Plus) and the best quality grinder you can possibly afford.

Ninja tries to automate the dial in process for you. Judging from the questions asked by Ninja owners in this sub, it's doesn't do a very good job of that. It will be the easiest machine to use, provided you are willing to accept what it produces without complaint. If you want to fine-tune its extraction, the automation will get in the way. La Specialista is a more hand-on machine. You will have to do the dialing in yourself without assistance. Once you learn how, you should get better results than the Ninja. The problem with machines with built-in grinders is that those grinders aren't very good. When brewing espresso, the grinder is the most important part of the setup, much more important than the espresso machine. For the price of a combo machine, you can often get a separate brewer and grinder for around the same price but wind up with a much better grinder, and therefore a much better setup. Consider a Breville/Sage Bambino or Bambino Plus with a DF54 or Eureka Mignon grinder.

Breville bambino at this price point is probably a good choice, however I spent weeks researching what machine to buy before finally choosing the Delonghi La Specialista Opera!