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Now here's a flame-worthy question... Assuming a halfway decent Espresso machine, how much do you need to spend on a grinder to get better results than by using small bags ground at the local coffee shop, kept in the freezer?
I've been fairly disappointed by home-grinding, but have never used anything near as fancy as that Niche Zero.
Engineering101-
The advantage of getting coffee ground on a commercial grinder like the EK43 (which most coffee shops have) is it's going to produce less fines. I remember hearing the guys in the Cat & Cloud saying they grind a bag in the shop and bring it home because even though the coffee is getting stale it'll produce a better brew because there's less fines then an average home grinder.
For espresso it's different because there's far to many other variables at play. Getting coffee ground in a cafe isn't going to produce the same espresso on your home machine as their commercial machine. The grinds will either choke your machine or give you gushers and as the coffee ages that is going to change.
You need to dial in espresso beans to your machine to get them in the right range and tasting right.
birofunk
I'd second the Robot, absolutely love mine. You will need to pair it with a good grinder. A Robot and a Niche Zero would be the perfect setup and the only pair (just) under a grand that will get you cafe quality espresso at home.