Krups Caffe Bistro: The Way to Have Your Coffee and Espresso Too.

Author's Rating:

Pros: Programmable timer; can stop the brewing, makes two cups of espresso at a time.

Cons: Not enough froth; short cord; large

The Bottom Line: 
I am very happy with my purchase. It fills all my needs and more.

Author's Review
We finally got tired of buying $25.00 espresso machines every six months to one year. We decided on the Krups Caffe Bistro which I paid $169.00 for. There is a newer model for $100 but note that it does not have the ability to program the machine to make coffee ahead of time.

Details of the Caffe Bistro and what I got:

My machine is black. When looking online for prices before buying it all I could find were black machines. However the box has a black machine on one side and a white machine on the other. It also notes on the box that the color is black. If white was available at one time it seems not to be now.

The Krups Caffe Bistro is both a coffee maker and an espresso maker. This machine is large. If you look online you will see different measurements but I just measured it so mine numbers are the accurate numbers. My former Mr. Coffee is 7 inches wide. The Krups is 12 inches wide. At a bit more than 12 inches tall the Krups is just about one inch higher. It is the depth that makes it significantly larger. My new Krups is almost 16 inches deep and my old Mr. Coffee is 8 inches deep. This takes up a lot of space on a counter. If you live in a small apartment you may want to reconsider this machine unless you have a lot of counter space.

The Krups weighs 4 pounds 12 ounces.

Krups offers a one-year warranty on the Caffe Bistro.

The Caffe Bistro has many features I really like. It is special because it makes coffee and espresso with two separate dispensers and carafes. The coffee maker comes with a ten cup glass carafe. This carafe has a large easy to hold black handle. I like the filter on it. It swings out making it really easy to deal with. The Krups Caffe Bistro uses what they call a deep brew technology. It heats the water to the ideal temperature and pulses the water through the coffee grounds. This we are told ensures “robust coffee.”

Another feature I love allows me to remove the carafe and have a cup of coffee without having to wait for the brewing to stop. It stops when the carafe is off. You will have about 20 seconds from taking the carafe off and stopping the brewing process until the coffee will start to flow. This is plenty of time to fill up a mug. I fill the water chamber in the traditional way. It has a hinged lid.

Perhaps the best part is that the coffee maker has a 24-hour programmable clock and timer. This automatically shuts off so I don’t worry that the machine will be on for hours or overnight. The timer is digital and easy to read. There are buttons on the coffee side that let me set the hour and minute, set it for automatic and turn it on and off.

The espresso part of the Krups Caffe Bistro 867 has a glass carafe with a lid and handle and can make up to 4 cups of espresso. The control knob is not unlike the one on all my past machines but it is easier to use because it is right on front of the machine. Others have the control on the side and I have had a hard time moving it on some of my machines. This one turns easily. I turn it to the coffee cup sign to brew espresso and then to the frothing sign to froth milk. The Krups Caffe Bistro does not come with a frothing cup. I bought a new one by Krups for $19.99.

A really nice feature on the espresso part is the two cup adapter. In the past we would have to make one cup for me and then wait and make another for my husband. Now we can brew directly into two cups. There is a removable drip tray at the bottom of the espresso part. It has the usual froth making attachment. Krups calls theirs “Perfect Froth.” We are told that it ensures foolproof “frothing of milk by precise delivery of steam and air.”

If you have had lattes from Starbucks or Dunkin’ Donuts you may have realized that after you finish the coffee even if it is ½ hour later there will be froth at the bottom of the cup. I do believe that I would have to buy a commercial machine to get that quality froth. This machine is for household use. Don’t expect your froth to last ½ hour. However it does last longer than my Mr. Coffee. I seem to be able to make it consistently frothy. In the past there were days that I just couldn’t get froth but with my Krups I always get decent froth.

The machine also comes with a measuring spoon. Cups are not provided! The cord is not long. They do this for safety reasons. I have no problem because I have a lot of outlets on my counter. You can buy an extension for this machine if you need the extra length.

More of my thoughts:

The machine is made of plastic as all non-commercial machines I have used are. I have never had a problem with the durability of any machine.

To clean the machine I just wipe it down with a sponge or paper towel. You don’t want to use anything abrasive to clean your Krups Caffe Bistro. Remember to clean the froth attachment really well. In the past we’ve run into problems with the steam not coming out and found out it was just a matter of the steamer being stuck. If that happens and you cannot get it clean I've found that opening a paper clip and putting it up the opening will clean it out.

One real negative is that I’ve found that when we make two cups of espresso we can’t make two cups of froth. Basically the milk has to be frothed twice somewhat defeating the purpose of the two cup adapter but it is a small price to pay I think looking at the total package.

My final thoughts:

Although not perfect, I really enjoy my Krups Caffe Bistro. In addition to the great features it makes great tasting coffee and espresso. If it didn't then all the features in the world wouldn't make it a good machine.

We have the space for it and love being able to make two cups of espresso at the same time or have a coffee maker as part of this machine. I am certainly recommending it.

Related older reviews:

Cuisinart DCG-20N Electric Blades Grinder

Mr. Coffee ECM20 Espresso Machine. This is one of the first machines I've reviewed. I've had a couple of others of the same brand since in spite of not recommending it!