The Little Guy Home Barista Kit

Perfection in every aspect!!! – This has to be one of the most beautifully engineered coffee machines I have ever seen, which also happens to be almost maintenance free. Once you have mastered the grind and portafilter preparation you are good to go for that professional shot that everybody so desires. Coffee flavours are definitely some of the best I have ever been able to… Read more

achieve. I also own a very nice Bezzera Mitica espresso machine which is really good at making perfect shots, however the Little Guy is a much better choice when it comes to flavour extractions. We only use fresh light roasted Jamaica Blue Mountain beans which when done with the Little Guy come out absolutely perfect. The only negative I have is… it needs an insulated steam arm/wand as the little neoprene protector is not enough to stop you betting burned when doing the milk.

Would buy again and recommend to friends – I can make espresso with The Little Guy as well as any of the top coffee shops here in Seattle. I’ve lived in Seattle for 32 years and I’m of Italian decent, so I’m familiar with good coffee. I’m a long time home espresso brewer on cheap steam machines, so my learning curve with The Little Guy was short. My heat source is an Ovente BGI101, and my… Read more

grinder is a Nuova Simonelli MCF. My grind is very fine with a tight pack up to around a few millimeters from the top of the basket. Dosing volume is critical since the coffee expands in the basket during brewing. I fill the tank above the filler rim before securing the cap; excess water drains out of the tank enclosure through a small hole at the bottom. I start the heat on 3 until coffee flows in around 8 to 9 minutes; I increase the heat to 4.5 when coffee starts to flow. I extract for 2.5 to 3.5 minutes depending on how much the coffee expands based on dosing volume.

The build quality is superb. The group head is equal to commercial grinders, and the grade of stainless steel is of the highest quality. The Little Guy is a functional work of art. My only concerns are reparability because there is nothing else on earth at the moment that could replace The Little Guy. Some photos show steel tubes between the tank and group head, and I was initially disappointed to find flexible hoses. However after thinking through the differences in thermal expansion between the housing and group head water supply, it seems like rigid tubes would not work. I’m happy with the design, and The Little Guy founders have earned my praise for bringing such an incredible espresso machine to the market for me to purchase. Thank you and well done.

Excellent for home use – The only improvement that I feel could do wonders is, if the streamer could heat the milk extra hot. Otherwise I can’t fault my little guy. It’s a wonderful piece of equipment and I love a strong espresso or latte. Show details

Worth all the Hot Air? – The Little Guy, like it's begetter, can be intimidating - and i'm not just talking about the $1000 price tag. Unfortunately, if one of the rubber seals in this machine burns out (which is highly likely) you'll need to purchase a replacement. Mind you, the "Seal Kit" costs around $70. Confusingly though, the product website appears to advise… Read more

customers not to replace damaged seals themselves, stating:

"The machine cannot be disassembled without using special tools. If you attempt to pull apart the machine without the proper training and tools then you risk damaging the inside part of the steam assembly."

So while the manufacturers happily sell over priced replacement seals to customers, they also appear to warn against using them. As far as I know, the only other alternative is to pay the manufacturers upwards of $250 (plus frieght) to replace the seal.

Edit/Update: The manufacturer has commented below, asking If I actually own a Little Guy. In response, I have included a recent picture of mine, being used as the beautiful kitchen ornament that it is. It doesn't make coffee, but it looked great when I staged this home for sale last year.

An excellent stovetop espresso machine – First off, I ordered the Little Guy from Canada. So it was a significant investment to get it here. The initial reason I first noticed it was because I’ve been using an Atomic stovetop machine for decades. I loved the idea of a modern updated design. Everything arrived beautifully packaged. I basically ground my beans to a typical fine espresso… Read more

grind and was pulling excellent shots from the get-go. The Little Guy produces beautiful crema (something I could never do on my Atomic machine). It’s also very VERY consistent: about 8 minutes to start producing coffee and 3-4 minutes for full extraction. The coffee temperature is good, and I’ve always had more than enough pressure to steam the milk. A couple of housekeeping points. We have a gas stove and the footprint of the little guy is small. So our burners are too large to use it effectively. I ended up getting a cast iron hot plate which works perfectly. If the little Guy induction top was available for North American current, I’d have absolutely gotten that. The only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is because the finishing on the machine & the portafilter has some rough spots. At the price, I expected better. All in all, I’m very happy with the performance and the design/aesthetics.

Looks can be deceiving – Takes about 10 minutes to make a coffee, compared to the breville machines which take about 30 seconds. Can only make one at a time. Horrible for guests. If you want to make a second you need to wait for the unit to cool down and de-pressurise, otherwise if you try and take off the handle it explodes sending coffee everywhere. The water… Read more

compartment is tiny so refills are frequent.

The milk frother is so much louder than other coffee machines to the point where it's sometimes painful.

The seal for the water compartment has cracked on me once.

The entire machine gets hot. Not very safe. And that's why they provide their own awkward shaped pouring bowl for the coffee.

Aesthetically it's great, draws attention to the kitchen and creates conversation, but that's the only positive. If this wasn't a gift I would not have bought it. Functionally it's the worst. A $20 stove top percolator would have been more practice.

For a couple of $100 more (we bought the little guy induction plate for it too) the breville would have been a better machine.

Makes beautiful coffee but is NOT for someone after a convenient coffee – I'm a long-term owner - around 6 years. I have the coffee machine and the matching induction hob. I've posted my review as I understand that Craig has re-started his business again after chucking in the towel. Coffee Machine - beautifully made, solid and heavy. I've never had any build quality issues. Induction Hob - well made and reliable… Read more

HOWEVER, despite the advertising of it's versatility it is NOT suitable for cooking. The hob's over-heat cutout kicks in very quickly if you try to do anything more than boil water on it. If you are looking at a Little Guy - do consider buying the matching hob as it adds consistency to the coffee making but don't expect to cook on it. This is why I haven't given this kit a 5 star rating.

NOTE also - the Little Guy machine may NOT actually work on other induction hobs. I think this is stated somewhere in the manual or on the website - and it's true, it wouldn't work on our cooking induction hob.

You should also budget for a good burr grinder too. Either up-front or later down the track.

The User Experience - I think it's been widely stated - this is not a simple one button machine. It needs dialing in. It needs lots of practice. You'll get it dialled in and making beautiful coffee and steamed milk for weeks, months, years and then you change something and boom - back to the trying to get it dialled in again. It's fussy as hell, it's super tolerant, it's frustrating, it's effortless coffee... you get the idea. Making beautiful coffee on this is an art and a massively satisfying experience when you get it sorted.

Don't even go near this if you aren't interested in the art of making coffee. This is a fully manual coffee making experience and not a quick one.

Some tips from my experience: I use around 28g of ground coffee. Recently I've used a bit less (around 5-7mm tamped below the basket rim) and still got good extraction and steam pressure. Different beans may require adjusting the grind size and some re-dialling in again. This will not generate the steam pressure of an electric machine so the steaming will take a couple of minutes to get the milk to temperature. It can help to wait a few more minutes after your coffee has finished extracting before you start steaming your milk. Once coffee extraction starts, keep an eye on it. Have another cup or small glass handy and when the coffee starts spitting immediately swap out the coffee jug with your cup/glass so that you don't ruin your coffee with the dregs. Then you can start steaming your milk. Crema - I've never achieved the thick crema that an electric machine gives. You'll get a thinner layer but also the coffee is a lot smoother. Good trade-off. Total time for coffee 12-15 minutes from grinding to first sip.

I love the machine. I'm happy to spend the time to make coffee and work with it to get it right.

$600 Useless Paperweight – Firstly for some reason I couldn't log in to my account so was forced to make another review otherwise I would have amended my original post I made 3 years ago titled " Mixed Opinion" under 4 star rating. So to update the position I'm now in , as predicted in my original post the weak link in the design of this machine, the internal "silicone"… Read more

hoses have blown, making the machine inoperable. I contacted Craig to be questioned, almost interrogated, with the outcome being that the blame was placed on me. I was told to contact his repairer to have the hoses replaced for a fee of $180 plus postage. I decided to open up the machine to look at said hoses only to find that 2 of the 4 screws snapped off in the process due to being fused into the threads from corrosion, when showing the the hoses to a professional hose supplier Pirtek I was informed the hoses were in fact "braided PVC" not silicone as stated in the details of the product and that they would make braided stainless steel hoses for nowhere near the $180 price tag I was told from the suggested repairer.

These machines are manufactured in China and on closer inspection it shows. I have attempted to drill out the broken screws but to no avail as the quality of the lugholes is that they are off centre leaving no room for error when drilling and re threading. I was told by Craig that he's wrapping up the business so, as unfortunate as that is, I think that if the product had not been made in China maybe I would not now own a $600 paperweight.

Should be called "the fussy little guy" – Don't expect it to be easy. The grind, bean, weight, quality, tamp pressure, heat source and method are all critical to getting even a single usable shot. Because of the single boiler design you are relying on the perfect amount of back pressure to get not only a decent extraction but also leaving enough pressure to froth 2 cappuccinos, which… Read more

I've found to be virtually impossible. And if you only want one shot you waste the second because it won't work on one dose. I've wasted kgs of coffee trying to get consistent shots with limited success. Although it's a beautifully presented, designed and built kit , it's way too hard to make good coffee with it. A top quality grinder is essential to get consistent results so add another $200 min. , add the little guy convection top to your cart for another $150 and your looking at over $1000 at full price just to start. Glad I got it for half price and I would consider other options if you want good easy coffee

Can't buy a better coffee – Have tried many in home coffee machines and have used a professional machine when I owned a cafe. The Little Guy produces coffee way above home machine standards and equal to barista operated professional machines. Have had my machine for 6 years now and it has paid for itself at least 10 times over and that is from only drinking one cup per day. Show details

A good backup coffee maker – The Little Guy makes a great coffee over and over. I have only praise for design and performance of The Little Guy. The instructions for use on the other hand are a bit vague. Maybe I missed reading or hearing how much coffee the group head holds. After some extensive research and testing I found the the basket holds 20g of coffee. I found 21g… Read more ·  1

is optimal. However you do need to calibre your grinder to the particular beans being used. DON'T tamp (compress) the coffee Light tamping is all that is needed. Most important is keep the surface of the coffee level. This proceedure will guarantee a perfect double shot every time.

To many adjustments to optimise consistency – I have been using the little Guy for a number of years. I usually make two cups of short black for five days a week. Over the years I have used the same coffee beans and the same grinder. The uncertainty is the amount of coffee used and how hard I compact it. In recent years the amount of coffee extracted is getting smaller, but the final quality… Read more ·  1

is very good. I don't understand why I am getting less coffee. It is as if the pressure inside the Little Guy is getting less with time. Do I need a new one?

The Little Guy- Otto – This is a beautifully engineered coffee machine and is virtually maintenance free. We have had ours for over 9 years and still working well although the induction top had to be replaced. We like our coffee good strong and flavoursome. This machine is ideal for making one good cup of full strength coffee equal to anything you may buy at any… Read more ·  1

coffee shop. The machine however requires to cool right down before being able to make another good cup of coffee. You can cool the machine down quickly by pouring cool tap water over it. The machine is ideal for people who enjoy good quality espresso coffee without it taking up much bench space for one or two people. If you learn to use use this machine you will not be disappointed.

the Little Guy Home Kit is good! – Purchased not too Long ago and is very handy as we have a gas hob. Since my husband does not drink coffee often I have used it almost twice everyday for the past two years! Makes your standard coffees and so far no issues with the machine, cappuccino's are average and requires bigger amounts of coffee beans that con be expensive, but other than that its a great little machine! Show details

Will reward those that take the time to work him out – Great product. As a professional barista of many years, this machine is capable of delivering a cafe standard coffee. I've had to take time tweaking my own use of this device, but a worthy investment. Build quality is excellent. It looks fantastic. Save yourself some time and read the reviews. You'll hit the ground running. Show details