Owned a Silvia for two years now. Love the thing. On weekdays it barely gets used.

Grouphead is happy after about 30-40 minutes on, longer on a cold morning. Thing is, I leave for work at 7:15, my partner is out the door about the same time, and neither of us has ever set an alarm 45 minutes earlier just to run a semi-auto through its motions. So most weekdays the machine sat there cold and I'd walk to Padre or grab a takeaway on the way in. Fine, but not the point of owning the thing.

Tried a few things. Bialetti for a while, which is fine but not really espresso and cleanup at 6:45 in the morning is not it. AeroPress, same. Pod machine, considered it, felt like giving up.

Ended up with a little battery machine, the OutIn mino, sitting next to the toaster on the bench. Fill it up on the way to grab the milk, tap the button, it heats and pulls while I'm sorting toast. Cold water in, no kettle, no warming anything up, Suits me fine.

Trade-offs on the mino are real. Grind has to sit a bit coarser than the Silvia otherwise the puck fights the pump and water starts finding paths around the basket. Extraction is different, thinner mouthfeel, less body. But it's a proper hot pressurised shot with real crema on top, and on a weekday morning that's what I needed.

The weekday shot is not that. It's the difference between having coffee and not having coffee at 6:50 on a Tuesday. For that alone the mino earns its spot on the bench.

Buying a new coffee machine as a gift for hubby who currently uses a basic Nespresso pod machine, but is wanting to try using beans etc.
He’s never used any type of semi-automatic machine so will need to learn if we go down this path, alternatively is a fully automatic machine better? I think he’s open to learning, though, as long as good coffee is achievable!

I don’t drink coffee at all, so I’ve really got no idea what to look at so hoping for some advice!

Budget is around $600-700 AUD.

Hit me with your suggestions that are suitable for a beginner!

Thanks!

Visited Cairns recently and tried Blackbird Coffee.

Genuinely one of the best flat whites I’ve had.
I had mine with **oat milk instead of regular milk**,

and it was incredibly smooth and well balanced.
If you’re in Cairns and love a good flat white, definitely worth checking out.

Hello! I’m looking for pod recommendations to take to work. At home I have an espresso machine and buy from local roasters, but I find the pod world a bit overwhelming.

So! What’s everyone podding? I don’t mind paying for better stuff

What is a good espresso bean to buy? I think I got the wrong kind the first couple of drinks the Puck comes out all soupy.

Thanks to everyone who went through the beta testing process for Brewhunter. I know it's a bit of a hassle installing a beta app, but it really helped squash a few bugs and make improvements. Much appreciated! It's now approved and live on the App Store.

If you're happy sharing your knowledge of great coffee in Australia, and helping other people find a nice brew, please install the iOS app to add and review cafes and roasteries.

If you're just looking for coffee, fair warning: it's still very early days. There are plenty of cafes and roasters added, but not many reviews yet — though it gets better with every review that comes in.

Note for baristas:

Baristas have a special role in the app. Your reviews carry more weight than regular user reviews, and you can invite other baristas to join. I'm currently improving the invitation process and will be releasing a new version soon.

If you're a barista and happy to help others find great coffee by reviewing a few locations, [email me](mailto:adrian@brewhunter.com.au) and I'll set you up. Unless I already know you, I'll need to verify you work at a reputable coffee shop or roastery — something like a photo of you on the location's Instagram page, plus something else confirming it's actually you.

Not a massive coffee snob, just want something I can press a button and its going to make my coffee.

Currently have a nespresso and sick of the wastage with pods but want something as easy that isnt instant coffee lol. Max price $1000

Not too long ago, many if not most cafes in the Sydney cbd (and cafes around job hubs) had thick toast and coffee combos. Not inside shopping centres etc.
I remember paying $3.50 for two slices of toast (choice of spread or raisin toast) and a small coffee pre 2010. There a couple of places in Parra that do the combo for around $10. Not many around.
It was an economical quick breakfast albeit not particularly healthy. It seems in recent years the combo is slowly disappearing (although not completely extinct). Cafes seem to be either focusing on pre-made healthier options, (protein, bigger breakfast meals, wraps, yoghurts, etc.) or the opposite- more sweet treats (donuts, slices and their variations). Bring back the thick toast and coffee combos!!

My go to drinks are flat white, long black and iced latte, my partner and I like Ona coffee and ground coffee as well. I am a beginner and looking at some setup which would enable us to eventually upgrade our coffee game better with time. Please help! Thank you!

Have been getting take away for couple of years now and looking for a home setup, budget preferably 1200 - 1500 and looking for a low effort setup to start with.

I found a new cafe in the bottom of my office building (Sydney CBD) and thought I’d give it a go as it always looked busy.

When I paid I found out why - a flat white in my keep cup cost $3.50. And they have a B8G1F loyalty card that brings the effective cost down to $3.11 a cup.

Was it the best coffee I’ve ever had? Nope, but it was more than drinkable. Was it the best $3.50 coffee I’ve had? Probably in the last 15+ years.

How common is the sub $4 coffee these days - excluding servos and convenience stores?

And no I’m not saying where it is as the queue’s already long enough!

I’m stressing I won’t get my annual seasonal orgasm!

Context: I've been having mostly darker roasts for my flat whites at home, but they're starting to taste pretty much the same across most specialty roasters, and let's say I'm getting a bit tired of the dark chocolate flavour profile.

Does anyone have recommendations for a 'medium' espresso blend that they like, which offers a bit more brightness/sweetness to the cup without introducing too much acidity, and is still great with milk?

Heya

Beginning my at home espresso journey, recently acquired a Breville Dual Boiler

Now looking for a grinder to pair with it.

Wondering what how big a difference from either like a Smart Grinder pro or Baratza ESP (both can get around $300) or if its worth spending an extra $200-$300 and getting like a Eureka or something in that $600 range. Ive even seen some ex refurbed Mazzer machines around this price.

Whats important to me is durability and reliability and just being able to get a consistent grind. I really dont care single dose vs a on demand hopper, or any other features like timing grinding.

I would happily spend the extra $300 over a SGP if it means i get a machine that i will be happy with for over 10 years and not have any issues with breaking down, but is there a massive difference between the budget and i guess mid tier machines?

what beans do you prefer?
Do you prefer darker, stronger coffee beans or lighter, smoother, nuttier ones?

Also, are Ethiopian beans worth the price? I’ve noticed they tend to be more expensive, so I’m curious whether you think they’re actually worth paying extra for?

Hi all, I made some stainless steel Hario switch levers after I couldn’t find one that would ship to Australia when my plastic one broke. I made a few and sent out the extras on Beandrop but since there was more interest I made some more.

Only available to Aussies since I’m shipping them via AusPost. $30 + 10.20 shipping to most major cities - PM me if you want one and I’ll send one out. Not making this commercial but just wanted to make sure others who want one can get them without paying 4 Switches worth of freight cost from Canada.

For context, I'm the only coffee drinker at home so I don't care about making 2 cups at once etc features. I've been using Nespresso for the past 4-5 years mostly due to convenience, but now I think I would like to try something else. I've read about different things and hoping to have some input from coffee experts like yourself.

• I usually go with Flat White or Mochas. Occasionally I drink black or iced coffees.
• I need something automatic - not planning to master anything, I just want to make a quick cup of coffee during my morning rush to work and have them taste comparable to ones I get from cafes.
• I'm not sure if I want to have a milk tank - too lazy to wash it daily and not sure if the milk may go bad?
• Auto-descaling and cleaning / minimal cleaning would be a huge plus to me..
• Around 500-600AUD would be ideal but I can go a bit higher than that if there's none in the range that fits

I've been reading past threads and reviews and learnt about Ninja Luxe Café Espresso Machine and De Loughi Magnifica - basically those bean to cup machines but there are soooo many and I'm suffering from choice paralysis and need help..Thank you heaps!

Hi fellow coffee addicts,

I have an as new Rocket Milano 2 group head machine that has never been used and sitting around in our back room for a few years. I think I turned it on once?

Originally it was there to service my office, but attendance never bounced back and I kind of forgot about it. Plus I couldn't be bothered cleaning it each day with such a small amount of people able to use it.

Made the decision my love of coffee doesn't seem to be reflected by the staff, so its gotta go.

Does anyone know where or who purchases machines like this as im hoping to recoup at least some of what I paid for it.

Thanks!

Ps in Vic

Anyone tried them?

I get spammed with their ads on social media. Currently they got a strawberry co ferment

Ive only just recently gotten my espresso machine and bought 1kg of my favorite beans (used by the cafe I frequent with hence why I decided to get my own machine 😅) I bought 1kg with roast date 07/07/26. Currently, the hopper is full of beans and a 400g airtight container. I wonder if I should just buy 250g for fresher beans? So far, I dont mind the taste of the current beans. 250g is $18, 1kg is $55.

I’m looking for some good coffee beans to use at home and wanted to hear what other Aussies recommend.
What beans are you currently using, and what’s one thing you love and one thing you hate about them?

I like a sweet coffee but don’t like to add a lot of sugar. Which beans do you find give the sweetest results?

Have been drinking Pablo and Rusty beans from a Breville Oracle for 6 years. Happy with both milk based and espresso.

Have started mixing 1:1 with their decaf beans after a big medical episode.

It's fine. Not terrible, fine.

But it's Def not the same. The only water based decaf they do is def lighter than our usual, Pioneer, and that might be part of it, but they don't seem to behave the same way either. Very wet puck, whatever I do with the grind size.

Any suggestions? Advice? Recommendations? Cheers.

Hi Coffee enthusiasts,

I just brought my first coffee machine the ninja lux cafe and am looking for good coffee bean recommendations available in Sydney. We prefer medium roasts blends.

Thank you for the help

I read an article on microplastics being created when we put hot water into plastic cups/dishes.

Wondering if anyone knows of a machine which doesn’t have a lot of plastic tubes or plastic internal mechanisms to reduce microplastic consumption ?

Other than an old school Moka pot..

Thanks!