Ninja Luxe Cafe Espresso Machine - FULL Review and Test

In this video, we look at the highly anticipated Luxe Cafe home espresso machine by Ninja. This is a sweet machine, that does well for espresso, what with a 53mm portafilter, non-pressurized double basket, included spring tamper, and supposed temperature and pressure monitoring. Additionally, it can do coffee brews, and cold brews. In my opinion, the most amazing thing is that it includes a 40mm conical burr grinder, that grinds by weight. There's an integrated scale, offering consistent dosing for your espresso and coffee! Awesome. All this, in a package that beats the pricing of its competitors makes this an awesome consideration.

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► Ninja Luxe Cafe (Ninja direct):

► Ninja Luxe Cafe (Amazon):

EDIT: A viewer pointed out that manual milk streaming is in fact possible! Somehow I managed to read the Quick and Inspirational Guides, but I missed the Owner's guide. 🙈
I tried it tonight, and made some great silky milk foam with it!

Machine source: provided by Ninja for review

Chapters:
0:00 Machine Introduction
1:50 Espresso
5:25 Cappuccino
9:24 Coffee Brew
12:38 Cold Brew
14:15 Build and Materials
16:39 Pros and Cons
18:00 Summary

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#TomsCoffeeCorner #Espresso #Ninja

[TomsCoffeeCorner]

Thanks to @horseshoe_nc for pointing it out!

[nickcrandall]

Thank you finally someone with the review I’ve been waiting for 2 weeks

[crystalgentry]

Hi, just wanna say I just came across your video. I’m totally blind and I want to say thank you so so so much number one for reviewing this product I’ve been really wanting to know about it but most importantly, thank you for describing what things look like that really helps me out so thank you and I really really hope to hear from you. I hope you have an amazing day and thanks again

[shuritiger]

I just bought this machine 4 days ago and I am impressed with the quality of the espresso and the features. The price point is phenomenal at $500

[horseshoe_nc]

Owner's manual has instructions for manual milk steaming. Basically you leave the steam wand out and hold the froth button for 3 seconds to start. See page 16 of the owner's manual.

You can also adjust the espresso ratio. (And some other settings.) See page 25 of the owner's manual. Default espresso ratio is 2.5:1 but can be changed to, 2:1 or 3:1.

This is my first espresso machine and I'm really impressed with it. I haven't tried the cold brew coffee or cold pressed espresso yet. But I'm getting fantastic lattes from it.

[joelcleare]

This Ninja truly is a game changer. Talk about a beginner friendly espresso machine ! And for $500 is a machine I can recommend to anyone looking to get into espresso.

[preetpatel]

3 weeks of having this machine and I absolutely love it!

[naomi]

Gosh. Ive been burning with envy and waiting patiently for someone to review this machine!!😂

[Albanianguy]

The versatility and use of this machine is insane. Coffee and espresso in one! Amazing

[dustinwhite]

I got this machine a week ago and have loved it. It's just super easy to use and it does a great job on espresso and regular coffee. I think your review is spot on.

[jerrydiecidue]

Thanks for reviewing this one Tom. I was hoping for your take on it and your review and as always, did not disappoint.

[dennisdaniels]

Hi Tom, I'm Dennis Daniels from Cleveland, Ohio! Thanks for sharing your video about your review of the Ninja Luxe Cafe Espresso Machine!

[CechMtl-gmyq]

Wow, this is a gamechanger for those on the fence between a semi and a superauto. Thanks for the review Tom!

[joelcleare]

I wish this was my first espresso machine. Would have solved several headaches.

[TheNightstalker]

#Luxe OK, after about 10-15 years of passion for espresso and everything related to it, from roasting to restoring old espresso machines, I have to admit that this thing has some potential. I've seen so many attempts to combine the simplicity of a fully automatic coffee machine with the quality of a manual grinder and machine setup, but most have failed in one way or another. There are 3 key elements that make the difference between a fully automatic and a manual machine. 1. Consistent grinding and dosing, which most fully automatic machines simply cannot do. Some machines are better at setting the values than others, but in the end it's always a blindfolded guessing game because you can't see inside and there's no scale to tell you. 2. proper leveling and compacting to avoid channeling, which automatic machines simply can't do. Combined with inconsistent grinding and dosing, this leads to poor extraction, you can compensate by using specific blends, but it obviously limits the variety of flavors. And the third and only point that some fully automatic coffee machines get right is the temperature.

However, these fully automatic machines are not really good compared to a manual machine, but many people wouldn't be able to make a decent espresso with a manual espresso machine because they don't know how it works and not everyone is willing to become a barista just to make a decent coffee for breakfast. That's why I think a decent fully automatic coffee machine is still a good option if you use high quality coffee from a trusted roaster. Like I said, I've never seen a manufacturer address these exact issues to help people get a decent espresso with maximum control and options.

There are only two things about the Ninja that I don't really like. First, it's a thermoblock design, BUT I know full well that it HAS to be that way to work for the people it's marketed to, those people don't want to wait 30-60 minutes for the machine to heat up, and that's fine if that's how this machine can achieve a consistent brewing temperature. The second thing is that the grinder and the scale are basically fully integrated. Again, it needs to be that way to work for the target audience, but they should have at least made it so that you can easily replace/repair it without taking everything apart... what if you need to replace the grinding cones or the scale stops working?

[jeffandersen]

A very nice hands on review. Lots to like for a coffee/espresso drinkers early morning ritual. And a grinder and scale and suto frothing included. I can envision many people buying this.

[michaeltriglehmann]

My wife discovered this machine a few weeks ago and since then we have been obsessing over it. However it was your videos about it that made us decide to pull the trigger on getting one, We are currently figuring out a payment plan to use in order to get one and we pretty much want to make it a Christmas gift to our household this year. Thank you for explaining everything in such clear and understandable detail! Can't wait to get ours! #Luxe

[reneerankins]

Just received mine today!!! I’m so excited. Thanks for the review!!

[carlas]

I’ve been waiting for someone to review this machine! Thank you!

[CoffeeGeek]

Hi Tom. I see you already corrected the info re manually steaming. To further clarify, manual steaming only works when you set the steam style to "no foam", then extend the wand out from the body. Press and hold the steam button for 3 seconds and it will start. The reason is, the macine has a built in air pump that is used for low and high foam levels, pushing air through the wand as well as steam.

Another point on ratios. The machine can be set to a 2:1 ratio, default 2.5:1 (so 18g in, 45g out), and 4:1 ratio in the advanced menu. That's in the manual too, though there was some early confusion because Ninja had a preproduction manual out and online that showed those settings via the front panel button above descale. That button now changes the brew temperature on the final production model, and you have to dive into advanced settings, find .h06, and set your ratio there for espresso output.