In her spare time, she enjoys reading, gaming on her Nintendo Switch and creating digital art. Jessica is a seasoned caffeine-addict who spent 3 years behind the bar. Her early coffee days took her from the commercial Starbucks keurig latte maker scene in urban DC all the way to helping launch a craft coffee shop in California. Today she prefers sharing her years of coffee capers through media, although you’ll find she does it with a trusty cup of coffee by her side.
Read our Keurig K-Café review to find out if this all-in-one coffee machine is the best choice for you. Whether you want a travel mug of black coffee for the road or a foamy latte to savor at home, the K-Cafe is the brewer that can do it all. “After you brew a cup of coffee, will give you recipe recommendations that are perfect for that pod,” explains Keurig VP of Keurig Experiences Annie Oh.
And if you’re expecting the sort of rich espresso with thick crema that you get from your local coffee shop, you’re liable to be disappointed. It’s key to understand the difference between steamed and frothed milk so you have realistic expectations when preparing your first drink with the machine. The former is made by heating milk with a wand that emits keurig coffee pressured steam; the milk is injected with tiny bubbles, called microfoam, giving lattes that velvety texture. Steamed milk is less voluminous but has a thicker mouthfeel. Frothing, on the other hand, creates a more cloud-like foam that, while light and airy, dissipates quicker. Frothing works for cappuccinos, but steaming is considered best for lattes.
Keurig K Cafe won’t work with other pods besides k cups. You can’t use Nespresso classic, Vertuoline, or Keurig Rivo pods in this machine. Keurig K Cafe does not offer temperature control or auto ON. It does have auto off feature, and it will keurig coffee automatically turn off 2 hours after the last brew. You can disable the auto off feature if you wish to keep the coffee maker on all time. Are you planning on starting your day with a frothy coffee without having to queue at Starbucks?
The milk doesn’t pour automatically into your coffee cup, but the pitcher is well designed for pouring. The K-Café is slightly more involved than that, but only slightly. It has lots of intuitive controls, including a choice of coffee or latte and cappuccino brewing, four cup sizes, and a strong option. When we tested this model, we found the coffee flavor quite good, and the espresso shots — though not actually espresso — were strong and rich. In addition to the four standard coffee sizes, there’s an option to brew single or double espresso shots.
If you’re in the market for a new Keurig and plan on making a lot of lattes, you’ll want to get a Keurig from the K-Cafe line. These Keurigs offer the “shot” button and have a built-in milk frother. You’ll then prepare your milk the same way you would for an iced latte. Pour chilled milk into your milk frother up to the LATTE line and press the cold button before pressing start.
Your coffee maker heats, then brews in one simple process. No need to wait for it to heat before selecting your cup size. As previously mentioned, I’m a hard sell when it comes to pod coffee makers. But I was pleasantly surprised at the experience of drinking a Green Mountain Dark Magic 10-ounce coffee from this machine.
The bottom line is that this is an impressive single-serve brewer. The K-Café can brew a range of drinks, works with all K-Cups, and features an easy-to-use, effective milk frother. It has an impressive set of controls, like brew size and strength options, and useful features like descaling and low water alerts. Keurig K-Cafe is actually known for making great lattes and cappuccinos. It includes a milk frother cup for making these types of drinks. Plus, you still have the basic coffee to which we’ve all become accustomed.
Complement your kitchen with the premium nickel colored finish, metal handle and drip tray. The app gives recipes for every café-style beverage you can think of, and step-by-step directions to make them. You can set up your customized brew and control the machine directly from the app. You no longer have digital access to ratings and reviews. Unfortunately for Keurig, the Rivo proved too challenging to maintain as you needed special Rivo pods.