I want to buy my Master Chef wife a 30 inch Viking Gas Range!

[Souschef]

When we moved into our lovely home 7 years ago, all the appliances were plain vanilla GE. I have already had to bandaid the dishwasher after the top mounts to the counter broke, and the microwave door has cracks at stress points in the plastic.
Kayelle is also not too happy with the gas stove, and she mentioned she would like a Viking stove. Well , I went onto the internet and priced them, and was glad I had smelling salts on my desk.
Kayelle, bless her heart is a frugal (not cheap) person, and said there is NO WAY she would spend that kind of money!
The advice I need, is how to talk her into buying one or should we consider a lesser known brand that is comparable, and what would that be?

 

[Aunt Bea]

I'm not much help, all a stove can do is make cold things hot.

I would go on a Viking cruise before I would spend that much on a Viking stove!

The real question is will it make her happy. If the answer is yes then I say go for it, even if it makes her mad!

Maybe you could quote Ben Franklin "The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten."

Good luck!

 

[jennyema]

My sister in law has a Viking stove and it's the worst thing I've ever tried to cook with. Both stovetop and oven.

Maybe hers is a dud but I'd shop around before spending $$$

 

[Andy M.]

I've read/heard of major issues with Viking ranges. Poor quality.

I understand the desire for a "professional" type stove. Consider DCS or other brand.

 

[Cooking4to]

There are a few things to consider, first would be the gas service, make sure your gas line will be sufficient to supply a stove with high btu burners, I can send you a chart if you are unsure or just measure the line and I can tell you what your max btu output will be...
For example if you have a normal residential 1/2" gas line that is 50 feet from the meter with 6 elbows in it, you will need to replace it because you will not be happy with how the stove works when under supplied..

Next is your makeup air/exhaust system, a lot of people think just throw a big burner stove in and light the pilot, its often not that easy..

That is the biggest issue with commercial style stoves in residential applications, next would be the combustible clearance, most stoves will be zero clearance but you need to confirm this before pulling the trigger...

So what kind of stove do you need? a picture of your current stove would be most helpful..


Do you want an electric oven? That helps with the gas line situation and I personally prefer dual fuel, if so this is about the best value in stoves IMO
http://www.vintagetub.com/p/MAS304D...Clean-Electric-Oven-Range-with-4-Gas-Burners/

the pro is a little more but even nicer http://www.plessers.com/Bertazzoni/pro304gasx.htm?gclid=CPuuo4-ah8MCFQ4S7AodCEsAyQ I have used them both and can not say one is a much better cooker, but the pro is nicer for sure..

 

[Cooking4to]

One more thing to keep in mind when reading reviews on stoves like this is the installation, I owned an HVAC company and we worked in high end residential homes, so we often played with these stoves, I learned right away you CAN NOT just plug them in like one you get at lowes, they have real thermocouples that need to be setup, they have burners and gas valves that should be adjusted after the instal is done, they need to be very level, they need clearances in certain areas, some of them don't like to be ran in a negative air pressure environment {a lot of stoves dont like this, but its more noticable when you have a pair of 20K BTU burners running}, so when you flip your hook on and it sucks the air out of the kitchen without replacing it, you get a wonky flame, but if you install make up air correctly, size your gas line correctly, tune and install the stove correctly you will have a beautiful result. That 18K BTU burner will boil 8qts of water in less than 2 minutes, you can load a thin aluminum pan with pounds of steak without worrying about the temp flattening out and not being hot enough to crisp your filets...

 

[RPCookin]

Well, I don't have a super duper high end brand range. My new one is a GE Adora, mid level GE, and I happen to love it. No, it doesn't have a 20000 btu burner, just one 17,000 btu "Power boil" setting on the right front burner (it won't boil 6 quarts of water in 2 minutes, but then I'm not competing against the clock on "Chopped" either). It has 5 burners, the middle grate can be swapped out for a reversible cast iron griddle/grill pan which does a medium rare steak quite well, and the convection oven is dead on for temperature. I am quite happy with it, and it cost $1000 ($900 on sale when we bought it), not $4k.

It's a much better range than the Whirlpool brand that we had before, and even that was a lot better than any electric I've ever cooked on. Most electrics would boil water faster than the average gas range, but they're also more likely to burn than simmer many dishes. I'll take a slower time to boil over stuff burned on the bottom of my pot.

Maybe there is some advantage to paying more, but if it cooks, and cooks well, that's all I ask. We did have to have the gas line changed from 1/2" to 1" to accommodate it, so that is a definite consideration.

 

[Roll_Bones]

Any thoughts on Wolf gas ranges?

I would also prefer an electric oven vs gas. In fact two ovens would be my choice. I remember as a kid using a gas oven and broiling was very very inefficient.

Oh.....Thanks cooking4to. Some excellent information!

 

[Dawgluver]

Doesn't Greg Who Cooks have a Wolf? He loves it. Probably costs a small fortune as well though.

 

[Cooking4to]

Well, I don't have a super duper high end brand range. My new one is a GE Adora, mid level GE, and I happen to love it. No, it doesn't have a 20000 btu burner, just one 17,000 btu "Power boil" setting on the right front burner (it won't boil 6 quarts of water in 2 minutes, but then I'm not competing against the clock on "Chopped" either). It has 5 burners, the middle grate can be swapped out for a reversible cast iron griddle/grill pan which does a medium rare steak quite well, and the convection oven is dead on for temperature. I am quite happy with it, and it cost $1000 ($900 on sale when we bought it), not $4k.

It's a much better range than the Whirlpool brand that we had before, and even that was a lot better than any electric I've ever cooked on. Most electrics would boil water faster than the average gas range, but they're also more likely to burn than simmer many dishes. I'll take a slower time to boil over stuff burned on the bottom of my pot.

Maybe there is some advantage to paying more, but if it cooks, and cooks well, that's all I ask. We did have to have the gas line changed from 1/2" to 1" to accommodate it, so that is a definite consideration.

GE makes a great product for the money and I agree, if it cooks, it cooks, can't argue with that. Some people do want something different or "fancy" its human nature, otherwise we would all drive a ford taurus.

I don't mind an electric stove, BUT that is where an inexpensive model will be noticed, if you go electric your pan choice is much more detrimental to the end result, the calphalon unison pans are AWESOME for electric stove tops, they have 2 non stick surfaces one is "sear" and one is "slide" both are marked, they work very very well...

Good for you for knowing enough to change the gas line, that is the downfall to most installations...

 

[Cooking4to]

Any thoughts on Wolf gas ranges?

I would also prefer an electric oven vs gas. In fact two ovens would be my choice. I remember as a kid using a gas oven and broiling was very very inefficient.

Oh.....Thanks cooking4to. Some excellent information!

I have installed wolf and viking, Wolf is nice, has a cast iron frame which is pretty cool, and heavy, lol...

I want to say wolf had the better warranty, its all preference, I would take the Bertazzoni over them all from what i have seen. Brass burners cast iron grates, super nice and smooth gas valves, real commercial piping, ect...


As far as a double oven goes, in a 30" range it will be over and under, make sure that is what you want before pulling that trigger, I could not use it...

36' gets you to a useable 2x oven...

If you need a double oven, get a wall unit {I love mine} eye level, no bending over, just super convenient, I will never live with out one again..

Or a 1/4 or 1/2 counter top convection oven, they are affordable and work really well for fast small heatups, which is the attraction to a 2x range, but the problem is gone are your hopes of ever baking a high cake, good sized turkey or roast, ect. I would stay away from over and under doubles...

 

[RPCookin]

Any thoughts on Wolf gas ranges?

I would also prefer an electric oven vs gas. In fact two ovens would be my choice. I remember as a kid using a gas oven and broiling was very very inefficient.

Oh.....Thanks cooking4to. Some excellent information!

This seems to be another of those things that the popularity of the Food Network has changed. At one time those high end units were only made for professional kitchens, but now both brands offer a "home" line too. Looking up Wolf, you apparently can't even get a price from an authorized dealer online - you have to call for pricing, per the requirements that Wolf makes. Vikings seem to run about $4500 and up, so Wolf is probably even higher to start.

As for the broiling, that's one thing I really like about having the reversible grill pan insert. Between that and my barbecue grill, I may never even use the broiler in the oven - not a bad thing as that should help keep it cleaner.

 

[Souschef]

I would like to thank all of you for your advice. We have settled on the GE Adora range (Thank You RP). With the money we saved by not buying a Viking, we can also replace the microwave and the dishwasher.
They will all be in the new slate color, which makes Kayelle happy.

 

[bethzaring]

Very Nice!!


Wise choice.


Happy cooking/baking!

 

[Dawgluver]

Whoohoo!! What a lovely bunch of appliances, and what a lucky Master Chef and Souschef! Great choices!

 

[GotGarlic]

Yay Kayelle and Souschef! Congrats!

 

[roadfix]

Awesome set! Congrats!

 

[Cooking4to]

very nice, good choice, pay close attention to gas piping sizes, that stove still needs a good amount of gas...

 

[Souschef]

very nice, good choice, pay close attention to gas piping sizes, that stove still needs a good amount of gas...

Thanks for your advice, we have a very short run,about 10 feet, unlike my condo, where it was over 50 feet!

 

[Andy M.]

Congratulations you guys. Enjoy your new stuff.