Customer Ratings & Reviews

I used to think there was something special about what the fancy coffee chains did to make their coffee. I did not think I could have that same coffee made at home. But with the De’Longhi LaSpecialista Prestigio Espresso Machine, I have it all in my kitchen. Clearly when you get it, you know it is not a Keurig or Mr. Coffee. Nothing against these. I have used them both in the past. This is much bigger, heavier, and studier that any of those others. But it is a beautiful machine. There is a little bit to the setup and a bit of a learning curve to get used to using it. The instruction booklet is mostly numbers and pictures which can be a little bit confusing at times. But you can work your way through it. One of the biggest things I had trouble with was the coffee bean reservoir. The housing must be correctly aligned or else the grinder will not work. As I was putting the housing in place it felt like I had to force it the first time to get it working. But once I did it was great. A lesson came out of this too. Once the coffee beans are put into the housing, you really need to use the contents before removing. If you try to remove it with it full of beans, the beans will go everywhere, and you will have to clean out the top (no easy task) before putting the housing back on. Once everything is in place, you are basically set to go. You fill up the 2-liter tank with water. You can go to the grocery store or wherever to get coffee beans. You can pretty much use what flavor you want. I found that more oily beans can mess with the sensor a little bit. My sensor got dirty which prevented me from grinding the coffee. Simply cleaning the sensor fixed the issue, but it was annoying. When grinding the coffee, you have 8 setting on how course you want the coffee grind to be. And then you select the dosing. Once this is set and unless you change coffees, you can pretty much leave it in place. You select whether you want a single dose or double dose. And you start grinding. The unit goes off revolutions count rather than a timer, so you get a consistent grind. Then you pat down the coffee for a nice level dose. Then you choose Espresso, Americano, or Coffee. Press OK and your great coffee comes out. You can then even add foam for a truly topped of masterpiece. Also, if you prefer tea, you can just dispense a fresh cup of hot water perfect for your tea. The results are great. I love the coffee. My wife loves the coffee. She is a stickler for a neat kitchen. The height of this unit is 17.5 inches. My cabinets are on 17 inches which means this cannot go flush against the wall. My wife doesn’t care. She likes the coffee that much. I have become an instant barista without even trying. For anyone who want a great cup of coffee, I highly recommend the De’Longhi LaSpecialista Prestigio Espresso Machine. You can have that great coffee chain coffee straight from your kitchen.

This is my second DeLonghi LaSpecialista machine. The first was the standard LaSpecialista and it has been excellent, making very nice espressos, cappuccinos, and lattes at a fraction of the coffee shop price. I’ve had it for about two years with absolutely no issues other than the occasional descaling maintenance, which is an automated process. The machine alerts you when it’s time to descale, and you simply add their “Ecodecalk” solution to the water tank, turn a knob and press a button, then repeat with clean water, and you’re done. So maintenance is really easy. My first machine has been great, and expect nothing less from this one! The LaSpecialista Prestigio is nearly identical to the original, but includes a few key upgrades. There is now a three level temperature control, which allows adjusting for different bean types to optimize your extraction. There is a new steaming wand, which is more traditional, but also works better than the auto-frothing wand of the original machine. And there is a dual heating element, which allows the machine to heat up faster and hotter, providing better extraction and better steam. Finally, the portafilter design uses improved filter cups, which work better and are easier to clean. Both machines feature a built-in grinder and tamper. When the portafilter is locked into the left side, the grinder automatically starts, grinding the beans in the desired quantity and to the consistency that you set, then a quick pull of the tamping lever, and you have a perfect dose ready for extracting. The quick start guide helps you setup the grinding and dosing by providing guidelines based on bean type. So far it has been very accurate providing great results. The espresso is very nice with excellent crema. Overall these are simply fantastic machines. I thought the original LaSpecialista was an amazing machine. Hats off to DeLonghi for improving things that worked quite well and introducing the LaSpecialista Prestigio at the same price point. If you’re a serious coffee lover, you need this machine!

Why pay premium pricing every day for a quality cup of coffee, latte, or espresso when this machine can make it for you without having to get dressed? During the COVID shutdown, I found myself working from home and no longer enjoying the occasional cup from my the coffee house on my way to work. With this machine, I have been able to quickly and efficiently make wonderfully rich and creamy café lattes and espressos as well as bold Americanos. With the integrated grinder and bean hopper that funnels directly into the porta-filter and smart tamping system, I don't have to worry about grinding and filling the porta-filter manually and getting the wrong amounts; the machine takes the guesswork out of the equation. It might take a couple of tries to adjust to get the perfect cup, but once you do, the results are repeatable and you are left with a great pull with a rich and frothy crema. The included milk-frothing system makes you feel like a café barista and couldn't be simpler to use. I like that there are dual heating elements, so I can let the milk froth while the espresso is brewing. And the giant water container holds so much water, you hardly ever have to refill it. My only complaint is that you can't see the water level without turning the machine around and looking at the back, but there is a low water warning light that comes on prior to you running out, which doesn't happen very often given its large size. Overall, I am very pleased with this machine and that I no longer have to wait in the long lines and pay the exorbitant prices at the local coffee shop.

I have been waiting for an espresso machine for a long, long time and now I can finally break free from the Starbucks overlords. This machine is very simple to use, whole beans go in, the grinder does it’s thing, and there is a pull handle to tamp the grounds, one and done, ready to brew. Not only can you draw shots of espresso, you are able to brew single cups of coffee, which is good if you are caffeinating solo, but leaves a bit to be desired if you have breakfast guests. My major gripe about this machine is the steaming wand. It is lacking the oomph needed for frothy milk that allow you to make my favorite, fancy, foamy drinks. All things considered I would recommend this machine to anyone looking to get their espresso fix without leaving the house.

I was slightly skeptical of getting such a high quality espresso machine because I was worried I would not appreciate it enough to see it's value. Boy was I wrong. A combination of placebo effect and expert craftsmanship makes this espresso machine easily accessible and will turn even the most casual coffee drinker into a budding aficionado in no time. The instructions are very clear, the features work seamlessly and the end product is delicious. For someone who works from home like myself, this is a perfect addition to the morning (and afternoon) routine to make them feel that much more special. I do have two annoyances: 1 - The Dimensions. In order to remove the bean grinder, the machine must be pulled out from the upper cabinets. This is only a minor issue as, even when pulled forward, the machine sits nicely on a countertop. 2 - The Grinder. I very much wish there was some way to remove the grinder easily with beans left inside. If I ever want to change my brew, I need to run through all the beans in the grinder or plan to vacuum out the excess beans. I imagine there is nothing that could really be done about this and is a very minor issue. Overall, this is a WONDERFUL espresso machine. The price is obviously quite steep so I would not recommend for someone looking to get into coffee or espresso for the first time. However, for anyone who is looking to improve their coffee experience you can not go wrong with this purchase.

We love this thing. It keeps our household alive. When we first received the machine, it had to go through descaling. Don't make the mistake we did which was to keep refilling the water tank or descaling will go on for hours. Other than that, it's a great machine so far.

This expresso machine is top-notch and makes crafting your favorite brew a breeze. My favorite aspect is that it has the built-in coffee grinder. It allows me to really fine-tune my morning routine with my favorite bean. This is an excellent home machine for beginners and experienced baristas alike. It truly is an automated experience at home and there is no down-time between cups.

CHEAP PLASTIC CRITICAL PARTS AND LOUSY CUSTOMER SERVICE! We raised money for 2 La Specialista machines to teach my seniors how to make coffees so that they could get barrista jobs to help pay for college. I am a cooking teacher in a very prestigious HS. They both broke within 6 months with careful instruction and supervision. I have called and emailed the customer service people. I went through everything they asked even with them on the phone live with us...5 times! It was a piece that controls the grinder element that is made with cheap plastic and it broke on both machines! I called several times more and they promised a call back in 24-48 hours. NOTHING!!! weeks later still waiting...

Setup and initial use is a little bit of work, but that’s common with getting familiar with any machine similar to this. Once we got the machine setup, making various coffees worked like a charm from 5-6 minutes depending on the type of drink being made. Used Barista Oat (preferred) and Almond Milk to ensure a true froth vice using regular of either as they tend to not froth easily. Highly recommend as with any espresso or coffee maker to use filtered or soft water as it tends to be easier on the machine. As for now, enjoying some great coffees at strengths expected and grinds exactly how they should be. Notes. -Check counter space when determining the best place to place due to height and needing to refill at times. We place this in our coffee bar area, which worked out perfect due to the open area. -Not the only company doing this, starting o notice more plastic these days on espresso machines, not sure how long this will last and if will hold up with more than just daily use as we host quite often.

This espresso machine is superb. It is full of options to let you control each step of the process from grinding to tamping to temperature to extraction. You can set it to pour espresso, Americano, or coffee. I only use it for espresso so I can't speak to the other preparations, yet. The included instructions give you suggested start points for each step, but you will need to adjust based on your roast and personal preferences. I like the fact that you can either grind the beans or use pre-ground coffee. The warm-up speed of the water and the steam wand is much faster than a lower-end machine I had previously. You can pay more to get a model with automatic milk frothing, but I like to do my own as part of the experience. Practice makes perfect! If you have never owned an espresso machine before, I would highly recommend this one. Just make sure to take the time initially to learn the settings that work for you so that you can consistently extract beautiful and delicious pours.

I enjoyed the coffee and learning the process, but unfortunately my machine had a defect that caused it to get stuck in descaling mode. No matter how many times I would run the rinsing cycle it would not reset. I was able to get it to finally reset the first few times, but the latest time it got stuck and won’t reset. It is effectively a $600 paperweight now and I’m outside of the 2 year warranty. DeLongi offered me a $260 repair package which doesn’t even appear to have any guarantee that it will work properly when I get it back. Very disappointed in the quality and lack of support for the machine. I should have probably returned it the first time that it gave me trouble, but I really did like the machine and assumed I was doing something wrong at first. For the price of the machine I would really expect it to last more than just a little over 2 years.

I bought this machine thinking it would be a great investment and it does exactly what my $300 machine does . This grinder on this machine doesnt work as good so i bought a grinder that did work. My suggestion to others? Just buy a $200-$500 machine and buy a good grinder youll be good

Great Machine!!! But, this model "froths" milk but will not "foam" for cappuccinos. Will be returning for the model that has the foaming wand...otherwise would keep it.

The machine broke shortly after the warranty expired. The slot that holds the portafilter in place worn out since it is a cheaper plastic. We then paid $250 for delonghi to do an out of warranty repair which took over two months for us to get a response about our machine we sent in. They then just told us the unit was unfixable and offered us a laughable 10% discount on a new machine. After this experience, no longer will be buying a delonghi machine. Definitely not worth the money.

It is a good expresso machine, just the coffee grinder has flows.

I purchased this DeLonghi Machine as a replacement from having a defective Brim Espresso Maker. This one is better in craftsmanship and the latte's and Espresso's taste much better. It's easy to use and everything is all-one place. It can make a lot of drinks like Starbucks too.

This product has been nothing but problems since we received it. The first one we bought would not purge and operate at all.