Go to kitchen forum, but I would not recommend Merillat! Yes, they are made in Michigan, but I think you can do better in the same price range. We went with Brookhaven over Merillat.

No expert here, but I would go with Mid Continent, especially if there isn't a big price difference. Merrillat Classic is considered builder grade and upgrading to Masterpiece not worth it IMHO.

hi kkupstate-I have masterpiece and i love them. Here are some differences. MASTERPIECE 1. more door styles 2. more finishes avail. 3. solid wood doors vs. engineered for classic 4. cabinet back is : 3/8" thick laminated printed birch wood grain or white Melamine. 3/8" Plywood upgrade (we upgraded) vs. 1/4" thick, 50-pound density engineered wood extends all the way to the floor to give the entire cabinet box extra strength and stability for classic. 5. 3/4" solid wood full-depth drawer with four-sided dovetail construction and 3/16" plywood bottom vs. Drawer is 4-sided, 1/2" thick 48-pound engineered wood lap joined with adhesive and stapled for classic 6. 3/4" Solid wood drawer fronts vs. engineered 7. Blum Tandem Plus full extension drawer guide with 75lb load rating and standard soft closing drawer buffer system vs. Sidemount WhisperGlide drawer guides deliver a smooth opening and are load rated for 75lbs for classic. 8. Wall Cabinet Shelves: 3/4" thick laminated printed birch wood grain or white Melamine. 3/4" plywood upgrade available vs. 5/8" thick Forty-eight pound density engineered wood. Those are some of the differences but I have included a link to their website so you can see them all. Merillat and Kraftmaid are made by the same company. We originally got quotes on KM from lowes which contained less big cabinets (microwave cooking center) and Merillat Masterpiece was less expensive(after contractor discount). If you went with classic upgrades are available on some of their items whereas with masterpiece almost everything is upgraded and included in price. Like I said I love mine, they are well built and I would use them again. hope this helps you some! Here is a link that might be useful: merillat

Don't remember off the top of my head which hinges, either Blum or Grass, soft close is a small upcharge. (will check when back in-get confused with which brand has which-old age CRS). I refuse to carry anything lesser hardware. Glides are Grass full extension soft close undermount (same as my hi-end brand QCCI) on dovetail boxes as standard now though they also added the upcharge. They just did away with the cheaper drawer, fine by me since we don't order that. I don't mind the warranty, "lifetime" is marketing hype IMO. It's not for wear and tear, just defects which if there are any should present themselves in the first year anyway. Many states require seven and some call that "lifetime". Hardware is truly lifetime though, from the hardware company. Mods, they are making me a two drawer with interior roll out in top drawer. Supposed to become a standard some time next year. I really don't intend to fool around with a lot of mods at that price but the few they have are useful. The two drawer was important though.