I’d be lying if I said I was a bargain hunter. In fact, most of the time, I just buy what I want and enjoy it. I don’t like price-shopping, price-hunting, or anything similar. I know way too many people who put off buying something they’ll enjoy while I enjoy it in the meantime.

Not for me.

One night, Beth and I were walking through Linens and Things. They’re next to Starbucks, which we’re in all the time, so it isn’t unusual for us to drop in there once or twice a week. One night, after having a particularly good experience at the greatest Starbucks in the world, we were walking around and we saw it. There, sitting among many amazing Christmas bargains, was something we wanted to buy but couldn’t justify at the typical price we were seeing.

It was an espresso machine. Even though it was a small one, it was a deal that was so amazing, Beth and I were convinced that it was a misprint. While we were seeing machines at their cheapest for $300, this one was sitting there in a pile of plenty others, for a mere $34.99. Beth and I reasoned that even if it was the worst piece of crap ever created, it was a lost we could afford to take. We snapped up the machine and took it home, visions of mochas and lattes dancing in our heads.

On Friday, we were playing around in the kitchen. Beth was making Latkes and I was playing with the espresso machine. I managed, on the first try to churn out a mocha and a latte that were pretty damned good. Oh sure, they weren’t perfect, but for a first try with the wrong grounds, I did a damned good job if I do say so myself. I do, however, think that a lot of it had to do with the amount of tools I had:

I bought an espresso thermometer from Starbucks, to make sure that the milk hit the magic 160 degrees F.

I bought a steaming pitcher for frothing the milk.

I bought a mortar and pestle for packing the coffee grounds into the box.

And of course, we had a bottle of Starbucks Vanilla Syrup and a can of Starbucks Mocha Powder.

The little plastic espresso machine (which really isn’t that bad a machine, actually, it’s made by Sensio) did a hell of a job and exceded our expectations dramatically. I highly recommend that if you’re looking at them and aren’t interested in spending $300, give it a go. It’s not a big investment and if you’re disappointed, it won’t sting so bad
Link: Linens -n- Things