Tom's Guide Verdict
The Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder is a stylish coffee machine with the ‘50s retro glam you’d expect from Smeg. Also expect an easy user experience, a great steam wand, and a delicious espresso — but with a hefty price tag.
Pros
- +
Easy to use without customization
- +
Steam wand is powerful
- +
Gorgeous espresso extraction
- +
Stylish
Cons
- -
Expensive
- -
Custom programming buttons is finicky
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The EGF03 is Smeg’s espresso machine with a built-in grinder and steam wand. This style of espresso machine is perfect for those who enjoy the process of making coffee, but don’t want to buy a separate grinder. Semi-automatic machines are the most common you’ll see in households, and often appear on our best espresso machines. Could the EGF03 be one of them?
If you’re an espresso machine newbie, you’ll be relieved to know that for the most part, the EGF03 is really simple to use. All you have to do is fill up the water tank, fill up the bean hopper, and click ‘single’ or ‘double’ shot buttons. Then you’re ready to brew delectable espresso. The steam arm is pretty easy to master, too, and is fun to play around with.
Smeg also makes an espresso machine without a grinder, the Smeg ECF02 ($529). If you’re super into coffee though, you’ll want to get one of the best coffee grinders. Coffee grinders can be expensive, though, so is this Smeg machine worth your $1,100? Find out in this Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder: Cheat sheet
- Who is it for? Those who want a stylish semi-automatic espresso machine
- What does it do well? The grinder is great, with accurate dosage and a range of grind sizes
- What are its weaknesses? The customization buttons are finicky and it’s much pricier than other semi-automatic machines
- What should you use it for? Making espresso and milk drinks that rival cafes
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder: Specs
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: Price & availability
The Smeg EGF03 costs a pretty penny: $1,100 at Amazon U.S. and £849 at Amazon U.K.. This $1,000+ price tag makes it much more expensive than the KitchenAid Semi-Automatic, which is $699. Our favorite semi-automatic machine, the Ninja Luxe Cafe, is just $499 — pretty cheap for an espresso machine. If you’re after an automatic machine, Smeg’s Bean to Cup is $849. The priciest machine on Smeg’s roster is the Mini Pro — although it’s £1,399 and only available in the U.K.
If $1,100 is a bit steep for you, and you’re not too fussed about having a grinder, you might want to check out the KitchenAid Artisan Espresso Machine, which is a much more palatable $349.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: Design
The EGF02 is constructed with the glossy, colorful exterior and the retro ‘50s vibe I expect from Smeg. I can’t lie, it does this aesthetic so well. Whether or not the vibe suits your kitchen is your call — but it looked great in the office kitchen during testing. The machine matches all of Smeg’s other products, so if you’ve got a Smeg fridge, or toaster, the espresso machine will look right at home.
The EGF02 is available in a variety of colors: I tested the red and black finishes. The back of the machine houses the half-gallon water tank, which has a handy ‘max’ and ‘min’ line. On the top of the machine is the bean hopper, which holds more than it initially suggests. I was able to get almost an entire 1-lb bag in this hopper, so it’s easy to keep track of how much coffee you’re using.
The machine itself has a pretty powerful steam wand on the right, one group head, and the grinder on the left. There are four buttons on the machine: ‘single’ and ‘double’ regarding the grinder dose, and ‘single’ and ‘double’ regarding the shot extraction. You use these buttons to program customization options like activating ‘short’, ‘long’ and ‘progressive’ shots. However, I found these buttons so frustrating to navigate that I simply stuck with the default shot setting. The espresso shots still tasted great, though, so it’s not all a loss.
As for accessories, the EGF03 comes with a milk jug, three portafilters, and a weighty metal tamper. This tamper is much better than the ECF02’s plastic, flimsy tamper/scoop combination that struggled to tamp evenly.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: Grinder
The EGF03 machine uses a burr grinder, which crushes the beans rather than slicing them to produce a more consistent grind. There are 15 grind settings ranging from ‘superfine’ to ‘medium’. I found the best result was setting ‘7’, or ‘fine’. This produced a velvety smooth espresso with thick crema.
A single shot doses 0.47 ounces of coffee and a double shot doses 0.72 ounces. There was minimal discrepancy between measurements: the biggest variation was just 0.01 ounces. This measurement is far more reliable than the KitchenAid Semi-Automatic machine, which I had to experiment with to find appropriate dose settings.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: Espresso
Unlike the ECF02 machine, the EGF02 comes with single- and double-walled portafilters. Single-wall portafilters are generally considered to pull superior shots, as they don’t aerate the espresso during extraction.
I used single-walled portafilters to extract the best flavor of espresso. The EGF03 is a semi-automatic machine so it flows a pre-set amount of water through the portafilter. In testing, the machine produced espresso shots really consistently. A double shot ground 0.72 ounces (21g) of coffee, and with water, produced 2.15 ounces (63g) of espresso. For a single espresso, with 0.47 ounces (13g) of espresso, the machine produced 0.98 ounces (28g) of espresso. So the double is a little over twice the size of the single, which some coffee purists might not appreciate, but I found the difference in final taste was very minimal.
As you can see, the espresso shot is layered with the dark brown ‘heart’, the caramel-colored body and the fluffy light crema.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: Milk
As the steam wand was my biggest gripe with the smaller Smeg ECF02 espresso machine I tested, I wasn’t expecting to like the EGF03’s steam wand. Oh, how I love to be proved wrong.
The ECF02 utilizes 9 bar pressure, whereas the EGF03 has 20 bar. This extra pressure results in an excellent steam wand that can make perfectly textured milk for latte art in seconds.
To texture milk for latte art, you need a strong steam wand. This is to create a powerful ‘vortex’ that textures the milk, resulting in a velvety microfoam. I was able to pour perfect latte art every time: check this out.
The latte art isn’t the best, but that’s a me problem rather than a Smeg problem. I’m a bit rusty after not working in a coffee shop for over three years now. But, even so, the milk texture is perfect: silky smooth microfoam that’s soft and fluffy at the same time.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: Storage & maintenance
As with the ECF02 machine, the lights will flash if it requires cleaning. Descaling is easy, and the steam wand tip is detachable meaning you can get into it from the inside. You should purge the steam wand before and after every use, though.
The Espresso Machine with Grinder is a pretty bulky machine, at 18 inches tall and 27 pounds. As with most espresso machines, it’ll take up a good chunk of your workspace, but it looks stylish enough that it’ll give your kitchen a bit of pizzazz, so it’s worth it.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: How does it compare?
My favorite semi-automatic espresso machine is KitchenAid’s Semi-Automatic Espresso Machine with Burr Grinder. It’s only $699, which is objectively a lot of money, but not a massive amount for an espresso machine of that quality. The machine is a little easier to use than the EGF03 because of one reason: it has a ‘heating’ symbol that lights up when it’s ready to go. I know what you’re thinking — you just said the EGF03 lights up when it’s ready to go. It does.
However, the EGF03’s lights also flash to mean other things like the machine needs descaling, or there’s an error with the grinder. On the KitchenAid, the heating light is just that: a heating light. There’s a separate light solely for cleaning instructions. With this small change, the Smeg EGF03 would be much easier to operate.
The Breville Barista Express is one of the most well known espresso machines on the market. It’s just $749 — compared to the EGF03’s $1,100 — and is our best espresso machine for beginners. If you’re looking for your first espresso machine, I’d recommend this for its ease of use and relatively low price.
Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder review: Verdict
At $1,100, the Smeg EGF03 Espresso Machine with Grinder isn’t exactly the cheapest espresso machine on the market. It’s one of the priciest semi-automatic espresso machines I’ve seen. While its steam wand and espresso pull abilities are excellent, there are other semi-automatic espresso machines with the same level of finesse for much cheaper. It’s easy to get a cafe-quality coffee with the Smeg, but at this price, I’d hope that’s the case. With the EGF03, you’ll be spending $400 more than another machine, but you’ll still be getting a delicious coffee out of it. For the fantastic aesthetic, though, the price could be worth it.
