BrevilleBarista Pro Espresso Machine BES878BSS, Brushed Stainless Steel

I recently upgraded to the Breville Barista Pro Espresso Machine in Damson Blue, and it’s quickly become the star of my kitchen. As someone who’s dabbled with entry-level espresso makers before, I was ready for a machine that could deliver café-quality coffee without overwhelming me with complexity. This sleek, stylish machine has exceeded my expectations in almost every way.First, the design is a standout. The Damson Blue finish is a gorgeous, deep hue that adds a pop of personality to my countertop—far more interesting than the usual stainless steel or black options. It’s compact enough for a home setup but feels substantial, with a brushed stainless steel body that screams durability. The layout is intuitive, and the backlit LCD display makes it easy to navigate settings, even before my morning coffee kicks in.What really sold me is the speed. The ThermoJet heating system gets this thing ready to brew in just 3 seconds—seriously, I barely have time to grab my portafilter before it’s good to go. Compared to my old machine, which took ages to heat up, this is a game-changer. The integrated conical burr grinder is another huge plus. With 30 grind settings, I can dial in the perfect coarseness for my beans (I’ve been loving a medium roast lately). It grinds directly into the 54mm portafilter with a single touch, and the dose control ensures I’m not wasting coffee.Pulling shots is where the Barista Pro shines. The digital temperature control (PID) keeps the water at a steady +/- 2°C, and the low-pressure pre-infusion ramps up to a 9-bar extraction—textbook stuff for balanced, flavorful espresso. My shots have been consistently rich, with a thick crema that rivals my local coffee shop. I’ve been playing with the programmable shot volumes (1 or 2 cups), and once you find your sweet spot, it’s effortless to replicate. The included Razor tool helps level the puck perfectly, which is a nice touch for beginners like me who are still mastering the tamp.Steaming milk is a breeze too. The ThermoJet system switches from espresso to steam instantly, and the wand produces silky microfoam with minimal effort. I’ve been practicing latte art (with mixed results!), but the texture is spot-on for cappuccinos and flat whites. The 68oz water tank and 9oz bean hopper mean I’m not constantly refilling, which is clutch for my caffeine-heavy household.There are a few minor gripes. The 54mm portafilter is slightly smaller than the commercial 58mm standard, so upgrading accessories might be tricky down the line. Also, the grinder isn’t as quiet as I’d hoped—nothing disruptive, but it’s noticeable in a silent kitchen. Cleaning is straightforward, though; the drip tray and portafilter wipe down easily, and the machine prompts you when it’s time to descale.Overall, the Breville Barista Pro in Damson Blue is a fantastic blend of style, speed, and performance. It’s perfect for home baristas who want pro-level results without a pro-level learning curve. At this price point (around $850), it’s a solid investment that’s already paid off in coffee shop savings. I’d give it 5 stars—highly recommend for anyone ready to elevate their espresso game!

I've had a few different espresso machines over the last decade, and have tried and returned a couple as well. This one is, by far, my favorite machine for several reasons. Throughout the review I will reference differences primarily with the Barista Express, as that is one that I had for some time as well.The overall appearance of the machine looks good. I have the stainless steel version, and it looks sharp and well built. Breville is the only company I know that has the magnetic tamper holder underneath the top of the unit, and it's a nice touch. A place to put the tamper, and always know where it is. Also, the tamper is a nice metal one, rather than the thin, light plastic many other brands use.I also like that most, if not all, of what comes in contact with hot liquids is metal rather than plastic (though the portafilter does have some plastic, but I use a naked bottom portafilter as stated below). I kind of like the ease of the automatic machines that grind, tamp, and pull the shot, but the plastic group head makes me a bit uncomfortable. I try to minimize hot foods and liquids contacting plastic as much as possible. If plastic particles can leach out of water bottles, then heated plastics most likely will leach more.As far as performance, I will touch on the grinder, pulling of the shots, hot water spout, and very importantly, the steam wand:I have seen some complaints about Breville's grinders, and I don't understand why. Granted, I do believe that most of the complaints come from people who are much more advanced in their coffee preparation and understanding than I am. Nevertheless, I do find the grinder to do a good job. It has fine adjustments that you make with the dial on the left of the machine, plus larger scale adjustments that you can make with the grinder itself under where the bean hopper sits. I wouldn't say the larger adjustments are super easy, but definitely doable if you follow the directions. I've made a single adjustment on the grinder itself and only rely on the fine adjustments other than that. As a side note, I saw on an instructional video by another reviewer that you want to make the fine adjustments while grinding to prevent getting anything stuck. I'm not sure if this is necessary but I do it just in case.I am impressed by how little of a mess the grinding makes. The dosage amount and grind size is consistent once I dialed everything in and left it there. Plus it's easy to switch from single to double dose.Pulling shots is rather straight forward as well, but does take time getting things right. As far as getting it right, that's more dependent on the size and dosing of the grinds as well as the tamping force, but you see the results during the shot pull. I don't use the included portafilter because I've always liked the appearance of the naked bottom portafilters, so I found one on Amazon that's sized for this machine. The naked bottom ones look cool pulling the shot, but make a bit more of a mess than the standard portafilter, and are a little less forgiving than the included one.With a fairly good grind size and amount, you can get good consistent shots. With my Barista Express, I noticed that the second pull was usually more bitter and not as good tasting as the first shot, if pulled within a few minutes of each other. With this machine, I can pull a double shot, steam the milk, then pull another double shot without any issues or difference in taste. The Barista Pro also has the three second heat up time vs the thirty second or so on the Barista Express, which isn't a huge deal itself but I believe the newer heating unit is more advanced and allows for the better second pull.The hot water spout is angled and can dispense right into the cup after the shot is pulled without having to move the cup to a different location. Also, I like the angled spout versus the one on the Barista Express.As far as the steam wand, it doesn't seem like there is much advertised or discussed about the improvements of the steam wand versus the Barista Express, but in my opinion, it is far more powerful. I had a lot of difficulty getting the correct texture of milk for latte art, but with the Barista Pro, the steam wand seems much more powerful, faster to steam the milk, and can more easily achieve that proper texture and consistency for good latte art (my latte art isn't very good, but I'm going to blame that on my skills rather than the steamer). For fairness, I will say that my skills have improved some since having the Barista Express, but I definitely feel a significant difference with this steam wand. Such that I feel that alone makes it worth the increased price compared to the Barista Express.I have also tried an automatic machine. I would say that the automatic machines are easier to use, less of a learning curve (though there is still somewhat of a learning curve) and most give you the option to make a regular drip coffee as well. They don't usually have as good a shot pull or taste as a unit like this one, and personally I like the "artsy" part of going from grind to shot manually.To conclude, I would definitely recommend this machine to anybody who is looking for very good espresso drinks that are better than what you will usually find in coffee shops, at the comfort of your home. If you're willing to learn how to use the steam wand well for lattes and cappuccinos, I feel this machine is better than the Barista Touch, and better than other machines in this price range. Within a few months, the machine pays for itself versus getting a latte a few times a week at a coffee shop.