Breville Milk Frother Review: Is The Milk Cafe Worth It?

The Breville Milk Cafe is large and expensive, but it’s also one of the best frothers on the market.

Enjoying a frothy cappuccino or creamy latte in the comfort of your own home is always a treat. But home espresso machines are expensive, and steaming milk is a tough skill to master. An automatic frother is a great alternative. 

I think the Breville Milk Cafe milk frother is one of the best on the market, but admittedly, it’s also one of the most expensive. In this review, I’ll tell you what I love about this milk frother and why I think it’s worth your money.

The Full Breville Milk Frother Review

This section of the review is all about the details. I’ll dig into how the Breville Milk Café milk frother works, how it compares to the other top milk frothers on the market, and how it justifies its high price point. Ultimately, it may not be the best milk frother for every coffee lover, so keep reading to find out if it’s right for you.

How I Rated It

• Design
• Features
• Ease of Use
• Value for Money

4.3

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What Does (And Doesn’t) The Milk Cafe Do?

The Milk Cafe is the most feature-packed electric milk frother I’ve come across. More complexity isn’t always a good thing, but in this case, I appreciate the options and control.

It relies on induction heating, which is a common choice for premium milk frothers for a good reason. It produces a gentle and even heat that allows for the formation of tiny bubbles as the milk is aerated. 

Temperature Control

The biggest reason to consider the Milk Cafe frother is that it’s one of very few that allows you to set the desired temperature of your milk foam precisely. Most offer no control or have only a few settings, like cool, warm, and hot. 

The Milk Cafe lets you choose a specific temperature using the knob on the front. It’s labeled from 120 ℉ to 160 ℉, but you can set it outside that range, from about 100 ℉ to 180 ℉ – bearing in mind that dairy milk will scald at 180 ℉ (1). 

Breville breaks its frothing temperature range down into four zones:

• The cold stir setting doesn’t heat the milk at all. It just spins the frothing disc to create cold milk foam.
• The warm range falls below about 130 ℉. This range is useful when preparing certain non-coffee drinks or warming milk for children.
• The optimal range falls between about 130 ℉ and 150 ℉. This is the ideal temperature for steamed dairy milk, the point at which the milk has the perfect balance of sweetness and creamy froth texture. If you order a latte at a specialty coffee shop, you can expect the milk to be about 140 ℉.
• The hot range starts above about 150 ℉. This is the temperature setting for anyone who likes their latte or cappuccino a little warmer than average, and it’s also helpful in preparing hot cocoa. Just be careful not to stray too hot into scalded milk territory.

It might seem counterintuitive to include ranges that aren’t “optimal,” but I think this wide range of temperatures is a big selling point of this model. 

First, everyone has different tastes. Just ask a Starbucks barista how many times a day they get special temperature requests. Indeed, the ideal temperature for steamed or frothed milk isn’t a hard-and-fast rule (2).

Second, the current popularity of plant-based alternative milks means that the optimum temperature for frothed dairy isn’t always optimal. Soy milk, almond milk, and oat milk don’t behave the same as traditional whole milk when heated (3). 

Texture Control

This is another key feature, in my opinion. If you’re somewhat of a coffee nerd, you know that the milk texture in a latte is not the same as in a cappuccino (4). Many cheaper frothers don’t bother to make this distinction, trusting that you’ll just be happy enough with any old foam.

The Breville Milk Cafe frother comes with two frothing discs, which are magnetic for easy swapping in and out.

• The latte frothing disc produces a finer, pourable foam with a creamy mouthfeel.
• The cappuccino frothing disc creates a thick and creamy froth that is spoonable and will float on top of your coffee.

I found that both discs worked as advertised. There was a clear difference in the two results. The latte disc doesn’t quite achieve the silky microfoam of milk frothed with a steam wand, but it’s reasonably close. You can even use it to pour basic latte art, like a heart.

Testing Other Drinks

Thanks to its large temperature range, the Milk Cafe is much more than just a milk frother – as its name suggests. You can use it to make any beverage that benefits from gentle heat and vigorous stirring, and I had a lot of fun experimenting with different drinks.

Making hot chocolate is an obvious choice and does it exceptionally well. You haven’t truly enjoyed hot chocolate until you’ve tried it frothed! You can also make alcoholic drinks like mulled wine and buttered rum or tea-based drinks like a chai latte. One of my favorite frothy treats is a version of Irish coffee that adds chocolate powder and a touch of Baileys Irish Cream to the milk as it froths.

Using The Breville Milk Cafe

There is always a balance between features and ease of use. The more an appliance can do, the harder it is to learn how to do it all. Some brands strike this balance better than others, and Breville is one of the best. The Breville Milk Cafe frother is a piece of cake to master, even if you’re someone like me who tends to neglect User Manuals.

The center of the knob is the Start/Stop button while turning the knob acts as the temperature control. It’s as easy as that. It stops heating automatically when it reaches the set temperature. So you can start it and make your coffee without giving it another thought.

Cleaning Is So Easy!

A major perk of the induction heating system is that the milk jug is very easy to clean. It doesn’t need to plug into the power base in any way. It’s just a stainless steel cup, so you can toss it on the top rack of your dishwasher. Likewise, the discs and measuring cap lid are dishwasher safe.

Large But Attractive

Breville products all share a similar aesthetic. You know what I mean if you’ve seen one. They’re stainless steel, with smooth curves, clean lines, and white/blue LEDs. they’re friendly and approachable, with a look that is modern but not severe. 

The Breville Milk Cafe milk frother stays true to this look. It’s an attractive small appliance that will look right at home in any modern kitchen, especially if you have stainless steel appliances. And if you are pairing it with a Breville coffee maker, you’ll love how nicely the two match.

The most apparent design aspect of the Breville Milk Cafe milk frother is its size. It’s one of the largest milk frothers available, which can be a pro or a con depending on your needs. It measures 6.4″ wide by 6.4″ deep by 10.4″ tall – almost the size of a small coffee maker – and it has a 3-cup capacity. 

Bigger households, or small households of enthusiastic milk drinkers, will appreciate the large size. You can easily prepare an extra-large latte or make enough frothed milk for a few drinks simultaneously. On the other hand, if you’re hoping to just make a cortado for one, the large capacity will be overkill. And you’ll be annoyed by the amount of space it occupies on your counter or in your cupboards.

Breville lists 6 ounces as the minimum amount of milk you can froth, which is quite a lot. I mean, a classic cappuccino uses only 4 ounces of milk. That said, in my experience, you can get away with substantially less. I experimented with frothing as little as 3 ounces. The texture isn’t perfect because the smaller volume of milk heats to temperature before it’s fully aerated, but it’s still an enjoyable froth and a good alternative to wasting milk.

Thoughtful Design Decisions

The measuring cap lid is a great example of Breville’s commitment to functional design. It has a hole in the center so you can add ingredients while frothing milk, but the enclosed edges keep splashes under control. 

I’ve found this particularly useful when I’m frothing milk for hot cocoa because it’s nice to let the milk heat up before adding the hot chocolate powder mix. The lid also features a ring-shaped handle that makes it easy to remove even though the seal is impressively tight.

The storage for the extra frothing disc is another nice detail. Whichever disc is not in use can be magnetically affixed in a storage space on the power base. These little discs are easy to lose, so this is a smart addition.

Is The Breville Milk Frother Worth It?

The Breville Milk Cafe is one of the more expensive automatic milk frothers available, at around $150, so it’s essential to consider how its performance stacks up against its cost. In this case, I think you’re getting what you pay for. The Milk Cafe costs more than other frothers because it does more than other frothers.

These features are a must for anyone serious about cafe-style espresso drinks, and that goes double if you use a mix of dairy and plant-based milks in your coffee drinks. If you have a fancy espresso or coffee machine, all the must-have espresso accessories, and you’re investing in specialty coffee beans, don’t ruin your morning brew with subpar milk froth.

That said, I’m willing to admit my bias as a coffee geek. If you just want reliably warm and foamy milk to make your coffee feel a little special, there is no reason to spend big on the Milk Cafe. My dad, for example, has a Moka pot paired with a Nespresso Aeroccino, and he absoutely loves it. He is not trying to mimic a professional coffee shop.

Another perk of the induction heating system is that the milk jug is very easy to clean. It doesn’t need to plug into the power base in any way, and it’s just a stainless steel milk jug so that you can toss it on the top rack of your dishwasher. Likewise, the discs and measuring cap lid are dishwasher safe.

Don’t Buy the Breville Milk Cafe Milk Frother If…

• You don’t care about heating the milk: If you’re mostly making cold milk foam, or you don’t mind heating milk separately on the stovetop or in a microwave, then you can save a lot of money and space with a handheld manual frother. I like the Subminimal Nanofoamer, but even the dirt-cheap Zulay whisk will do the job.

• You want something more compact: If you have a small kitchen with limited storage, the Nespresso Aeroccino 3 or 4 are great choices, measuring just 3.5” in diameter and 6” tall. They’re less expensive but don’t allow the same degree of control over milk temperature and texture.

• You want something with a funky style: The Smeg milk frother is one of few on the market that rivals Breville in terms of features – and price and size (5). But it sets itself apart with the brand’s signature retro style and fun color options: white, black, pastel pink, cream, pastel blue, pastel green, and red. A perfect way to give your coffee bar a boost.

The Verdict

I was very impressed with the design and performance of the Breville Milk Café. As one of the market’s most expensive and largest milk frothers, I know it’s not for everyone. But in this case, you get what you pay for. 

If you want the most control over your milk temperature and texture – whether making cold foamed milk for an iced coffee or creamy hot milk for an espresso drink – I think it’s well worth spending the extra cash on this automatic milk frother.

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