Fun fact- before I began my Marketing + Interior Design career 6 years ago, I worked at Starbucks! It was my high school job I worked throughout my senior year and then continued working after moving back as a missionary. It was the job that kick-started my caffeine addiction and I’ve (quite literally) never recovered.

One of the best decisions I’ve made in our household was investing in an espresso machine. I use it every day and, believe me when I say it has paid for itself tenfold in the past 3 years we’ve had it. Here are all the details on our machine, which we bought, and where I’d recommend investing if you’re looking to get your own!

Our Espresso Machine:

The espresso machine we went with is the Breville Duo Temp Pro. While I would’ve loved to invest in the larger, touchscreen version with a grinder built in, we were balling on a freshly married, 20-something budget. I’ve enjoyed the version that we have, but there is absolutely a learning curve associated. Landon on the other hand doesn’t love it, because it’s very hands-on. You’ll also need a bean grinder if purchasing this one (unless you’re buying ground espresso, but fresh is definitely better!) We have a cheap bean grinder with no settings that I have to shake like a cocktail mixer to grind the beans, so I’d recommend something more like this one that you can control!

I’ll be honest- I like ours! But, in hindsight, I probably would’ve waited for this one to go on sale. It would still have paid for itself time and again and would be a lot more intuitive for other people to use. With a background in the coffee industry, the hands-on process doesn’t bug me. However, I’d love people to be able to use it & be happy with the results in our home!

The Differences

Ours – Breville Duo Temp Pro

1. A great, more affordable option – especially if you’re willing to learn the settings yourself!
2. No settings – you’ve got to learn the amount of time & watch the color of your shot!
3. No built-in grinder – buy additional or buy pre-ground espresso
4. Stainless Steel only
5. Price: $499 + bean grinder
6. Amazon Prime 2-day free delivery

Breville Barista Pro

1. Choose your settings via a touchscreen
2. Built-in bean grinder
3. Multiple color options, including White (which I loveee)
4. Price: $849.95, available only at Williams Sonoma

Things You’ll Need (regardless of which machine you choose)

1. Cleaning tablets
2. Descaling solution

Other (fun) Things:

1. cute cups/mugs
2. wooden handled tamper
3. matte white milk frothing cup
4. glass straws
5. sealed bean container
6. vanilla bean paste ( & my go-to iced vanilla latte recipe + vanilla syrup recipe!)
7. & a cute jar to put your homemade vanilla syrup in
8. collagen – I add this to my lattes for an easy 10g of protein! (Code HAYDEN10 saves you!)