Breville BWM640XL Smart 4-Slice Waffle Maker - Stainless Steel - Perfect for Breakfast, Brunch & Family Gatherings

This waffle maker is straight from the Jetsons!Functionality - This thing is really good at one thing and thats making waffles. Well if you've ever spent any time on social media you've probably seen food videos of people making hash-browns or cinnamon rolls in their waffle iron. While I'm not saying that this wont work for that, I would personally go for something with shallower grooves, or a non-Belgain style maker. That being said if you purchased this thing to make waffles, which you probably did, it works wonderfully. I've made all types of waffles in this ranging from authentic Belgian style Liege yeasted waffles with pearl sugar to your run-of-the-mill Bisquick shake and pour in this and get perfect results every time. Actually it is beyond perfect, you get that crispy crunchy exterior like it was just out of the waffle maker on a fancy hotel buffet on the medium setting. The settings, and wow are there a lot of them. I'm sure this waffle maker has more electronics in it than Apollo 11 had to land on the Moon. You can customize your batter type, and your crispness setting with the very well built and easy to use knobs on the front of the machine. For me, the default color is the perfect setting for most waffles and I like mine crispy. Unless you like almost black waffles I wouldn't really advise going past the middle. If you like softer waffles make sure to go lighter than you think because you can always press the handy "A Bit More" if it needs more time. Now on to cleanup - The nonstick coating works very well and you barely need any oil to get it going. The only problems I've had cleaning it is with those Liege pearl sugar waffles I talked about earlier. The sugar caramelized in the bottom of the maker and took a long time to completely remove. However...this is more of a problem with the nature of the recipe than the maker itself. If you are just making normal waffles than you should have no problems with cleanup- just make sure its cool first. Finally, the moat around the outside really helps with cleanup compared to traditional waffle makers, but we will touch on that more next.Problems - This thing is HUUGE. When you pull it out of the box you feel reassured that your $250 didn't go to waste and you got a substantial, well built product. This however is the only upside to the size. Living in an apartment with a small kitchen it is hard to find a place to store monstrosity. It is also hard to find a place to use it on. Its lid does not have a soft close feature like you might find on a fancy toilet-seat, it just slams shut if you let it go. This is a big problem because it is so tall. So tall in fact that it does not open under my cabinets and I have to use it in an area where there are no cabinets overhead. When opened fully it is taller than by 6QT Kitchen-aid stand mixer. If this is a problem for you then I would advise getting the 2 slice model because I would believe it opens to a lesser height. It is also heavy and has a substantial footprint. If you spend this much money on a waffle maker you might want to proudly display it out on your countertop, but because of the moat that catches the expanding waffle batter it makes it have a very large footprint making it hard to justify giving it so much real-estate for such a speciality appliance. If you do choose to move it back and forth from cabinet or pantry to countertop just realize it is not the lightest thing in the world.Conclusion - If you have $250 to burn on a waffle maker then you cant get much better than this, but if the price is a barrier for you there are cheaper options from Breville and other manufactures that will probably give comparable results without the price tag. If you have tall cabinets or an island in your kitchen this is a good buy, but if you don't I would go for the two slice model just because that lid wont close slowly if your hand is under it and it can't be opened all the way prevent closure, thus turning your hand into a Belgian waffle if your hand thats holding it open slips. All in all this is an amazing piece of technology and its crazy how far simple things like a waffle maker have come. Do you need it? Probably not, but it makes killer waffles well every time and if you can get past the size and drawbacks associated with that it is a near perfect machine.Also- The measuring scoop they include is very helpful for portioning the waffles. I tend to add a little bit more than the scoop says but thats just me.I rarely ever leave "nice" reviews but boy oh boy, so worth the cost!! I spent a good chunk of time reviewing the best waffle makers and kept coming back to the Breville, despite it's $300+ price tag. My husband made savory potato waffles filled with cheddar cheese and venison summer sausage we made over the weekend. PHENOMENAL!! You wouldn't of been able to do that with any other waffle maker - Breville has a deeper waffle design so you can add more savory or decadent fillings to your waffle.And today I made a croque madame/panini sandwich. Hands down, BEST panini I've ever had. The bread-to-meat ratio was ridiculous so I was initially worried it wouldn't cook properly because the lid wouldn't close all the way. I set it on "custom" and pushed the "little more" button three times until I got the level of browning I was looking for. The toasting was perfect; the grooves sunk into the bread, the outside was crunchy, and the inside was oh so gooey!! I rubbed basil pesto on one side and mayo on the other, added my meat, sliced cherry tomatoes, arugula dressed in olive oil topped really nice and high, and grilled leeks. I was two thirds into my sandwich before I realized I had forgotten the cheese. But let me tell you, not needed!! With its HeatIQ, the Breville kept the inside moist while releasing the heat so the outside could achieve the proper level of crispyness. AMAZING!!Buy it, you won't be disappointed.Other reviews cover the details so i will not repeat them, bottom line, makes 4 thick waffles on belgium setting, much better taste from an older single waffle maker. Just bought it so still going through all the different settings.Note, when preheating lcd screen is a bluesh backlight. When its preheated it turns orangy like the product pics.Not sure what has been up with the price as of late. For the 2 weeks it was in my cart as saved for later, the price fluctuated from 450 to high 200s. I bought it as a like new open box for mid 200s.Bottom line, seems pricey for a waffle maker, however probably the last one we will ever need or want. And worth it.For making waffles, this is a GREAT waffle maker. GREAT. Gives the cook total control over darkness, crispness, thickness -- every aspect of cooking waffles. The waffles come out quite easily, too. And it's pretty fast if you're cooking plenty of waffles for a large brunch. Seems very sound mechanically, too. BUT, you can't remove the griddle plates for cleaning. And that is a huge issue. If you make fruit waffles or ham or bacon waffles, there will be little cook-on bits that you will have to remove (carefully) by hand. You can't submerge the plates to soak off the bits, because they are built into the electronics. After making Liege waffles, which are studded with pearl sugar, it took me nearly 20 minutes to clean the Breville using a chopstick to pick off the tiny bits of burnt sugar and a wet paper towel to collect the bits from in between the pockets. Buy it, but be prepared for the inconvenience of keeping it clean.This replaced our old crappy waffle maker we’d barely ever use. Had paid a good price for it, but it was lacking power, basically steaming the waffles.It was also a pain to clean.We’ve bought this one a few years back and still love it. We use it frequently and turns out some of the best waffles we’ve ever had time and time again. As a bonus, it’s so easy to clan, you may not have to do anything more than wipe it between cooks. Just made a batch of 15 and it does not look like I’ve used it at all.It’s on the pricey side for a specific usage tool. Let’s hope it keeps on performing like that for years to come.After doing a lot of research, I chose this expensive waffle maker.I actually wanted the two waffle version but Amazon sells the four waffle version for the same price as the twp in some stores.Pros:- Makes great, deep, evenly brown/crispy waffles every time- no brainer interface- the moat around the waffle surface is a brilliant idea and is worth getting this machine for- the locking mechanism is great- the machine stands up well to reduce counter space when stored- the bottom has a cord spool- the instruction manual has four recepes that match the interface waffle selector. They are actually great recepes other than the amount of butter they call for. We half that with great success- the hinge is actually a double hinge, so if you've poured in a lot of batter and the waffles rise, the top cover rests evenly on the waffles.Cons:- the instruction manual doesn't explain what is actually different between the four main waffle recepe/settings- heavy (though this is what makes it work well- non-removable irons (again, if it did, it wouldn't work as well)- expensiveMy wife told me that there was no way any waffle maker should cost this much... but I replaced our $20 maker with this one, and she is now mad at me for not doing it sooner.It’s amazing that the waffle maker itself can make such a big difference in the quality of waffle. We use the same time recipe, and they are much fluffier and crispier without being burnt.I just wish it came with a manual containing recipes, but that just makes me want to order the “Will it Waffle?” book!This is the best waffle maker by far! I’ve tried the Cuisinart one (parents own it) and the waffles never have that nice outer crisp to them. They often put waffles in the toaster after to get the crisp - ha ha! This one has an overflow tray so you can make sure to fill the full waffle area, and can accommodate all sorts of waffle recipes (adjusts) and you can choose your level of crispness. I would say though that these waffles are a bit bigger than the Cuisinart ones - if that is important to you - and that because the waffle wells are so deep, if you want to really clean it every time, you would have to take out the plates. Personally, the waffles come out so clean (great non-stick surfaces), that I’m ok with wiping inside lightly and leaving the plates in.