DeLonghi La Specialista Review: How Does the Prestigio Measure Up?

In today’s DeLonghi La Specialista review I’ll be telling you all about my experiences using the awesome La Specialista Prestigio hybrid espresso machine.

Seeing as espresso machines with built-in grinders are all the rage at the moment, many of you might be interested to learn more about this particular model. Especially those of you for whom pressing a button or two and calling it good seems totally boring.

Trust me, the La Specialista Prestigio espresso machine offers a ton of intuitive features, but you’re gonna feel like a barista when you’re using the thing. Sounds good? Well then, let’s get right to it!

DeLonghi La Specialista Review Overview

Way back when, I predicted that hybrid machines – a home espresso machine and a super automatic espresso machine rolled into one – would be the next big thing. And now I can pat myself on the back for being right!

Breville was one of the first manufacturers to jump on board with its Oracle Touch. DeLonghi didn’t drag its feet, though, and the DeLonghi La Specialista hit the shelves in May of 2019.

Costing $899.95, the original La Specialista is way more affordable than the Oracle Touch, although both machines are still going strong.

Still, the Italian manufacturer has changed things up a little by replacing the original machine with the updated DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio. So, I decided to buy one from Amazon to test out. To be honest, I was interested to see whether DeLonghi hybrid machines are still relevant, given the advances made by other manufacturers of late.

Bottom line? DeLonghi can breathe somewhat of a sigh of relief. Here at Coffeeness, we think that the La Specialista Prestigio is a successful machine that produces bonafide espresso and outstanding milk froth.

As usual, there are more than a couple of negatives to talk about. For starters, you need to be a bit more clued up – or at least willing to learn – about the various factors that make or break espresso.

In other words, it’s a total blast if you’re up for it, or a bit of a pain in the butt if you’re always trying out new beans. Anyway, keep reading my DeLonghi La Specialista review, and I’ll tell you all about this awesome espresso machine!

DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio Features

Let’s keep the ball rolling by diving into the most notable features of the DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio. And don’t worry – I’ll throw in tips and tricks for getting the best out of the machine as we go.

Size and Design

With its stainless steel housing surrounding a black control panel, the Delonghi La Specialista is quite the looker. The machine’s impressive vibe is enhanced by retro, yet modern knobs and a traditional pressure gauge as the centerpiece of the user interface.

This DeLonghi espresso machine oozes quality, especially as its sturdy 29.7 pounds (13.5 kilograms) weight and sizable footprint ensure it sits solidly on any surface.

As with all hybrids, the machine is divided into two workstations. The left is dedicated to grinding beans, compacting and dosing, while the right is where you’ll find the brew head, professional steam wand and hot water outlet.

All in all, this design offers an approachable and intuitive way to prepare espresso and milk foam.

User Interface

Compared to the fancy digital displays and color touchscreen interfaces you’ll find on many Breville espresso machines, the control panel on the DeLonghi La Specialista is a far more minimalist affair:

The profiles and coffee drinks are basically nothing more than different settings for the water volumes or for the brew to water espresso ratios.

When crafting a single espresso, you can adjust the volume from 0.8-3 ounces (25-90 milliliters). The machine is preset to 1.2 ounces (35.5 milliliters).

For “coffee,” more water is forced through the coffee puck.

And if you want an americano, the machine first brews an espresso, then adds hot water. Since the hot water spout is located directly alongside the brew group, you don’t have to get involved in this process.

While this creates the impression that it doesn’t have the same range of functions as a Breville espresso machine, the DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio simply doesn’t dance around the point of a hybrid machine: and that’s producing a specific type of coffee and then preparing milk froth automatically or with your help.

Using the basic beverage options, you can then go on to create just about any coffee specialty anyway.

Pressure Gauge

While Breville holds your hand through the espresso making process, DeLonghi simply expects you to roll up your sleeves and get on with it. Proudly placed in the middle of the control panel, the pressure gauge – which is so typical of prosumer espresso machines – is literally the centerpiece for this approach.

From what I can tell, the group of users most interested in hybrid machines is likely to regard this as a stylish boondoggle. After all, DeLonghi La Specialista branding and marketing is all about trumpeting how the espresso machine handles all the important stuff – pressure, consistent dosing and temperature – automatically.

Still, the gauge isn’t just a decorative crest; it’s a valuable tool for new home baristas to get a feel for the interaction between grind size and coffee dosage. But more on that later.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all in favor of DIY coffee making and pared-down machines with no more than the essentials. However, I can’t help feeling like this is an absolute entry-level espresso machine with a grinder bolted on, so that DeLonghi could jump on the hybrid bandwagon.

All of which doesn’t exactly add up to the watertight sales argument Breville has created. For example, the Breville Barista Touch is a patient teacher that gradually encourages users to make the transition away from automatic features to exploring and taking control.

Instead, DeLonghi throws you in the deep end from the beginning and expects you to swim – or in this case know how to dial in a coffee grinder and espresso machine, as well as what tricks and tweaks will produce the perfect cup.

Grinder

With a click, the 8.8-ounce (250-gram) bean hopper slides into and out of position above the grinder. This means you can easily access the stainless steel conical burrs and give them a thorough clean before changing coffee beans.

When the hopper runs low, a symbol will light up on the black control panel indicating that there are insufficient beans for the next shot. On the hopper itself, you’ll find the eight grind settings, which can be adjusted via a large slider during operation.

Right from the outset, I was leery of the play on this slider and its less than convincing quality. Spoiler alert: it’s all good. There are no issues with setting grind levels. In fact, the grinder works like a charm. In fact, when you set it to the finest level, it produces an awesome, espresso-quality grind.

With that said, I did find that the grinder was, overall, too limiting in its scope. In other words, eight adjustment settings really isn’t enough to dial in espresso shots to perfection.

One aspect of the DeLonghi La Specialista that’s worth making a noise about is its volume level, because it won’t drown you out. Both the grinder and brewing systems are unbelievably quiet. You’re still aware of them, but even when running the thing all day long, I wasn’t even a tiny bit worried about the neighbors complaining.

Dosing and Tamping

Next stop for the fresh grounds is the Smart Tamping Station. The portafilter docks securely into place with a click. As with the Breville Barista Express Impress, you have to pull a lever on the left side of the machine to tamp. This is something I’ll get back to in a bit.

Right from the beginning, I was looking forward to the one-armed bandit tamper. Yes, I’m a child at heart and not ashamed of it. The way it works is that a bunch of springs and mechanisms ensure that the built-in tamper exerts just the right amount of pressure to compact the grounds into a clean, evenly formed puck.

I was initially a bit disappointed. I gently gave the lever a short pull, only to find that the coffee grounds were compressed but the surface wasn’t flat enough. Pulling the lever a second time made the puck too hard.

While DeLonghi might claim this tamping system is perfect every time, I’d say that’s just not true. Finding the sweet spot in terms of lever-action and holding time is going to take some practice.

What’s more, a little feedback on my dose and tamp wouldn’t have gone awry. I mean, if the Australians can do it with the Barista Express Impress and the Breville Barista Touch Impress, why can’t the Italians manage something a little more helpful?

On a positive note, as far as its no-mess promises go, this DeLonghi espresso machine delivers. When used properly, the smart tamping station works spotlessly.

Portafilter

The DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio comes with a 51mm portafilter, which is bound to be controversial. You se, there’s a lot of debate surrounding portafilter size, and whether 58mm filter baskets are the ideal size for extraction.

To be honest, I’d rather not get involved, suffice to say I was more than happy with the DeLonghi portafilter’s size and build quality.

Incidentally, the Italian manufacturer has upped its filter basket game from the original La Specialista. With the Prestigio, you’ll get single-wall baskets instead of amateurish pressurized baskets. DeLonghi has obviously cottoned on to the fact that consumers now demand a more “authentic” experience when making espresso at home.

With all that said, there’s still an annoying plastic insert in the portafilter, which does nothing positive for your espresso. Breville is also guilty of doing this, and I always recommend trying to pry the plastic out of there.

Pre-Infusion

As you’d expect from such a sophisticated coffee maker, pre-infusion comes as standard with the DeLonghi La Specialista. That means a small amount of water is released onto the coffee puck before extraction, resulting in a more complex and well-rounded shot of espresso.

You don’t have to worry about adjusting settings – the pre-infusion stage is automatic. Still, it’s good to keep an eye on the pressure gauge to get a feel for how the process works.

Active Temperature Control

Depending on the roast profile of the coffee beans you’re using to make espresso, brewing temperature can have a significant impact on the results. That’s why I was so impressed by the La Specialista Prestigio’s Active Temperature Control function.

Not only is there a digital PID installed to help maintain consistency, you can choose from three temperature settings. For example, if you’re switching from a dark roast coffee blend to a light roast single origin coffee, you’ll likely want to increase the temperature accordingly.

Milk Foam

No ifs, ands or buts, I give the DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio a perfect 10 for its MyLatte Art steam wand. Seriously, the professional steam wand puts in a faultless performance. It does everything right. Incidentally, I ended up using soy milk during my DeLonghi La Specialista review because I forgot to buy moo juice.

Fortunately, there’s nothing this machine can’t handle. Sure, you’ll have to spend time practicing before you’ll feel comfortable making latte art. However, the steam pressure is more than sufficient for creating sumptuous microfoam.

Despite the non-dairy milk handicap and a totally excessive increase in volume, the froth was exactly the right temperature, delectably creamy and incredibly dense.

Thanks to the machine’s twin, independent thermoblocks, there’s no waiting around before the machine is ready to produce steam. In fact, it’s possible to steam milk and make espresso simultaneously.

Cup Height

During my DeLonghi La Specialista review, I dutifully performed the Ikea glass test. This involves trying to get a standard latte macchiato glass under the portafilter spout.

In this case, it’s a total fail. You can’t even stand it on the drip tray. But since you have to assemble a latte macchiato from its constituent parts anyway, it doesn’t actually matter.

What I really appreciated about the La Specialista Prestigio was its nifty little dropdown tray. You can use this when you’re making straight espresso, bringing your espresso cup closer to the sprouts to preserve the crema.

Accessories

Seeing as you’re paying significantly less than for a comparable Breville machine, you might be more likely to open your wallet. Unsurprisingly, there’s a lot less in the La Specialista box. Here’s what you get:

Not including an espresso knock box for banging out the used coffee pucks feels like a real oversight to me. I would also have liked to see a blind portafilter basket, because this makes deep cleaning the brew group a whole lot easier. Hey ho – I guess you can’t win ’em all!

How to Use the DeLonghi La Specialista Espresso Machine

To be honest, getting started with the DeLonghi La Specialista is a piece of cake.

As soon as you plug in the machine and turn on the main switch, the symbols on the DeLonghi La Specialista’s black panel come to life. These self-explanatory icons remind you, for instance, not to forget to tamp or that the bean hopper is almost empty.

The water tank is a very generous 67.6 ounces (2.0 liters). Although it’s located at the back of the machine, lifting it out from the top is easy. Anyway, after the testing phase of my DeLonghi La Specialista review the tank wasn’t even half empty.

Before you start dialing in your machine, you should first use hot water to rinse all the main removable parts. That includes the bean hopper, portafilter handle and filter baskets.

To flush the group head, use the button with the water droplets icon to the left of the OK button. Or you can just hit OK, as if pulling a shot. Oh, and it’s also a good idea to rinse the hot water outlet by pressing the teacup button.

As for the milk frother, don’t forget to give the huge dial on the right side of the machine a quick turn to purge the milk wand with steam.

My Observations

It was a serious scorcher on the day of my DeLonghi La Specialista testing. So, that’s my excuse for taking so long to figure out how to set the grind dosage. To begin with, I set the dose very low. A peek into the portafilter basket revealed that it looked pretty empty. I went ahead and brewed the espresso anyway.

Unsurprisingly, the pale, thin crema melted away faster than snow in the Bahamas.

Bit by bit, I increased the dosage until I hit pay dirt about a third of the way along the scale on the dial.

I set the grinder to the finest level right from the outset. Since the result was a fine, even grind, there was no need to change it again.

To be honest, the weird system for setting dosages on the DeLonghi La Specialista was getting on my nerves. The scale doesn’t have enough graduations and the dial is too clunky to really let you get a feel for how much ground coffee lands up in your portafilter.

Eventually, I got fed up and hauled out my coffee scale. My aim was to get me closer to the optimal 7 grams and try to get a handle on the thinking behind the machine. Why does the dosage scale go up so high? After all, there’s a separate button for double shots. Still beats me.

To give DeLonghi credit, the ideal dose for my dark beans was actually 7 grams. So, hooray for that!

Once you’re over the grinding hurdle, all you have to do is select your beverage on the rotary dial on the right of the control panel, dock the portafilter below the brew head and hit OK.

Out came the espresso. At the right temperature and at an appropriate volume. Check and check. Admittedly, I ultimately reduced the volume back down to the minimum of 25 milliliters (0.85 fluid ounces). In fact, the espresso was even pretty good with the machine left on its factory settings … after a few warm-up shots of course.

DeLonghi La Specialista Cleaning

Like all semi-automatic espresso machines, this DeLonghi espresso maker is relatively easy to keep spick and span because the coffee grounds never mix with water in the machine’s innards. The upshot is that mold isn’t a concern.

Wet coffee only collects at the brew group shower screen, so that’s the place where you want to stop the biology experiment before it starts. That’s easy enough to do. Just flush regularly by pressing the water droplet button.

The tube brush that comes in the box is long and flexible enough to scour the shower screen from below and can be inserted into the grinder channels to loosen coffee residues. Just remember to always work on the dry areas first and wet ones afterward. Otherwise, you could introduce moisture into the coffee grinding station. And no good will come of that.

All removable parts – including the portafilter, water tank, bean hopper and drip tray – can be easily cleaned by hand. Yes, by hand. Symbols on all of the plastic parts make it abundantly clear that the dishwasher is a no-go zone.

I don’t think the dishwasher is necessary anyway. With a little bit of old-fashioned elbow grease, you’ll get the machine sparkling from top to bottom.

Descaling DeLonghi coffee machines is simple; just pick up some DeLonghi Descaler from Amazon. I mean, it’s hard to argue with a product that has so many five-star reviews. If you follow the DeLonghi descaling instructions included with the box, you can’t go wrong.

DeLonghi La Specialista Specifications

DeLonghi La Specialista vs Breville Barista Express Impress

As an update to this article, I’d like to offer a quick comparison of the DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio with the Breville Barista Express Impress. I know a lot of aspiring home baristas are weighing the differences between these similarly priced machines, so l feel like I should give my opinions!

For $699.95, the Barista Express Impress is certainly in the same ball park price-wise. However,, it doesn’t have as steep of a learning curve as the La Specialista Prestigio. What’s more, you have 25 grind adjustment settings to play with if you opt for the Breville machine.

Still, the DeLonghi La Specialista has two boilers and a one-second quick-start feature that you don’t get with the Breville option.

While both machines have smart tamping capabilities, the Breville easily beats the DeLonghi machine in this regard. Thanks to an intuitive LED indicator scale, the Barista Express Impress gives feedback on your dose. Heck, there’s even a smiley face to greet you when everything looks good!

As much as I think the DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio is a decent hybrid espresso machine, the Breville Barista Express Impress just seems more well-conceived. Ultimately, I have to say I’d recommend it over the Italian machine.

See Also: Breville Barista Express Impress Review 2024

DeLonghi La Specialista vs Breville Barista Express Comparison Chart

Verdict: DeLonghi La Specialista Review

When compared directly with the Breville Oracle Touch, the DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio is much less in your face.

While the Breville machine plays the grade school teacher, watching over your shoulder every step of the way, La Specialista Prestigio is just there to oversee your final thesis. It’ll check in on you now and then but basically, you’re on your own.

The Delonghi La Specialista Prestigio is much more of a hands-on machine. Which is another way of saying that it requires espresso savvy and patience. Despite the fact that – in theory – semi-automatic espresso machines are directed at more inexperienced home baristas. Pros, on the other hand, would not only be tearing out their hair over how imprecise various settings are but also feel cheated out of certain subtleties.

If you’re patient and happy to get involved, you’ll get a solid hybrid that practically insists you get to grips with the nitty-gritty of brewing espresso. All for a very reasonable price tag.

This no-frills espresso machine does what it’s supposed to – make coffee – and does it fairly well. What’s more, the milk froth is truly excellent, cleaning is a breeze and it more than looks the part.

Just brace yourself for a whole lot more trial and error than you might have expected. This can be a real blast, as long as you’re not hoping to get the best results with the least amount of effort from the word go.

DeLonghi La Specialista FAQ