Rated 
Not bad, but....
Started 1 year ago
Strengths: Good design, removable tray, easy to clean
Weaknesses: cheap portafilter, watery grounds
My mom purchased this machine a few years ago and she has been happy with it. However, I have been less impressed. I've been a barista for two years and have been trained by a professional in the coffee industry (Simon Craven of Craven's Coffee). The Breville only pulls okay shots or bad shots and the filter basket always has watery grounds after each shot is pulled. The reason for this is primarily the poor quality of the portafilter. Commercial grade portafilter baskets are wider, and have more holes for the water to press the extraction through. The Breville portafilter forces the grounds to be stacked higher and the extraction is forced through one tiny hole at the base of the basket. As a result, the shot is never excellent, and the basket is full of wet, watery grounds, which are messy to empty out. While the quality of the espresso brewed from this machine is good enough for most, if you are looking for something with a fuller, bolder, and more complex flavor with good crema, I would opt for a different machine.
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