So after spending this week going to showrooms and playing with nearly every appliance under the sun, I think I'm leaning towards Electrolux. They seem to have the best blend of tech, design, and price.

Runner-up is Bosch, who has the design and great reputation. Next Dacor.

I was leaning heavily towards GE Profile or Monogram before I had a chance to play with all the appliances in person.

Anyone hear have first hand experience with the first three?

Here are the Electrolux appliances I'm leaning towards, which are similar in style to the others (a tad nicer looking IMO)







Yes, I'm leaning away from downdraft now. Mainly because not going downdraft will allow me to use more cabinet space.

As for dishwasher, still trying to decide between just a plain faced SS or double drawer Fisher-Paykel.

Fridge will probably be Jenn-Air. Mainly because I want a french door style fridge and only Amana/LG make the, and then resell to all the other manufactuers... and Jenn-Air has the best looking variant.

Wine Cooler... they all look the same.

Microwave is a tough one. Hate the look of them all unless get a Microwave/Convection oven... dunno if worth spending the dough tho.

What type of appliances do ya'll have? Any recommendations? I want to stick with the euro style of the 3 manufactuers mentioned, I prefer over the "restaurant look" of other brands like Monogram/Subzero/etc.

 

Very, very euro-looking Adam...nice. I've not heard much about electrolux, but I know friends/family with Bosch and they swear by them.

 

Bosch > * for sure.

My parents have a panasonic microwave, stainless steel. Its nice and relatively inexpensive.

 

I've been using a Samsung convection microwave with the toaster built in...I love it.

Have had Panasonic micros in the past...lasted for years.

 

What do ya'll think of going with a Micro/Convection combo like this electrolux and completely forgoing the full size convection wall oven?



We're talking 1.1 cu ft vs 4.2 cu ft. Do you find that the extra space is really needed?

 

and what is it about Bosch that makes them so great? It's all I hear to "Bosch is the best!" but I'm not sure why? Design/tech wise they're the same as the others. Is it the reliability factor? If so, all of these are top o the line manufacturers with superb reliability ratings. Beyond that why should I go Bosch?

 

oh also, beyond reliability, I repeatedly here how damn quiet their dishwashers are... but otherwise I dont know why it is Bosch is supposed to be better than competitors?

 

If you think you can get by on small dish items...as in, no Turkey dinner, no double-batch of brownies, etc.

I have the Samsung Micro/convection and sometimes I am frustrated by the size. I absolutely love the way it cooks...but I have a hard time re-heating some larger things because of it's small stature.

I'd stick with the wall unit. Plus...if you decide to actually get serious about cooking some nice food...desserts, etc...the convection oven will come in handy.

 

This is what I always hear when people speak of them. Former co-worker put Wolf ovens, Viking range and Sub-Zero appliances in his kitchen, along with a Bosch D/W...spent nearly $60K on the whole thing...says he likes the D/W the best for the money because you can stand next to it & not even know it's on.

 

yeah i hear raves bout the dishwashers. just wondering with everything else why people say they better? energy efficiency i've heard.... means very little to me tho. talking pennies difference.

 

I think it's like you said earlier...with the track record of any of these high-end units, you can't go wrong. Comes down to asthetics really.

 

Bosch dishwashers are highly rated by Consumer Reports, except for reliability.

 

depends on what kind of cooking you do. I was forced to give up our micro/convection oven when we moved, and as soon as we move again, it will be the first replacement appliance in whatever kitchen we get. Convection ovens do so much better with conventional cooking.......and there are times that conventional cooking is much preferable to micro - (baked potatos, etc). The size is a factor that will be driven by your entertaining habits. If you want to roast a chicken, do a small rib roast, the convection oven will be fine. Doing a Thanksgiving Turkey for 25 people or a Christmas Goose is probably out of the question.

As for Electrolux, they carved their name for durability in the vacuum cleaner world; their appliances were known for their decades-long durability.

 

We have a miele dishwasher at work and it is nice. Damn soopa nice appliances I can't afford that shit!

 

will that thing cook like a regular oven? i am not familiar with those. i know we are planning on having one of those stacked ovens, so we have two, since we cook, and yes it is helpful

 

I should note, both ovens pictured here are convection.

The smaller one is convection/micro combo, which is great... because it removes the need for me to find a decent looking micro (they're all fugly) since it can act as just a micro when needed.

If I can't make due with 1.1 cu ft as my only oven, I'd probably end up having to get both I think. Which would suck.

But ya'll have a good point, 1.1 cu ft probably means no thanks giving dinner, no big parties, etc. 4.2 cu ft means no microwave. Both together means no vacation this year haha. Tough decision...

 

Other question...

The hood pictured is 36". The cooktop 46". Will that work?? Will it look stupid??

For some reason Electrolux doesn't make a 46" hood. Only up to 42" (the 42" is ugly) and any of the 46" hoods with similar style to the Electrolux pictured add another 2-3k to the total for that extra 10".

Also... am I right in my assumption that going with a non-downdraft cooktop means I can utilize cabinet space under the cooktop? If I can't, I can't get a 46" cooktop... I'd have to go back to 30".

 

Look carefully at the specs, or cutsheets, for the cooktop you are looking at. The retailer that you are working with should have them, if not, beat him up. The "cutsheet" should have all of the technical data, including the power requirements, exact dimensions, etc. What you are looking for is the depth of the cooktop and any space clearences needed for installation and for any wiring under the surface. The manufacturer's recommendations should be absolutely followed in terms of clearances, if you don't, they scream warrenty violation.

My guess is that you can get a substantial amount of storage under the cooktop, but will loose about four to six inches. There are a variety of custom "pan drawers" and such, if you are looking to store pans rather than hanging them from a ceiling rack device.(some people like that look, others hate it.)

Somewhere in your kitchen, by the way, you might think about a knife drawer, one that has two horizontal wood strips with metallic tops to them. You can place knives next to each other without touching, without dulling the blades - pull the knife drawer out, pick what you want, use it, clean it, and drop it back in place. Cleaner than a woodblock knife holder and far, far better than storing good knives loose......

 

Odd as it might sound, I'd buy the 42" Hood and place it so that it covers the working part of the cooktop, leaving the right hand controls "not covered" which appear to take about 6" of the cooktop as you have it shown. This assymetrical placement, while it might appear to be a bit odd, maximizes the coverage of the hood over the working area of the stove, which is, after all, the point. Were it my kitchen, I'd do the "it's a functional solution" and if people didn't like the look, they could dine elsewhere....

 

yeah a pan/pot drawer is exactly what i was thinking for under the cooktop.

hadn't thought of a knife drawer.

looks like i may end up going with Decora Cabinets, they seem to have a lot of smart storage solutions like these.

 

damn i thought electrolux only made vacuum cleaners .. pretty nice stuff

 

With all this in-cabinet stuff I have been seeing, I have a question.

Are all these items a standard size? When they break in 15-20 years will there be a problem? My sister had an in-cabinet oven that was installed when the house was built. I guess the house was built about 30-40 years ago. She couldn't find anything to fit in the cabinet and had to have the oven removed and the cabinet refaced. She then had to have another section of cabinet removed so she could install a standard 30" range.

 

Height wise, they vary. Width wise, 27" and 30" have been standard for a good 50 years now.

To compensate for height differences with old/new... most companies offer trim kits that look pretty good. Usually look like vents or just a flat plate of steel.

 

Yeah, I was thinking of trying to do that with the 36"... centering it over the work area.

I'd get the 42" ... but it's ugly ... and twice the price of the 36"

This is the best looking 42" that's affordable that I can find:



GE Monogram.

Miele has some really nice 42-46" hoods... but their several thousand more than anyone else.

Guess I'll keep looking... I don't think a 36" will cut it with a 46" range

 

my parents have a bosch oven and its the worst thing they have ever bought. they have had nothing but troubles with it its been repaird 3 times and is now out of warranty and stuck on convection cook only

their viking cooktop on the other hand is Sweet!

 

ah good to know. i bet it's expensive to repair to being foreign and all?

yeah I think i'm going to stick with electrolux, they're a big US company... so I know parts/repair wouldnt be an issue if i ever needed.

 

yes that was another fun one for them, trying to find a rapair man. its at their summer home by no means out in the boonies, but not near a large town. and finding a repair man that would repair it was tough, and costly

 

have u looked into AEG Appliances?

 

my bad, apparently AEG and Electrolux are the same. i got AEG too

btw,
http://www.pmq.com/cgi-script/csNews...ne&id=746&op=t

 

Electrolux

 

How do you get AEG branded stuff in Canada? I only see for UK. I want the coffee machine, doesn't seem to be sold in US under Electrolux brand.

 

a little OT, but the simplest yet coolest thing i've ever seen put in a kitchen is a pot filler spicket over the stove. Just a thought. My dad put one in the kitchen of a house he just built, you can sort of make it out in this pic:

 

Zero, yes, pot fillers are great.

I think I'm going to be skipping out on that though since my cooktop will be in the middle of a 7 foot peninsula. Added cost and complexity, and since I have to drain the pot at the sink anyway, may as well fill it there. hehe.

 

Does the pot filler give hot water or cold?

 

just cold i think.

 

I believe you can integrate the hot & cold under the counter or in the wall to make the flow faster...more gpm, etc. I'm sure you could do just cold, but I'd like the higher flow rate and the water being that much warmer from the get-go.

 

you can do whatever. i've seen pot fillers with built in aerators for instant hot

 

Do you plan on getting one of those water heaters for your kitchen? It'd go well with your other high tech appliances...if you have the extra room, etc.

 

I guess what you really want is that pot filler hooked up to a water filter. If you don't want to drink the water out of the tap, might as well not cook with it either.

 

chef, maybe another time. its just one more pretty unecessary extra to an already buldging budget.

my water heater isn't far from the sink, i can wait 3-5 seconds for the water to be piping hot