- Super-automatic functionality does it all from grind to foam
- LCD touch screen is easy to use
- Brew group is easy to clean
- Doesn’t come with a milk jug for steamed milk
- Concerns about durability
- Espresso is good-not-great
The “Espresso Defined” model from Cuisinart, the EM-1000 is Cuisinart’s version of an all-in-one super-automatic espresso machine.
It comes with all the bells and whistles you’d expect from a do-it-all espresso machine:
- LCD touch screen
- Bypass doser for pre-ground coffee
- Custom grind size
- Custom milk volume
- Custom brew temperature
- Custom strength control
- Remembers settings for up to 4 users
And it works just like any other super-automatic espresso machine.
- Fill it with beans
- Choose your settings, including grind size
- Select a beverage type
- Press start
- Wait and enjoy
- Comes with a frother
- Intriguing design
- Easy to use
- Not the best espresso even by capsule espresso standards
- Not very durable
- illy capsule universe isn’t very expansive
The Cuisinart EM-600 builds upon the Cuisinart EM-400’s capsule technology by adding an automatic frothing container, which holds up to 22 oz of milk.
There are two ways to use this frother.
The Manual Way
- Fill with milk above the minimum 5 oz line
- Place your cup on the drip tray and position the wand over it
- Press the “Steam” button to start
- Use the knob to manually adjust the air being whipped into the milk
- Press the “Steam” button again to stop
- Enjoy
The Automatic Way
- Fill with milk above the minimum 5 oz line
- Place your cup on the drip tray and position the wand over it
- Press the “Cappuccino” or “Latte” buttons to set the automatic program
- Enjoy
Note that turning the frothing knob to the right creates more froth.
Aside from the additional milk frothing functionality, all of the additional features noted above about the Cuisinart EM-400 (such as 60 minute auto-off mode) apply here as well.
The Cuisinart EM-200 has the same build and structure as the Cuisinart EM-100 but adds programmable functionality to take it to the next level.
(Plus, its water reservoir is massive for its size at 64 oz.)
Instead of turning the knob to pull your shot and manually timing the extraction yourself, the EM-200 pulls your shot at the push of a button with no manual timing required.
The EM-200 has two brew buttons:
- Single shot: 1.5 oz
- Double shot: 3.0 oz
You can customize the volumes, though!
However, the manual steam wand does still need to be run and timed by the home barista. The knob to control the steam wand is located on the right side of the machine.
- Super easy to use
- Intriguing design
- Affordable
- Not the best espresso, even by capsule standards
- illy's capsule universe isn’t very expansive
- Doesn’t come with a frother
The Cuisinart EM-400 Buona Tazza is a capsule-based espresso machine that works with 2 types of capsules:
- illy Espresso Capsules
- illy Coffee Capsules
The espresso capsules can brew either short (1.2 oz) or long (3.0 oz) espressos. The coffee capsules brew a 6 oz long coffee.
illy makes special iperEspresso capsules, which are blue and are intended to be used with the 3.0 oz long espresso setting. They recommend this to prevent a watery coffee.
Speaking of available brew sizes, the Cuisinart EM-400 has 5 pre-programmed buttons:
- Single shot espresso (top left button)
- Double shot espresso (middle left button)
- Long coffee (bottom left button)
- Manual flavor/strength setting (top right button)
- Temperature setting, 2 temps (middle right button)
Other features include the following:
- 60 minute auto-off mode
- Spent capsule container with 10 capsule capacity
- Adjustable extraction time for shorter or longer beverages
- Decent espresso for its price
- Compact design but still has good weight
- Large water reservoir for its size
- Requires you to manually time extraction
- Won’t get a very good crema
- Very loud
The Cuisinart EM-100 is a decent low-end pump espresso machine, which is both compact and easy to use.
The portafilter locks in easily and can pull two shots at once.
The steam wand has convenient swivel functionality and you can control the steam easily by turning the one-and-only knob to the right.
A potential downside of this knob is that there isn’t a single “Brew Espresso” button, and that means your brew time isn’t automatic and standard.
- You turn the knob to start brewing
- You hold to continue extraction
- You turn the knob back to end brewing
So make sure you track how long you’ve been extracting! Most espresso recipes call for around 28-30 seconds.
The 53 oz water reservoir is surprisingly large for such a compact espresso machine.
And despite those compact dimensions, this machine does still have some heft, which I always like in an espresso machine.
It also comes with a cup warmer, but honestly, I’m not a huge fan of these cup warming features — I don’t really see the utility. Still, the EM-100 has the area to warm four cups at once.
