I hv the 36" AG wolf range w/grill. Every time I use the grill I have my 9 year old daughter stand by with a fan near the fire alarm in the kitchen. I have a high power Ventahood and I keep the window open over the sink but still, the smoke from the grill will make the alarms ring. Other than that annoying problem.....I love my range and inspite of this I still use my grill weekly.

I decided on the DCS over the Wolf because the temp on the DCS grill is adjustable and we grill a lot fish. We were going to go with the Monogram until we saw the grill - the heating element doesn't cover the entire grill area - so it will have uneven heat/cooler spots. A chef also told us that the clean up on the DCS burners was easier. But the DCS is still in the garage waiting for it's new home. : ( Good luck!

Thanks itsraining and bethv.

I think I've crossed the Wolf off the list because of it's non-adjustable temperature. It's down to the Viking or the DCS.

Itsraining, what CFM is your Ventahood? I was considering their 600 blowers, but from the sounds of it that might not be powerful enough.

is the Wolf grill really just "on" or "off? I was just about to cross that decision off my list! Maybe I should just go back to 36" and 6 burners. Bummer.

I dig my wolf charbroiler. It has a blanking plate to reduce temp, I have not used it yet. I turn the 2400cfm exterior fan, warm the gill for about 10 min. , then start grillin yer stuff. Bubba burgers smoke seem to produce the most amount of smoke. Clean up , I use a wire wheel on a drill,soap/water. I dont regret the grill at all.

Starfish, from everything I have seen or read (so far) the Wolf is on/off. The blanking plate appears to be a piece of metal that rests on the infrared burner. That's why I've ruled it out; I really want a grill with an adjustable temperature for fish, meats, vegetables, etc. I've had a chance to inspect the Viking (although not cook on it) and I like the grill design. The DCS grill is interesting as well, but I have no hands on experience with it, and no appliance salesperson I have talked to knows much about it.

I've got some time to think about it, but right now, for me, the DCS and Viking are the only two in the running.

Anyone else chime in on the hood requirements over a grill? Some salespeople have commented that I really don't need a 1200 CFM hood - "it'll suck the soup right out of the pots." Hyperbole, I know, but I worry that a 600 VTH just won't cut it when cooking fatty cuts of meat like ribeye.

The CFM requirement should be in the range spec. For the DCS w/grill it's 1200 CFM. You won't need to turn it all the way up for most cooking but you'll need it for the grill - unless you don't mind the yellow grease film that will collect all over the kitchen. It should be 42" wide and at least 24" deep. Go for the baffle grates and a hood shape that can capture the smoke. The DCS hood is nice but spendy. We went with the Broan Rangemaster. Oh, we got an external blower. You could do a liner system and build that into a wood hood too...

I've had a wolf charbroiler for 4 years and it's unfortunate how misunderstood the "on/off" aspect is, especially depending on what and how you cook. When choosing, I tried both the Viking and the Wolf (1" ribeyes) and while the Viking was ok, the increased heat of the Wolf (it may be the hotest one out there) made for better sear and flavor. The blank off plate lowers the temperature for more delicate/slower grilling, although we rarely use it (prefer to do that type of broiling under IR range broiler). We also got another blank off plate and had it cut into 4 and 7" pieces, which gives a two-stage searing area and then a slower area. I think to benefit from the Wolf one has to be really into grilling, but in many ways we find it the most, not the least flexible. One final aspect of the Wolf's high heat is that you can score/sear meats/fish on the grill and then finish them off in a fast oven, like restaurants often do.

As for hoods, ours is 600 cfm VH, 3" oversized on each side and 27" depth, and it works well enough when we use our grill. 900 would have been better, but would have caused too many installation issues.

Hope this is helpful.

I've used the Wolf grill quite a bit, and never had issue with the one setting version. I actually enjoyed cooking on it. We've cooked steak, chicken, grilled shrimp and fish, vegetables...

No matter which grill you choose, get as many CFM as you can, or paint your walls beige ;-) We use a 48" Wolf range with charbroiler and a 1200 CFM blower.

Always start the fan 10 minutes or more before you start cooking to establish an airflow in the room. It'll make keeping smoke out of the area much easier.

Thanks for the input, everyone. Good stuff. It certainly does not sound like I would regret going with the 1200 CFM hood.

So far, Wolf and Viking users have responded. Anyone out there with the DCS grill?

You've talked me back into the Wolf 36" with grill, which i'm thrilled about, because our new kitchen will eb farther away from our outdoor grill than i'm used to. Thank you for explaining the on/off.

i have a 30 inch viking range, and a 600 cfm hood above it..i suppose a 1200 cfm hood is fine if you have the money to burn, but i have to say, the 600 cfm hood works fabulous, even when searing large chunks of animal flesh on a smoking hot pan.

the 600 cfm (interior) fan is pretty loud at max (even with shock mounts on the fan motor). 1200 cfm interior at max is likely to be fairly antisocial when it's running..you won't be having a casual conversation with anyone while that's running...

now if you have the money, and Exterior 1200 cfm fan would be absolutely fabulous...unlimited suction, and quiet!!

Another possible factor--for the burners/ not the grill. Wolf & Viking are available in either open burner or closed burner versions. DCS & Monogram are strictly closed burner rangetops.

I wanted open burners & finally settled on Wolf.

My vote (FWIW) is 1200 CFMs with a grill. I had the 900 CFM Wolf wall hood and the 36 inch 6 burner range and it was just barely enough; a grill would have been too much. In our new house, we have a 60 inch Blue Star with 8 burners and a grill and a 2500 CFM blower matched with a Prestige hoodliner. We oversized the capture area and rarely run the hood over about 3/4 speed. I have always been told the capture area is almost as important as the blower capacity. And BTW, the BS grill is fully adjustable and killer.

so, does this sound right: 36" open burner Wolf with grill and exterior 1200 cfm fan in 42" hood? i want to be very specific with our contractor. (i'm so excited to get this grill!)

Absolutely! And if your are using the pro wallhood by Wolf, go for the 27 inch (deep) with heat lamps, high back vent and shelf. That way you get extension side to side and in front and the heat lamps and shelf underneath are great! Another trick if you are not doing one of the extended oven vent options is to use the island trim vent and have the range (and hood) set out from the wall 4 inches. You still have to use non-combustible materials behind the range but this way, large pots work as well on the back burners as the front b/c that SS back is not right against the back burners. I did this and it made my unitso much more efficient.

You will be glad you have a remote blower too...MUCH quieter. There are those who say there is little difference but not to me. As mentioned, my previous was a 900 CFM internal blower and, on low, it was considerably louder than my current 2500 CFM remote blower on high.

Oh, and BTW, I rarely use my grill on anything but full on high. If you really want to get a bit of that "grilled" flavor, you need to turn the unit on high for about 10 minutes or so to preheat it, then start cooking. Also, for the record, let me clarify you will NEVER replicate good old outdoor real charcoal cooking without real charcoal. We are avid grillers outside and having the indoor grill certainly has not replaced that but the indoor grill does offer an option that works well for the things we have chosen to use it for.

This might not help, but I had the Thermador 36" rangetop with grill and loved it for its ease of use and adjustable flame (low to high) on the grill. However, with its uneven heat pattern on the grill (like most grills, it had some cold spots), I'm switching to a Wolf for the next kitchen.

Goldie5...

No, it's helpful. Thanks. I had a chance to do a brief demo on the Wolf grill, and it has actually has me thinking about changing my mind about infrared grills. I loved the even heat; having that might be a good tradeoff with not having much temperature control on the Wolf, with it's "off" or "high" settings.