AdrianN wrote:Actually, if you are the type who 1. doesn't mind a bit of tinkering and 2. is capable to shop carefully on craigslist/fleabay and so on you can end up with a very good setup while spending very little money. This isn't for everyone, of course, but I think there are quite a few guys here who can vouch for this approach.

Yes! I got my direct-connect Oscar on Craigslist for $300. It was in pretty good shape overall, even with a leaky steam valve and a lot of use with little apparent cleaning or maintenance. I took it apart, cleaned it up, replaced the steam valve & wand, diffuser / screen / screw / grouphead gasket, and the PF baskets. I cut out the bottom out of one of the PFs, flushed and backflushed it thoroughly - and now I have a fine working Oscar with a Sirai pstat.

I still have to replace the red rubber-like tubing from the left side of the grouphead down to the drain pan, and it'll get a vacuum valve when I get around to it. As I don't use a timer, I'm not in a hurry to add this - I just open the steam knob during start-up and it works fine. Total investment is a bit under $500 and a few hours of my time. Not too shabby!

From being to Italy fair number of times I can vouch for the Moka pot at home and espresso at any street corner that already has been reported, but not for the claim that you will get great stuff everywhere...

Some of the best ristretto's I ever had were in Naples, and the very best strangely enough in the cafetaria of a hospital where an ancient lever was in use, being loaded by an old chap with what seemed to be close to a turkish grind resulting an incredibly slooooooooow double ristretto that was just GREAT.

Typically you can judge the quality from the type of equipment and how the barista operates, in some of the larger towns some cafes nowadays 'western style' full auto machines and actually sell that crap...so keep your eyes peeled before you order.

I used to live in Italy. Everybody has not one moka pot, but usually three or four of various sizes depending on how many guests you have. When travelling for my job even the hotels I stayed in had mini kitchens and moka pots in the rooms.

My friends have a Europiccola, but it doesn't get that much use (I'm hoping to change that when I see them again in 9 days or so).

Espresso is everywhere, and cheap. Across the street from my apartment was a government subsidized bar caffè where an espresso cost .35 euro, and the foosball was free! It also featured the same faces everyday, so I was guaranteed to meet some friends and have a good conversation or two every time walked in. No need to buy an expensive espresso machine with a culture that does everything it can to provide you coffee at every opportunity.

Also of note, espresso is free at certain Autogrills (highway rest areas/gas stations every few kilometers or so) from the hours of 2 to 5 in the morning, as a service to keep motorists awake during the twilight hours.

dominico wrote:Also of note, espresso is free at certain Autogrills (highway rest areas/gas stations every few kilometers or so) from the hours of 2 to 5 in the morning, as a service to keep motorists awake during the twilight hours.

The Autogrills have great pastries too, but not free as I vaguely remember.

"a government subsidized bar caffè"

Park the batmobile.

I sense Americans might spend more on expensive espresso machines in their homes, per capita than Italians and I'm starting to understand why.

dominico wrote:I used to live in Italy. Everybody has not one moka pot, but usually three or four of various sizes depending on how many guests you have.

This is also common in the Caribbean - not just in houses, but college dorms as well.

dominico wrote:I used to live in Italy. Everybody has not one moka pot, but usually three or four of various sizes depending on how many guests you have. When travelling for my job even the hotels I stayed in had mini kitchens and moka pots in the rooms.

My friends have a Europiccola, but it doesn't get that much use (I'm hoping to change that when I see them again in 9 days or so).

Espresso is everywhere, and cheap. Across the street from my apartment was a government subsidized bar caffè where an espresso cost .35 euro, and the foosball was free! It also featured the same faces everyday, so I was guaranteed to meet some friends and have a good conversation or two every time walked in. No need to buy an expensive espresso machine with a culture that does everything it can to provide you coffee at every opportunity.

Also of note, espresso is free at certain Autogrills (highway rest areas/gas stations every few kilometers or so) from the hours of 2 to 5 in the morning, as a service to keep motorists awake during the twilight hours.

of course you can't forget the pannini "sempre pronto" at every auto grill as well. that was always my roadtrip survival routine benzina/espresso/pannino every stop. always got me where I was going.

JohnB. wrote:So if most Italians only have Moka Pots in their homes who originally bought all the Caravels, La Peppinas, Faeminas & other small espresso machines in the 50's, 60's & 70's?

Looking at the advertisement these machines were intended for home use, and the large numbers sold imply they were successful....

My guess would be that the Faeminas, caravels etc ended up in the more upper class households in those days...my Faemina would have cost some 47000lira in 1954 Which I reckon was close to a three quarter of a months wages, considering a historical conversion rate calculator linking this amount to 317 german mark.