Coffee...

Working_Mum

I have been thinking about this and wonder if you should challenge yourself to try each suggestion - starting with the cheapest one first i.e a quality ground instant, then maybe a French press / cafetiere and then a stove top coffee maker - you have then worked through your options and you may be pleasantly surprised to find a simple way that you really love.

BlueonBlue

I tryed a number of coffee bags which are just like tea bags each in a small airtight bag you rip open 

One was really good I will update later when I find the Italian brand name which isnt common but is on amazon...the other were the British Airways inflight coffee bags which have had to pass taste tests.

All you need is a cup and a kettle and to pay for the bags its not as cost effective as pour over but is as simple as it gets to make anywhere with just a kettle and cup.

 I have also used pour over filter coffee and/or also grind my own beans for pour over... as all my past coffee machines broke for no reason .
They were obviously never made to last long with lots of daily use .

Pour over may not suit the taste buds of many but its very quick simple and probably the cheapest also takes up little to no counter top space .

jimi_man

I use one of these with a suitable grinder and coffee beans and I’m not going to pretend it’s a cheap option. But the coffee it produces is better than places like Pret, Costa, Starbucks etc. I’ve had it eight years and at 3 cups a day on average it probably hasn’t cost too much over the long term. We like decent coffee. 

Dizzycap

[Deleted User] said:

I am used to a daily coffee shop flat white or portadown but soon I may need to cut down due to budget and buying a house. 
I am here to ask what's the next best thing to a coffee shop which saves a bit of money?
I have expensive taste so won't be using instant coffee just want to reduce from £4 a day. 
I also value convenience so things like the pods interest me.
Finally I'm slowly going towards less milk so happy to try a new habit of black coffee .
I know my sister has a nespresso and mother has a tassimo, are those the way to go and buy pods in bulk?
Or are there other ways which are just as easy? I really don't like mess and granules etc.

Buy yourself a coffee machine and buy yourself a reusable pod/cylinder which you can use to put in fresh ground coffee in and fill a flask full before you go out/work and to use before and after work. There are some fantastic deals available on good quality ground coffee and you'll save a fortune, if you buy in bulk You can also use the used grounds to enhance your garden / plants  

MayDogsandCoffee

I buy ground coffee, as I drink 5 - 8 cups per day it produces the least waste, the grounds go on the garden.  I make a flask up on travel days.  I paid my mortgage off early and am on track for early retirement.  After living in Europe for many years and drinking decent coffee I think the likes of Starbucks, Costa etc should be burned to the ground - shoddy nasty coffee at inflated prices. 

denisiw

It's Nespresso for me.

I buy the pods from Nespresso when they're on offer, as they are at the moment: buy 380 pods get £40 off.  That's roughly a saving of 10p/pod, making it on average 35p/pod.

I like the high intensity coffees, and on average have 3 or 4 mugs every morning.  I use one of their milk frothers too.  I dispense the coffee into the mug, add the milk and then rinse the frother with another shot of water through the pod.

I recycle the aluminium pods using a Lakeland device that collects the grounds which go in the compost bin.

John_the_Boy

Had a Tassimo, it was ok. Changed to a Delonghi Dedica (around £180) and found it much better but a bit fiddly. I now use a £10 cup filter from Amazon and a paper filter and find I like the coffee this way almost as much as when done with the Delonghi. Still use the Delonghi when I have time otherwise I use the cup filter.

vacheron

jimi_man said:

I use one of these with a suitable grinder and coffee beans and I’m not going to pretend it’s a cheap option. But the coffee it produces is better than places like Pret, Costa, Starbucks etc. I’ve had it eight years and at 3 cups a day on average it probably hasn’t cost too much over the long term. We like decent coffee. 

Fine choice! 

We have the Giotto and it has been flawless for almost 10 years now, and we have definitely recovered the initial cost compared to paying for coffee shop coffee over that time. 


However, The OP mentioned they valued convenience, and so as I think it would be difficult to argue that these are "convenient" (this photo was taken as a reminder of what it "could" look like after about 2 hours cleaning the thing!). There are plenty of other choices.....

• A simple French press with good beans can give great results.
• A stovetop moka pot with good beans I would argue is even better as it can give more flavour and intensity.
• I've heard many good things about the Aeropress , but having never used one I can't comment. 

All are relatively inexpensive and give results so much better than instant if you are looking to moving away from milk towards black coffee and will both be cheaper AND will allow you to tailor your coffee to the way you like it much more than pod systems.

A half decent grinder at this point can also be valuable as you can buy beans in bulk which will keep longer and also can be ground to the consistency of the type of pot / machine you are using.

itsthelittlethings

They wanted convenience and no mess, I’m afraid a Nespresso machine seems like the answer to me.

vacheron

itsthelittlethings said:

They wanted convenience and no mess, I’m afraid a Nespresso machine seems like the answer to me.

Ah, I didn't spot the additional "I don't like mess" requirement as well. 
I don't like mess either.. which is why I just tidy up afterwards! 

They also said they wanted "the next best thing to a coffee shop", which, is what a prosumer coffee machine and good grinder like those above will achieve (actually probably better than most chain coffee shops), and a Nespresso pod machine will not (by comparison).

Even before you drew my attention to the additional "I don't like mess" comment at I was already thinking

"I want to save costs"  juxtaposed against:

"I have expensive tastes"
"I value convenience" and
"I want the next best thing to a coffee shop"

was already somewhat of a dichotomy!