L’OR Barista System Coffee and Espresso Machine Combo by Philips, Black

Great coffee. Shocker, it’s bitter. No kidding! It’s coffee, not a Starbucks vanilla bla blah latte. Just coffee!! And the espresso, guess what? Stronger coffee, more bitter. Folks complaining the coffee doesnt taste like X brand is cracking me up. I’ve traveled too, drank coffee/espresso around the world, lived off coffee as a staple of a military life. Used Kuerig, instant coffee(just plain convenience) and visited various establishments here in the states. This brand is indeed produces a fantastic cup O’Joe every time.

‘It’s loud’ – Duh! It’s an espresso machine. It’s brewing and frothing the mix. Many likes their local coffee shop and swear by their coffee. Tell me, how quiet are their shops? You want quiet, get an old fashion drip pot or use French press.

‘Makes farting noises and lights flashing’ – doesn’t work! I had this happen to me and did a little trouble shooting. It worked one minute, stopped the next. Upon further inspection, (Solution) I refilled the water tank and replaced it. It had not seated properly and was sucking in air, thereby making the farting noises. I reseated the water tank firmly on the machine and it worked without issues.

‘The pods are too expensive’ considering what you are getting, the price of the pods is the same as any other pod type machines, if not cheaper. We are paying for convenience here. One cup at a time and fancy coffees? You want cheap one cup brews, Go back to instant coffee or brew yourself a 12 cup pot.

All in all, I’ll recommend this machine every time.

I’ve had this Barista system for about a month now and find that the espresso is delicious! I use it daily and am glad that I made the purchase. However, the system isn’t perfect, so I’d like to go over a few pros and cons. Overall, though, as much as I enjoy the espresso capsules, I find the coffee capsules to be harsh and bitter. And I am talking really harsh and bitter. I will investigate whether Nespresso coffee capsules are compatible with this machine, as I will not be reordering any of the L’OR coffee capsules–and I purchased all of the flavors. All of the espresso pods, though, are rich, tasty, and worthwhile.

Pros:

Great tasting Espresso pods. I’ve tried all the intensities, including Ristretto Or Absolu, and Columbian and find the taste(s) outstanding. I like that the intensity levels are listed on each box.

The machine is attractive and warms/heats up very quickly.

The system is also very, very quiet compared to my Keurig coffee maker that I have.

The system recognizes the difference between the espresso and coffee pods, which is great for measuring automatically the amount it dispenses for either small, medium or large cups.

I think the pricing per capsule is actually pretty reasonable. Savvy and value shopping can make the pricing even more affordable.

Cons:

The coffees are bitter and harsh. They have clever names like Bonjour, Provocateur and Le Tigre, but they don’t tell you anything about the coffees except for light, medium or dark. I don’t know if they are 100% arabica beans or robusta, or if they are blended, or really what they are. The vanilla flavored coffee is so harsh, that I was surprised it was actually vanilla, which is one of the smoother spices out there. In a blind taste test, the vanilla flavor was so overpowering, I actually thought it was cinnamon. If you have a Keurig or other coffee maker, don’t throw it away. You’ll still need it. The L’OR system excels in everything except the taste of coffee.

Also, since it is designed as an espresso machine, there is not enough room on the bottom platform for a decent sized coffee cup. The platform can be removed for taller cups, which I pretty much need to do every time I use it to make a cup of coffee.

One reason the price is relatively affordable (for what it is), is that the unit includes no milk foamer/frother. There are a lot of these available separately for purchase on Amazon through different vendors, at very reasonable prices, and it is absolutely a must have if you like to make cappuccinos or lattes or creative tasting coffees. If you don’t have one, it is imperative that you order one at the same time you order the L’OR barista system, or you will be missing out on most of the machine’s capabilities.

The machine is attractive and lightweight but made entirely out of plastic. It looks more substantial than it really is. I hope it will hold up over time because it appears to be very flimsily made.

Also, it has a reservoir to hold the empty capsules, but you still have to empty the reservoir about once every 7-10 uses. Nice idea, but only a bit of a time saver.

The reservoir that holds the water isn’t very large either but it is more than sufficient for making espresso, which doesn’t use a lot of water (compared to coffee). You won’t get very far with the water reservoir if you’re using the machine primarily for coffee (you can get about two to three large cups of coffee out of it, before refilling).

The pods are labeled at the very bottom/underneath of each pod with smooth unlabeled aluminum on top. This makes it very difficult to differentiate one pod from another–especially if you are storing them in a pod/capsule holder. I keep them in the cardboard boxes them come in, so I can differentiate one flavor from another.

All of the pictures of the L’OR barista system (in the marketing, on the boxes, etc.) display the L’OR branded coffee mugs or espresso cups. Sadly, none of them are available for purchase. I was hoping to buy these separately, as they look so good with the system but they cannot be purchased at this time. The lungo (coffee) and espresso mugs/cups are available for purchase in England and in Australia, but they are not available for purchase in the United States. Also, the agreements the manufacturer has with each country does not allow the mugs to be shipped overseas, so if you live in the United States, you simply cannot get them. Too bad, as I would buy a set, and they are actually very reasonably priced (overseas). L’OR is missing out on a huge add-on marketing opportunity by not making their branded double-thermal espresso cups and coffee mugs available for purchase.

In summary, the L’OR system is terrific for espressos, and lattes and cappuccinos (with separately purchased milk frother/steamer). For coffee, the taste is acidic and bitter, and there are better options out there for making coffee.

Recommended. Espresso System made in Romania. Coffee(s) made in France.