I tried the Lavazza A Modo Mio Deséa and it makes café-style coffee at home so easy - but there is a cost

A gadget that promises to make a really good coffee at home without turning the kitchen into a mini café is going to get the attention of any coffee lover.

The Lavazza A Modo Mio Deséa is designed for just that purpose, and aims to make creating coffee as simple as possible, with one-touch preparation for a selection of coffee and milk-based drinks.

There are five milk-based recipes and four different coffee sizes to choose from, so there is plenty of variety depending on what you fancy. For me, the biggest appeal is how quick and easy it is. All you have to do is put in a Lavazza A Modo Mio capsule, choose your drink and let the machine do the work (which also takes less than 30 seconds).

In has been made to give you that café-style experience without having to learn complicated settings or spend ages preparing your drink. So, has the Deséa become a kitchen favourite in my house?

What I like about this Lavazza coffee machine

The simplicity is probably my favourite thing about the Deséa. When I want a coffee, I don't want to spend ages preparing it, particularly first thing in the morning, and this machine makes the whole process very straightforward.

The touch interface is intuitive and the drinks are selected at the press of a button. You can choose from drinks including cappuccino, latte macchiato, espresso, long coffee and long espresso, while the milk functions allow you to create hot or cold milk foam.

That variety is another big plus. I'm not someone who wants the same coffee every day, so being able to switch between different drinks depending on my mood makes the machine much more enjoyable to use. The variety available comes through the range of available pods, so I can experiment with different coffees and flavours.

It really does make having a café-style coffee at home feel achievable, but crucially there’s no faffing about trying to do various different steps yourself. In fact, anyone, even complete coffee novices, can use this machine as it’s just a case of pressing buttons.

I also like the temperature boost function. If you prefer your coffee particularly hot, you can increase the temperature at the touch of a button, while the foam control lets you adjust the amount of milk foam. So, even though the machine is doing the work you can still tailor it to suit your personal tastes.

The machine is also compact so it doesn’t dominate the worktop. That means it will find a home in even the smallest and busiest of kitchens. At 145mm wide, it is slim for a machine of this type, while the 1.1-litre water tank means you don't need to refill it after every couple of coffees.

And considering how quickly it works, I was pleased by how quietly it operates. Lavazza says it does not exceed 43dB, making it a much less disruptive addition to the kitchen than some coffee machines can be.

What I don't like about this Lavazza coffee machine

There isn't a huge amount I dislike about the Deséa itself, but the initial cost, and the ongoing cost, is something I'd definitely consider before buying.

The machine itself is £249, which is quite costly, though I know it’s reasonable when comparing it many other coffee machines on the market. You do need A Modo Mio capsules to make your coffees too. Prices start at £6.45 for a box of 16 capsules, so if you're drinking several coffees a day, the cost of buying pods can quickly add up. But, it will still be much cheaper than buying multiple café coffees a week.

The price is the trade-off for convenience and ease though. I look at it as you're paying for the speed and simplicity of having a capsule machine rather than buying beans or ground coffee and doing everything yourself.

The other thing to be aware of is cleaning. Like any coffee machine, the Deséa needs regular care if you want it to continue working properly and producing good coffee. Lavazza recommends descaling roughly every three months, although this can be needed more frequently in hard-water areas. I do live in a hard water area, and I find I have had to clean it more frequently.

It's not particularly difficult to maintain, but it is an extra job that needs to be factored into your coffee routine. The machine does have a descaling indicator to let you know when attention is required though, which makes it easier to keep on top of.

My Verdict

I think the Lavazza A Modo Mio Deséa is a great choice if convenience is high on your list when it comes to making coffee at home.

What I like most is that it makes coffee preparation simple and straightforward. You don’t need the skills of a barista to use this machine, far from it. It heats up quickly, the controls are simple and there is a genuinely good range of drinks to choose from.

For anyone who enjoys cappuccinos, lattes and other milk-based coffees, it also offers a much easier way of recreating that coffee-shop experience at home.

The £249 price tag means it's not the cheapest capsule machine around, and you also need to factor in the ongoing cost of the pods. But if you're someone who would otherwise be spending money regularly at a coffee shop, the convenience of being able to make your favourite drinks at home could make it a worthwhile investment.

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