Can we talk about the espresso at those tiny coffee pop-ups in hardware stores?

I was at Ace Hardware in Portland last weekend picking up a new shower head (don't ask) and there was this little espresso cart squeezed between the paint section and the plumbing aisle. Guy pulled a shot on a hacked Gaggia Classic with a PID kit he built himself for under $200 total. It honestly pulled better crema than my $800 machine at home, and it made me wonder if we're all overthinking our setups when a simple mod and fresh beans do the job. Has anyone else stumbled on a random spot like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

bettymurphy17h ago

That "guy built it himself for under $200" part reminds me of the time my neighbor tried to fix his lawnmower with duct tape and a paperclip, but it caught fire.

campbell.logan16h ago

Did you try asking him what beans he was using? I found that switching to a local roaster's fresh batch fixed my home pulls way more than any fancy machine upgrade ever did.