Thanks Mary_a and joboxes for your inputs. I have since changed my choices slightly. Oven will be a Kitchen Aid 30 inch, that's the Architect II Convection (without Steam Assist). Fridge will be the KitchenAid counter depth 36 inch, with custom panel options. I got a quote for the Miele Diamente Plus and will probably stick with that. Beverage Center (wrongly said Wine Fridge above), undecided between KitchenAid and U-Line, either ways will opt for custom panels. Any thoughts/ideas/opinions? Cooking Mama

I agree with Gary, don't bother indoor grilling if you have such mild weather. Ventilation becomes a much bigger issue, and even with a powerful hood, all that smoke... no thanks. Re: Wolf ovens, know that if you want the "new design" avoid the L series. They will be replaced with the M series late this year that will have the removable bottoms, but that will be quite the wait. I believe that the new generation of the E series which has already been released has the removable bottom though. Research all you want, but these ovens have not been on the market very long and nobody has owned them long enough to prove anything. Of course the salesman will say they've fixed the problem, but who trusts salesmen? Or he may just pull the classic Wolf salesman move of denying the problem ever existed, or saying it was fixed years ago. I think it might be more helpful to call Wolf and ask them about it. It seems that Wolf is more honest about their products than salesmen are. "You don't really need a flame thrower rangetop to cook steaks well. A good and well seasoned cast iron skillet on an average gas top will produce fine results" Well of course nobody NEEDS a flamethrower rangetop. But pretending that a 15K BTU sealed burner will do as good of a job as a 22K open is just ignoring the truth. Maybe the result won't be that different, but cooking on high performance burners is just a better experience. It's hard to explain to someone else in words, but most people will understand what I'm talking about once they've tried it. Of course, BTU's aren't the only thing that matter. Burner design matters more. I like open burners better and would take a 15K Bluestar burner over a sealed 18K burner any day. Different people have different needs but I'm convinced that for the majority of people at least, high BTU open burners are the best choice if they are in the budget. And you don't need to be a professional chef to benefit from them, I think any home cook can. Now, I personally prefer induction, but if you are looking in that price range and are getting gas, I don't see why you should spend as much as or more than the cost of an open burner range and get an inferior product.

So...I didn't really consider the speed ovens until they were brought up recently on the thread. Now that I've looked at them, aside from the increased cost and loss of a turntable, are there any downsides to swapping the Miele microwave with a Miele speed oven? It looks like the footprint is identical, which would be my primary concern with this change. I didn't really set out to get three ovens, but given that I really want the standard convection oven, the combi-steam oven, and a microwave, it seems like it's worth considering this change. Given the desire for fast reheating, etc with wife and kids, having a microwave is necessary. Also, is it still advisable to keep the warming drawer? From what I've read, some have suggested the the speed oven and/or steam oven can replace a warming drawer, but @pillog's thoughts on this post have convinced me that I'm not completely insane for wanting to keep this in the layout. (Biasing towards Thanksgiving/large group cooking as opposed to everyday needs.) The layout would be: Main stack: convection oven (bottom); warming drawer (middle); speed oven/microwave (mainly due to the fact that the XXL Miele CSO won't trim match with the 30" convection oven but the microwave will: post and post) Separate stack (opposite side, beneath counter): CSO Thanks for everyone's thoughts on this design, it's been really helpful. -joe

I'm not sure which layout I like best yet, and it might not be any of them. Here's why. Are you really going to spending your entire time entertaining at your sink? Point being, I actually think an island sink is in the way of any entertaining (and any view) and really limits your prep space. If I'm entertaining, I wash dishes at the end of the party. I try to load dishes into my dishwasher as the event progresses, but I like the island clear of anything since that's where people tend to gather. Having a sink in the middle of the entertaining space gets in the way of all the action. Add dishes that are waiting to be washed will just add to the mess. Having a clear island gives you a TON of prep space. Your prep space in all 4 of those options above is really choppy. So, I'd put your micro drawer in your island. You could also try putting either 1 or both your ovens in your island. Put your dishwasher and sink in your perimeter.