Things are different now. Wolf gave the ovens a semi-face lift and when you see them now with the tubular handles and in a column with a warming drawer
and Wolf steam oven….wow. And they’ve decided to get REAL FUNKY and add a black glass single and double oven to the lineup.

Thinking about buying a Wolf E Series oven? Three things you need to know:

1 – It is one of 2 Wolf ovens (along with the new Wolf steam convection oven) which can be used in both a standard installation as well as a flush inset install (cleaner look!)
2 – For a standard install, your cabinet needs to be 24″ deep and must be able to support 250 lbs for a single oven and 400 lbs for a double oven
3 – For a flush inset installation the E-series oven requires a min of 25″ in depth. REMEMBER THIS OR YOUR OVEN SETUP WILL LOOK LIKE S@#T: You inside openings of the rough opening must be finished (stained, not laminated) b/c they will be visible when oven door is open. And as stated, STAIN it, as the laminate finish will not hold up the heat the oven produces.

The Sexiness of the Wolf E-Series Double Oven. Got a cigarette?

Welcome to the Lynx Temple! All Bow Before Pharoah!

Appliance Dude riffin’……

We are now ramping into the sweet spot of the outdoor kitchen/grill sales season and I have a few notes to share. People are definitely spending the loot on the high-end grills and sales are skewed heavily towards Lynx outdoor kitchens and grills. Here are some notes to digest, broken down by brand.

Lynx – 36″ and 42″ grills with ProSear have been the movers. Had a few bites on the new, step-down L500 series but there has been a recall on the carts (easy fix) so don’t know if that’s causing some consternation with consumers. Most of the lynx grills we’ve sold are just heads as they are being used in a built-in outdoor kitchen setup. Of course Lynx is touting their new brass burners as the finest thing since inexpensive medical insurance. Will these new burners markedly change your life? As one customer said to me “You can’t tell me that these burners are going to make my food taste any better”. Agree on that point, however I can tell that you that the brass burners will in fact last longer as they won’t corrode as easily as stainless under high heat and they hold and radiate heat better.
Translation – built to last, food cooked more evenly (if that’s what you want).

Wolf – Haven’t had much play on the Wolf grills yet. Can’t figure out why. Price point? Can’t be, because the Lynx is just as expensive when you factor everything in. I own one, I like it…see my tuna dish below. Wolf’s making a big push in this space, all other competitors beware…the Wolf will roar(howl)!
I made this lovely treat on a 36″ Wolf OG36 grill – how’s that for a sear?!

Seared Tuna Courtesy of My Wolf Outdoor Grill and My Deft Touch.

DCS – the grandaddy of the outdoor grill space and the home of the lifetime warranty on your grill. Beat that! People come into the showroom and brag that their DCS grill is still kicking after 10-15 years. These are the guys who really invested in this space. This is their heritage. They’ve definitely had the thunder stick taken away by Lynx but it’s still a brand that consumers are very happy with and it comes in at a great price point and they are offering free goodies with the purchase of at least a 36″ grill.
What I love about DCS is two-fold:
1 – Grease Management system which channels all the yuck (runoff) into a trough thus negating (how about minimizing) flare ups. Cool.
2 – The entire grill surface can be converted into a sear station. That’s nice, so we don’t need a dedicated searing area like everyone else does which means less space for normal grilling. DCS gets it.

Capital – was a strong (somewhat) seller last summer. This year, very little action. People simply don’t know the name. Maybe it’s known more for its indoor product. Had a few people biting on them lately, if they buy I will get the feedback and pass it along.

Viking – haven’t had anyone mention Viking for outdoor pieces. Probably would help if I placed the product on my web site. We just started selling Viking again after a looooooong lay-off. Will work up to it. I know they streamlined the outdoor product line so that’s a nice thing. Don’t want to confuse consumers with too many skus….anyone want a Viking branded vegetable/fish grilling basket? Or Viking branded wood chips? Time to get back to core competencies. Make killer product, the consumers will come.

One of My Favorite Kitchens from a Curto's Customer. Stellar.

Appliance Dude’s video analysis of this kitchen….

Appliance Dude Getting Deep into the custom Vent-a-Hood…

And now, the Wolf, Sub-Zero, Ventahood kitchen appliance package pics

Wendy had to have the Wolf range...a beauty!

Appliance Dude analyzes this Wolf dual fuel range and other items in this Eastchester NY kitchen below:

Update 04/13/12 – booty shots of the new SubZero french door refrigerator BI36UFD

Time to get your orders placed folks!

Burner BTU’s

DCS RGU366 – max 17,500 btus, min 3000 btus
Wolf R366 – max 16,000, min 500 btus
Thermador PRG366EPG – max 15,000 btus, min 375 btus (on the 2 ExtraLow burners)

Oven Capacity

DCS RGU366 – 5.3 cu ft
Wolf R366 – 5.5 cu ft
Thermador PRG366EPG – 5.7 cu ft

Oven Bake BTUS

DCS RGU366 – 30,000 btus
Wolf R366 – 30,000 btus
Thermador PRG366EPG – 30,000 btus

Oven Broil BTUS

DCS RGU366 – 19,000 btus
Wolf R366 – 18,000 btus
Thermador PRG366EPG – 17,000 btus

I love Wolf gas ranges. While they are now outsold by the Wolf dual fuel ranges (and by quite a large margin as I have been told) I still believe that the
value lies in the gas range. When you are talking a 36″ or a 48″ model, the difference between the gas and the dual fuel product runs into the thousands.
I’m also a fan of the traditional Wolf red knob found on the gas range, as opposed to the thicker one found on the dual fuel range (being that I am a sucker for aesthetics).
There’s not much to say here…Wolf is a Wolf. The leader of the pack.

Thermador ranges are simply beautiful products and they seem to resonate big-time with women. When I’m working with a couple at Curto’s, countless times the wife will comment on the Thermador’s design…while hubby focuses on BTU’s. As I tell everyone who stops in and asks about Thermador ranges, I feel that Thermador’s lead products are their wall ovens, HOWEVER they have invested crazy R & D into their ranges and I’m anticipating a bump in their sales. You also have to love their new 48″ combo steam range which will be hitting the Curto’s showroom imminently. It’s priced over $13K but this thing sings!.

The DCS range is the underdog here. They don’t have the consumer mind share that Wolf or Thermador have. They also don’t have the presence on showroom floors that Wolf and Thermador have. But what they do have is total kick-ass product that has been improved upon and is also less expensive than the other two brands we’re discussing here.
For some folks they might feel like they are taking a risk with a DCS product bc it’s not featured in every other kitchen on the Food TV Network (it’s actually the sole appliance featured on America’s Test Kitchen) nor is it prominently featured in Kitchen magazine spreads. What they do have is a heritage that goes back about 15-20 years for making killer cooking appliances. They also have a pretty solid service network across the country in case you do encounter hiccups with your range (hey it happens to the best manufacturers).

The bottom line is that any of these brands deserve to be in your kitchen. You’ll just have to decide how important price is as well as the brand-name factor. Performance-wise they all rock, though I’d put the DCS and the Wolf ahead of the Thermador in that category, but Thermador is aiming to cut the lead down. Should be interesting.

If you want the line that offers the most extensive product offering for a complete outdoor kitchen and who
is regarded as the leader in the outdoor grilling business, go with a Lynx.

If you are comfortable knowing that since Wolf is the leader of indoor high-end cooking appliances and feel that
will translate to the outdoor kitchen, I would go with the Wolf grills. (Note: I took a Wolf grill home this summer and
I’ve been very pleased with it).

Consider DCS if you want your dollar to travel the furthest and you like the idea of maximizing the square inches of your grilling surface – DCS does
this by leaving out the sear burner and instead turning the entire grill surface into a sear zone.

Buy a Wolf Gas Range if:
- You are still somewhat price sensitive (there’s a $1500 spread between the 36′s, and and even larger one on the 48′s)
- You don’t care about self cleaning
- If you hate electronics (it uses an electronic control panel and some knobs use electrical components as well

Buy a Wolf Dual Fuel Range if:
- You swear by self cleaning
- You want full-extension ball-bearing racks (these are becoming very popular, not only in the pro range category…Electrolux and GE are offering them on more modest models)
- You want sealed burners (the Wolf gas range will offer sealed burners by the end of 2011)
- You want the uber-sexy cobalt blue oven interior!
- You want continuous grates

Magnificent, commanding, regal...what else can I say about this pic. The Wolf 48" range is quite the sight.