KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine KF3 - Porcelain white

The KitchenAid KF3 is a bean-to-cup machine that brews hot and over ice, textures milk automatically, and stands just 19.5 cm wide, 7.7 inches. Seventeen one-touch recipes, a 2.4 inch colour touchscreen, four profiles, and a Quiet Mark certified grinder.

This is the compact automatic. It grinds fresh, doses, brews and froths the milk without you touching any of it, on a footprint narrow enough for a condo counter and quiet enough to use at six in the morning. The milk comes through a hose you drop into whatever container you like, which is either a small annoyance or a convenience depending on whether you would rather wash a jug or just use the carton.

Highlights

• 17 one-touch recipes hot and over ice, from espresso and americano to cappuccino, latte and flat white, with true double shots
• Over-ice mode brewing cooler and rebalancing the extraction, so cold drinks taste clean rather than bitter and watery
• Automatic milk system with dual delivery from the main spout, adjusting flow and density to the drink, with no wand technique to learn
• 19.5 cm wide, 7.7 inches, narrow enough to fit where most bean-to-cup machines will not
• QuietGrind, Quiet Mark certified, so the grinder is noticeably quieter than most first thing in the morning
• IntelliGrind reads the bean and roast and adjusts grind and dose to match, so you are not recalibrating every time you change bag
• Coffee bypass chute, so one decaf in the evening does not mean emptying the hopper
• Four user profiles on a 2.4 inch colour touchscreen, with strength, volume and temperature adjustable per drink

Who it's for

• Condos, apartments and open-plan kitchens, where the width and the noise both matter
• Iced coffee drinkers who want it brewed for the purpose rather than improvised over ice cubes
• Anyone coming off pods who wants fresh-ground coffee and hands-free milk drinks for the same effort

Three things to be clear about. The milk container is not in the box. KitchenAid supplies a hose that sits in any jug or carton you already own, and sells a matching container separately, so you can use it from day one either way. The over-ice setting is not cold brew: it brews at the lowest temperature the machine runs, around 60 degrees Celsius, so ice goes in the cup first and the drink chills as it pours. And this is a fully automatic machine, so no portafilter and no tamping. If making the coffee yourself is the appeal, we will show you the machines that are.

Living with it

Day to day, say yes when it prompts the milk rinse, and empty the grounds container and drip tray. Rinse the hose and put your milk back in the fridge. That is the whole daily job.

Then periodically, the touchscreen tells you when a cleaning cycle or a descale is due and walks you through it, and the brew unit comes out to be rinsed. Cleaning tablets and a water filter are in the box. Fit the filter and set your water hardness on day one and descaling stays rare.

FAQs

• Is a milk container included?
  No, and it is worth knowing before you buy. The box includes the milk hose, which sits in any container you like, so a carton or a jug from your own cupboard works fine. KitchenAid sells a matching container separately if you would rather have one made for the machine. Ask us when you order and we will confirm which one fits.
• How does the iced coffee work, and is it cold brew?
  It is not cold brew. The machine brews at the lowest temperature it runs, around 60 degrees Celsius, and rebalances the extraction so the coffee stays clean as it cools. Ice goes in the cup first and the drink chills on the way down.
• Do I need to know anything about making espresso?
  No. It grinds, doses, brews and textures the milk on its own. You choose the drink on the touchscreen and it does the rest: no portafilter, no tamping, no steam wand technique.
• Is it quiet enough for an apartment?
  Quieter than most. QuietGrind is Quiet Mark certified, an independent noise certification rather than a marketing phrase, and at 19.5 cm or 7.7 inches wide it takes far less counter than most bean-to-cup machines.
• Can I make one decaf without emptying the hopper?
  Yes. There is a coffee bypass chute, so you can drop in a scoop of decaf for one drink and leave your usual beans where they are.
• Can it remember how different people take their coffee?
  Yes, four profiles. Each holds its own drinks at its own strength, volume and temperature, so nobody resets anything.
• What is the warranty, and who fixes it if something goes wrong?
  KitchenAid covers the KF3 with a 2 year limited warranty, an extended 3 year limited parts warranty on the grinder, and a 10 year parts and service availability commitment. Coffee Warehouse is a KitchenAid warranty and service centre, so if it needs work it is handled by the people who sold it to you. Call us at 1-888-742-1777.

Specifications

• Type: Fully automatic bean-to-cup coffee machine
• Drinks: 17 one-touch recipes, hot and over ice, with true double shot
• Iced coffee: Over-ice mode, brewed at around 60 degrees Celsius
• Display: 2.4 inch colour touchscreen
• User profiles: 4
• Grinder: Steel conical burr, IntelliGrind, QuietGrind, Quiet Mark certified
• Bean hopper: 250 g, plus a coffee bypass chute
• Milk system: Automatic, dual delivery from the main spout, milk hose included and container sold separately
• Adjustments: Coffee strength, volume, brew temperature, milk volume
• Water tank: 1.8 L, around 16 espresso shots per fill
• Dimensions (W × D × H): 19.5 × 47 × 36 cm, or 7.7 × 18.5 × 14.2 in
• Weight: 9 kg, 22.3 lb
• Warranty: 2 year limited, 3 year limited on grinder parts, 10 year parts and service availability
• In the box: 1.8 L water tank, water filter, milk hose, brew unit cleaning tablets, ground coffee scoop

Why buy from Coffee Warehouse?

• We are a KitchenAid warranty and service centre, so warranty work and repairs are done by us, not couriered off to someone you have never spoken to
• Two Ontario showrooms, Markham and Richmond Hill, where we will pull you an iced drink and let you hear the grinder yourself, plus live virtual demos if you are not nearby
• We will sort the milk container with you, so you know before it arrives whether you want the matching one or will use a jug from your own kitchen
• Free shipping and financing available
• Toll-free support at 1-888-742-1777, before you buy and long after