Ultra hot or over ice? This compact coffee machine can brew through all weathers

If you've never come across Ninja's Luxe Café coffee machines before, you're in for a treat. While the brand might be better known for air fryers and blenders, it's spent more than a decade refining its coffee range, taking on established names like Sage and De'Longhi with capable espresso machines that don't intimidate beginners.

The Luxe Café Mini Plus is its smallest semi-automatic espresso machine yet, shrinking the footprint of the classic models by around 30% without sacrificing the integrated grinder, automatic steam wand or hands-on brewing experience that made the original Luxe Café such a success. It's designed for people who want café-quality coffee without surrendering half their worktop.

Having tested a whole range of coffee machines, from Sage's premium espresso machines to fully automatic bean-to-cup models, I was curious to see whether Ninja could genuinely deliver the same performance in a smaller package. After several weeks of brewing everything from straight espresso to iced lattes, I think this might be one of the smartest compact coffee machines currently available.

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Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus Espresso Machine review

• RRP: £499.99
• Weight: 8.8 kgs
• Dimensions: 26 x 31 x 35 cm (LWH)
• Cord length: 87.88cm
• Wattage: 1650 watts
• Grind sizes: 60
• Coffee settings: espresso, filter, steaming
• Included: portafilter, single and double baskets, funnel, assisted tamper, milk jug
• Warranty: 2 years
  

Who would the Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus Espresso Machine suit?

• Cold and hot coffee drinkers: this has a menu that spans both styles
• Smaller kitchens needing to save space: the compact design comes without compromise
• Coffee connoisseurs who like to feel like a barista: you can tweak and grind coffee like you would see in your local café
• Anyone looking for an alternative to the Sage Bambino: this is still compact and comes with a grinder integrated

The Luxe Café Mini Plus strikes a clever balance between convenience and control, so it'll appeal to a broad range of coffee aficionados.

If your coffee order changes with the weather, you'll appreciate that it handles both hot and iced drinks equally well. Espresso, americanos, filter coffee and iced coffees all sit on the same intuitive menu, while the automatic steam wand can produce everything from silky latte milk to cold foam.

It's also one of the best options I've tested for smaller kitchens. Integrated grinders are normally reserved for much larger machines, but Ninja has somehow squeezed one into a footprint that's compact, without making the machine feel cramped to use.

Finally, I'd recommend it to aspiring home baristas. It still asks you to grind, dose, tamp and lock in the portafilter yourself, so you learn proper espresso technique, but the machine quietly manages the trickier variables (grind recommendations, extraction and milk texturing) so it's difficult to make a truly bad coffee.

Unboxing the Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus Espresso Machine

Ninja continues to set the standard for packaging. Everything arrives securely protected with recyclable cardboard and moulded paper pulp rather than excessive plastic, and despite travelling through several couriers, every component arrived in immaculate condition.

Inside the box you'll find everything needed to get brewing immediately: the portafilter, single and double baskets, assisted tamper, dosing funnel, milk jug and cleaning accessories. The portafilter immediately stands out to me: I think it's a great way to gauge the quality of a coffee machine. And Ninja's doesn't disappoint. It has a reassuring weight that feels much closer to commercial equipment than you'd expect at this price point.

I also appreciate the amount of guidance Ninja builds into the setup. Protective stickers identify every component, there's a water hardness test strip for calibrating the machine correctly from day one, and several accessories tuck neatly into onboard storage, keeping the worktop surprisingly uncluttered.

What is the Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus Espresso Machine like to use?

One thing Ninja consistently gets right is deciding where automation improves the coffee-making experience. Rather than removing you from the process altogether, the Luxe Café Mini Plus automates the variables that usually trip beginners up, while leaving the satisfying parts firmly in your hands.

You still grind fresh beans, distribute the coffee, tamp the puck and lock the portafilter into place just like you would on a traditional espresso machine. The difference is that Ninja recommends the ideal grind size and handles extraction with impressive consistency, dramatically reducing the chances of under-extracted sour shots or bitter over-extraction.

As someone who enjoys making coffee manually, I think this is exactly the right balance. You still feel like the barista, but without the steep learning curve.

The first drink I always make is a double espresso because it reveals almost everything about a machine's brewing performance. Good espresso should have a thick, hazelnut-coloured crema, balanced acidity and enough body to carry the flavour notes through every sip.

Using Lavazza beans that I know well, the Luxe Café Mini Plus produced an impressive, punchy shot. Extraction was even across the puck, with no obvious signs of channeling, and the resulting espresso showcased the beans' chocolate and roasted hazelnut notes beautifully. The crema was dense and long-lasting, suggesting excellent pressure and thorough extraction of the coffee oils.

I made 10 shots, back to back, and the machine kept consistent flavours, extraction, and quantity. For a machine aimed at home users, it's remarkably consistent.

One of the easiest ways to ruin good espresso is by adding boiling water. Excessive temperatures flatten the sweeter tasting notes and exaggerate bitterness, leaving an americano that tastes harsh rather than balanced.

Thankfully, Ninja gets their temperature regulation right. The water integrates gently with the espresso, preserving its sweetness while producing a lighter-bodied cup that's noticeably smoother than many bean-to-cup machines I've tested. The only minor criticism is that the water can splash slightly against the rear panel during dispensing, although it's easy enough to wipe clean afterwards.

Automatic steam wands often produce foam that's either too airy or too thin, but Ninja has clearly refined its system. During testing, it produced glossy microfoam with a paint-like consistency that's remarkably close to what you'd expect from a trained barista.

I tested whole milk alongside oat and soy alternatives across every texture setting, and each produced stable foam with excellent definition. Latte mode creates silky milk that's ideal for simple latte art, while cappuccino mode introduces just enough extra air without becoming dry or bubbly. The cold foam was also really delicious, creating dense, velvety foam that transformed iced lattes.

For experienced users, the wand can also be switched into manual mode by pulling it forwards, giving you complete control over milk texturing.

As an enthusiastic iced coffee drinker, I tried all of the cooler recipes, which are designed to be brewed over ice. If you did this with hot coffee, it would taste bitter and acidic, so this slight tweak can really help to keep all the delicious flavours from your beans, but for your iced drinks. The iced espresso surprised me the most, because it can be the most exposing colder coffee to make: iced lattes are sweetened by milk and iced filter coffee is mellow already. The iced espressos were surprisingly delicate. I could still taste the familiar flavours of hot coffee that's cooled (which is a little more acidic than cold brew), but these were much more mellow than you would get from any coffee shop, meaning it gets my wholehearted seal of approval.

Filter coffee might seem like an unusual choice for a UK market. It's popular in America and has been getting more attention across the pond recently, but for Ninja to dedicate space on their machine for classic, rich, and iced filter coffee must mean that it's exceptionally good. As someone who has drunk litres of filter coffee when I used to test machines for an American brand, I'm seriously impressed with the different options.

Classic filter coffee gets the mellow, simple flavours of this brewing style spot on. The rich filter coffee, is a more intense flavour that you can absolutely differentiate between: it's the dark chocolate to the milk chocolate of the classic brew. Finally, and very seasonally, the iced brew is a beautiful drink for warmer weather. It's delicate and light, perfect with a dash of coconut milk. All in all, the quality of the filter function could be enough to convert you.

Cleaning and maintaining the Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus Espresso Machine

Cleaning the Ninja is low-maintenance. After each milk drink, the steam wand automatically purges itself, removing residual milk before it has a chance to bake onto the nozzle and clog up the pipes. It's a small touch, but one that dramatically reduces the daily upkeep that often puts people off espresso machines.

Ninja also includes thoughtful maintenance extras, including a water hardness testing strip, descaler and dedicated cleaning brushes. The drip tray and water tank all slide out easily for rinsing, and I was pleasantly surprised that the brushed stainless steel panels resisted fingerprints far better than many competitors.

How does the Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus Espresso Machine compare?

The closest rival isn't actually another brand, it's Ninja's own Luxe Café range. The larger Luxe Café offers additional drink presets, more onboard storage and cold brew functionality, making it a better choice for households where coffee is a daily essential. However, unless you'll use those extra features, the Mini Plus delivers almost the same brewing experience in a significantly smaller footprint.

Its biggest external rival is Sage's Bambino Plus. While Sage remains one of my favourite espresso machines, the Bambino Plus requires a separate grinder, which ultimately occupies more counter space than Ninja's integrated solution. It also focuses almost exclusively on espresso, whereas Ninja broadens its appeal with filter coffee, iced drinks and far greater automation.

Should you buy the Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus Espresso Machine?

After testing dozens of coffee machines over the past few years, I've found that compact models almost always ask you to compromise. They usually lose the grinder, simplify the milk system or strip back drink options to save space.

The Luxe Café Mini Plus manages to avoid almost all of those sacrifices. It delivers faultless filter coffee, excellent espresso, produces some of the best automatic milk texturing I've tested, and still gives you enough manual involvement to make brewing feel rewarding rather than robotic.

Its biggest limitation is the maximum 235ml drink size, which may disappoint anyone who prefers oversized mugs of coffee. I'd also miss the cold brew function from Ninja's larger Luxe Café models.

Otherwise, this is an impressively well-rounded machine. If you want café-quality coffee but don't have room for a full-sized setup, I think the Ninja Luxe Café Mini Plus is one of the strongest compact espresso machines you can currently buy.

How we test coffee machines

At woman&home, we have a standardised process for how we test coffee machines. As a former barista, I set the standard high with the flavours, consistency, and speed that I expect from a coffee machine. I always make sure to research a model before writing about it, to see what the brand says about it and what the special features are. Then, I pay close attention to these, as well as the basics, to see how well the coffee machine stands up to market leading models. I also look at how it compares, what it's like to clean, and anything else that you should know before you make a purchase. By the end of the review, you should know everything you need to know. However, if you want a deeper dive, you can visit our dedicated page for how we test coffee machines.