La Specialista Espresso Machine with Grinder, Milk Frother, 1450W, Barista Kit - Bean to Cup Coffee & Cappuccino Maker,Stainless Steel, Black

I have had my D'Longhi espresso machine for two and a half years and I thought I should come back and write a review. When I bought this machine, I had never pulled a shot of espresso before but I really wanted to learn how to do that and learn latte art. It took me watching a few youtube videos and lots of practice to learn how to make my daily latte! I love this machine though I don't know many people who choose this brand over Breville. It's definitely underrated. Out of all of the capabilities of the machine, the grinder dosage knob doesn't function as it ought to but I measure out my beans to 16 grams and run it through the grinder until it all comes out. It should come out at 18g of grinded beans and it takes two "run throughs" of grinding. (I don't keep the hopper full of beans all the time like I started out doing). Here are a few other thoughts about this machine. 1. If you've never pulled a shot of espresso before, it's going to be difficult learning on any machine, so give it a couple of weeks to feel comfortable. I almost gave up because it seemed like I would never get a good shot. If it's your first time making espresso... Don't blame the machine right away. 2. My kids who are 5 years old and under are able to use the tea option easily to make me or themselves tea in a jiffy. The amount of water from the tea option is perfect for a standard size mug. 3. This machine is easy to clean. I always buy the D'Longhi descaler and descale when the "warning" light comes on. It's a very simple process to descale. 4. I've started buying distilled water to fill this machine and other machines around the house (humidifier, etc.) to help elongate the lifespan of the machine due to our hard water. 5. I pop the bottom trays in the dishwasher once a week. 6. The machine comes with a frother tool that I've used a few times. It's basically a needle that you poke in the end of the frother to clear out built up milk. To clean the frother now, I've learned to turn it on with a wet rag all around it and wipe until clean (maybe 10 seconds). 7. I like how the machine looks and it has a little storage pocket on top that I keep the cleaning tools and extra single-shot filter in. 8. I've learned to make all sorts of fun hot and cold drinks with this machine! If you make a coffee that doesn't taste right, you probably need to adjust the temperature or grind size. It's part of figuring out how to pull a good shot.

In view of our experience with DeLonghy products, and in spite of the many negative reviews from previous owners, we decided on the La Specialista Arte Model. It has never worked well. When the grinder worked, it only gave us extra fine grinds. Now it has stopped grinding altogether. I followed the troubleshooting recommendations, but it still does not grind. DeLonghy will repair the item. More later. Several weeks later, I contacted De' Longhi and had a lengthy discussion over the phone regarding the unit. I explained the issue I had with it. After several tests, De'Longhi agree that mine was faulty and agreed to repair it. The sent packing materials and prepaid shipping label. It took them about a month to process and repair it. It now worked as it should from the beginning. Excellent coffee!!!

I purchased and used this machine for three months. At the end of the third month, the grinder started to have problems and I did a video session with Delonghi to show them on video the problems I was having. They sent me instructions to send the unit out for repair and the repair location in Pennsylvania only cleaned the grinder but did not fix the problem. They tested the grinder to ensure the grinder does go around but did not test the grinder with coffee beans. upon return of the unit, I found the grinding worse than before I sent it for repair. The grinder still does not grind to the proper level for a dosage as indicated and now the grind is so off that the unit will not function in the optimal zone and over extracts coffee and it drips out slowly and takes several minutes to deliver a single shot of expresso. The cream on the coffee is limited and hardly there indicating once again that the extraction process is off. I am now returning the unit to Delonghi for a second repair and I expect it will come back unfixed. I would not recommend this product and ask potential buyers to seek out other manufacturers like Breville whom make similar models. This model is more of a toy and very fragile. I own many espresso machines and I find this hard to use to get the grounds right for the perfect espresso. The box comes with a guide for settings for dosage and grind level based the type of bean. I was only able to use the machine to grind 1 kilogram of coffee before the grinder failed. I believe if the grinder/dosage is this fragile that Delonghi should have tested their products longer before they were ready for the market. I have emailed and communicated via phone with Delonghi and can clearly state that they are not coffee aficionados nor are they concerned about providing customer support. Think twice before buying this model. The coffee grinder does not come off and there is little a consumer can do to clean the grinder. Recommend closing other products and read the reviews. This is a fragile toy and not a low end professional coffee machine.

I've been using this machine for almost 3 years now and it's been perfect every day. It's solid and heavy, needs minimal cleaning and is easy to with water and beans. I simply wipe it down with a wet rag after use and it still looks perfect after almost three years. Once a week I'll take the bottom off and clean the drip pan out and use a brush on the extraction area. While there is a learning curve to make perfect coffee every time using these, a bit of effort will yield the perfect cup every time. The internet is full of "influencers" telling you how to make a cup of perfect espresso, I'm not one of them, I have a real job. So just stick with the basics. Pressure too high?? Grinder towards coarse. Pressure too low? Grinder towards fine. Of course this only works if you keep your tamping pressure the same. I tamp lightly, just enough to flatten the surface. It's not rocket surgery, you'll get it.

This coffee machine is life itself in our house! Great espresso and americanos. Perfect for iced lattes. Easy to clean and descale. We use our favorite Costco beans and couldn’t be happier!

This machine worked good only for a FEW MONTHS. After that it started leaking from the bottom, pressure doesn't go up, it drips only half of what it should. No crema anymore. This machine was not cheap and didn't even last a year of proper espresso making. After that it's been dripping from under the machine. I have to put towels under it if I want coffee. It's ridiculous. It became a space filling useless piece of plastic. There is no way a product that costs this much should last less than a year. *UPDATE: I've contacted support and after they acknowledged the issue and told me they would send me a label for me to ship it for repair under warranty, now they sent an email saying that they "reviewed" my claim and said that my warranty has expired. HOW IS THE WARRANTY "EXPIRED" IF ITS UNDER THE WARRANTY PERIOD? The manual says you get an extra year of warranty when you register the product which I did and I bought it less than 2 years ago, therefore it should be covered until July 2024. It's obviously not July 2024 yet so how is it expired?!!???! This company is not only trying to pass plastic junk as quality products but their customer support try really hard not to resolve problems when they occur, and believe me, they will occur as this is a really low quality machine. Buy a Breville instead and stay away from delonghi!!!!!!!!!! UDATE 2: After I questioned their false claim of me having an “expired warranty” they said their previous email was a “mistake” and sent me a box, I sent the machine and they sent it back fixed. It is working now. Happy that it is working and they fixed it quickly. Coffee tastes good again. Not sure whether I would buy from them again after them trying to get away from fixing doing warranty work. It will depend on how long it lasts this time. So far so good.

***Update Below*** As most of you have probably done, we got a hankering for espresso from watching the Latte art vids on TikTok. I bought this for my wife, with her permission lol, for her birthday. We have been drinking multiple cups everyday since we got it. It definitely won’t save you money on coffee because with everything we have bought for it I think it would be cheaper to go to a coffee shop lol, BUT, it is awesome to have at home. If you read the manual you can really set it up how you want it. There are liquid oz settings on the machine if you are trying to dose with a scale. It is really perfect for the average amateur barista. It’s great. Get it and you won’t be disappointed. It is 2/29/24 now and we have had it for over a month. Everything is still working great, flawlessly really. If anything does come up I will update. Side note: don’t get mad because you can’t make latte art like they do on the videos. It’s very hard but it still tastes just as good when you mess it up. Lol ***Update**** 11/20/2025 This thing is still working flawlessly. One thing we have learned is to make sure you test your water and clean it with de-scaler frequently. Especially if you have hard water. If you have very hard water I would suggest to put bottled water in it. But this thing is awesome. My wife is now addicted to coffee. She doesn’t go to coffee shops anymore. She’s always drinking iced coffee in her Stanley cup like a straight up basic you know what. But yea, it’s still working over a year later. I would get it, it’s well worth the money. No complaints, nothing is broken, great machine.

TLDR; After 1.5 years, the milk foaming function of my Delonghi machine stopped working, only after 1.5 months and multiple calls the machine got back from the lab and... it was still not working. I strongly advise against purchasing from Delonghi. [Case number 4957528] Despite the product having a 2-year warranty, when the milk foaming function of my machine stopped working (accompanied by smoke and an electric burn smell), I reached out to Delonghi's. It took them over 2 weeks and multiple phone calls to decide to escalate my case. Following this, it took another week for them to send me a box to package the machine and drop it off at UPS. After 2 weeks without any communication, I called and was informed that my machine had arrived. However, it took them an additional 2 weeks to send back the "fixed" machine. Upon receiving the machine, the milk foaming function did work, but now the espresso function did not. The Delonghi team stated that I needed to send it back for further repairs. I requested a loaner machine or a voucher for a new machine, but this was deemed 'out of the terms of my warranty.' I find it questionable whether these terms encompass the expected time for receiving proper support (which, evidently, they do not). Furthermore, I was unfairly criticized for living far from their lab, which supposedly caused delays. In total, I have spent approximately 10 calls lasting 30 minutes each to the center, as well as numerous emails, and after nearly 2 months, the problem remains unresolved.