Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker Review

We purchased the Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker so our reviewer could put it to the test. Keep reading for our full product review.

There are a number of coffee tools that help you brew good coffee at home. Some of these items include good-tasting water, measuring instruments, and perhaps one of the more important tools— a grinder. The grinder is especially necessary for home brewing because it allows you to keep your beans in whole bean form right up until the time you plan to brew coffee. This keeps your beans fresher for longer, as ground beans begin to stale much faster than whole beans. The Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker gives users the ability to grind their beans and brew their coffee with its integrated grinder. Over the course of several weeks, I tried this machine out and tested its grinder, setup, ease of cleaning, and overall performance. Keep reading to see what I found. 

Design: Compact, unique design

The Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker is uniquely designed in that it’s shaped like a rectangle. The grinder lives on top of the machine, and the machine’s carafe is completely nestled inside of the machine. This coffee maker is very compact, measuring 7 x 11.25 x 8 inches, so it’s easy to find a spot for it on the kitchen counter or even store away in a cabinet. It’s also very lightweight, so I could easily move it around my kitchen and my home if I wanted to move it to the home office for the day. 

This coffee maker is made of stainless steel with some plastic black accents. Overall, it’s an attractive machine with a modern look. There is a start button on the front and a dial that allows the user to select whether they are using grounds or whole beans. It also offers the option to choose the serving size (1 to 4 cups). 

Setup Process: Quick setup

Setting up the Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker required the washing of all of the removable parts, including the grinder lid, grinder basket, coffee filter, and carafe. After washing, I ran a 4-cup cycle of water through to prime the machine. This entire process took about 10 minutes, which seemed very fast. 

To use the machine, I poured my water into the water tank (located on the side of the machine), poured my whole beans into the grinder on top, replaced the grinder lid, selected the coffee yield setting on the dial, and pressed start. The machine proceeded to grind the beans and immediately following this, it started to brew my coffee. 

Performance: Average coffee, small yield

The Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker has the ability to grind whole coffee beans just before brewing a batch of coffee. However, I was not very impressed with the Chefman despite this feature. Part of the problem may be rooted in the grinder itself. This coffee maker uses a blade grinder instead of a burr grinder, which results in a less consistent grind size comparatively. This can greatly affect how the coffee tastes.

Knowing this, I still gave the Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker a fair chance. I tried a variety of beans with this machine, from high-quality beans to less expensive beans. Ultimately, the coffee tasted pretty much the same each time. It didn’t really matter what kind of beans I used, as it all ended up tasting very average. 

In terms of customization, there are two options to adjust the amount of coffee the user intends to brew. There is also an option to select pre-grounds if you don’t have whole beans at home. I tried all of these settings, using pre-ground coffee and whole beans, and again, I didn’t find much of a difference in taste likely due to the low-quality grinder. 

Another downside of this coffee maker is that it can only brew up to 4 cups of coffee at a time. This isn’t a lot of coffee for a family. For a single household or a couple, it should be sufficient. 

One perk is that this coffee maker has a keep-warm function, which I always appreciate with a coffee maker. It can keep coffee warm in the carafe for about 30 minutes. This was a nice feature, so I could come back for my second cup, and it was still warm. 

Ease of Cleaning: Difficult to clean the grinder area, hand wash only

This coffee maker is very difficult to clean. The grinder basket and coffee filter must be washed after each use. First of all, I found that it was very hard to remove the grinder basket from the machine. Then, actually getting into all of the nooks and crannies of the basket was another challenge. It was convenient that the basket was removable, but it was still hard to clean. 

In addition, the carafe must also be cleaned and washed by hand. The warming plate should also be wiped regularly to prevent stains. 

Price: Inexpensive

The Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker is fairly inexpensive considering that it grinds beans in addition to brewing coffee. It retails for around $100, but you get what you pay for with this machine. The grinder isn’t the best of quality and as a result, the coffee isn’t anything too special. 

Chefman Grind and Brew Coffee Maker vs. Breville Grind Control Coffee Maker

Breville The Grind Control: The Breville The Grind Control coffee maker also has an integrated grinder located at the top of the machine. It retails for significantly more than the Chefman at around $300. However, it’s an investment that’s worth the price if you desire a high-quality all-in-one grinder and coffee maker. It offers several options to customize your coffee and grinder. It also has a burr grinder, which is said to be better than a blade grinder.

In this case, though the Breville is certainly more expensive, it offers a number of features that the Chefman lacks making it worth the investment.