Check out the Appliance forum. This sort of discussion goes on all the time there.

I went with all KitchenAid in our new build, and have been quite pleased so far. Most of the homes in our custom home neighborhood have the usual suspects, Wolf, Subzero, Thermador...but frankly, for us, with me not being a gourmet cook by any stretch, lol...we decided to save a bit and use the difference to bling out our trim and built-ins. Plus, it also helped me get my walnut island! The KA range and DW have been absolutely wonderful...the range is a 36" dual fuel pro style...looks and performs great. DW is great, fairly quiet and gets dishes very clean. I got the french door counter depth fridge, and don't love it...but not due to performance, due to the lack of space going from a standard depth to a cd! I got a chest freezer for the garage which has helped. We had the fridge built into the cabinetry to make it less obtrusive, but it isn't fooling anyone that it is a built-in SZ! :)

We put in wolf range, Miele dishwasher, KA fridge, Warming drawer and microwave. So far no regrets.

Mulitple brands here...

GE Monogram:
36" six burner rangetop
30" double oven
42" hood insert

KitchenAid:
2-24" dishwashers
(Samsung was the backup brand)

Kenmore Elite badged Samsung:
36" Counter-depth SxS refrigerator-freezer w/ ice & water in the door

Other brands we considered... Thermador & Viking rangetops, GE Profile & DCS double ovens, LG, Thermador & KitchenAid refrigerator-freezers, Samsung dishwashers

A wide variety...we looked at the brands our builder could get and chose what we thought was the best from each category.

Wolf cooktop
Electrolux double wall oven
Bosch dishwasher
LG refrigerator
Sharp microwave drawer
Perlick beverage center
Vent-a-hood range hood

All Kitchen Aid...36" induction cook top on clearance with little scratch for 1K....30" double oven on clearance at lowes for 1.9K...We designed our kitchen so the only thing on one wall is a pantry and the fridge so the fridge will look counter depth but still be a french door 29 cu ft....

Multiple brands for me...
Fratelli onofri royal range

Miele in counter deep fryer

Still deciding on the in counter induction may go with plug in so I can move it around.

Kitchen Aid hood insert

Fantech inline blower

Miele classic speed oven

Frigidaire 33" all refrigerator

Freezer will be whatever I can find on sale with good reviews(in a pantry so looks are not a consideration)

2 dishwashers will either be the new frigidaire orbit or maytag jetclean both have excellent reviews and are inexpensive

We too have a mixture!

SZ 736 fully integrated all fridge - love it!!!! Husband just pulled out some lettuce dated a month ago which was still fresh. Whatever they do to filter the air is amazing.

Two KA dishwashers - lower end and higher end. Both panel ready and fully integrated. Can't tell a difference between them on cleaning ability. More cycles on the more expensive one but also the cutlery tray which is useless to me. I like to throw it in the basket and take the basket to put it away:)

Electrolux Icon Professional Speed Oven and Convection Oven - love both. Have basically not used the speed feature but it is a great microwave and a second oven. It preheats super quickly so I use it lots for the little additions to meals - crescent rolls, garlic bread, etc. Only complaint is I hate the SS interior. Hard to clean and I am a neat freak ;)

KA fridge/freezer drawers - love these. We have a tiny freezer in the kitchen with an inexpensive Frigidaire freezer in the laundry. We keep only the immediate access stuff in the kitchen freezer drawer - basically frozen waffles, a half gallon of ice cream and frozen berries for protein shakes. The rest goes into the big freezer. . .

Hoshizaki ice maker. Jury still out. For the ice connoisseur great ice - top hat ice which is good for drinks. It is LOUD. It is also expensive to run in our crazy high water price town (worse than the West coast - loony!). The pros are it is easy to turn off which I do regularly - it takes several days for the ice to melt down and then I turn it back on. Ice gets a little cloudy but fine for us - if we are having folks over I turn it on a day in advance.

We got a mix too. Over-bought for the price range of our house, but I love to cook and I wanted the best. So far (2 months) very very happy with all our choices.

Bluestar rangetop
Kitchenaid built-in fridge
Modernaire hood
Electrolux double ovens
Bosch DW
Sharp micro drawer

Planning on...

36" Wolf Rangetop (2nd choice is Capital Culinarian)
KA or Bosch dishwasher
Samsung or LG Counter Depth fridge (hate the size and price but love the look)
Electrolux Double Wall Ovens
Custom cabinetry hood
Sharp Microwave drawer (they are all made by Sharp, btw)
Small beverage/wine fridge in the Butler's pantry

Rant on Microwaves.

I'll note that I installed a Sharp drawer microwave in my last house. I was really unimpressed with it and don't plan on using it again in my new build. Reasons:

- $$$$$$ - when I bought mine they were about $700
- hard to use - I use a microwave primarily to reheat food, and it lacked a simple "sensor reheat" button like the $100 Panasonics. Instead I'd have to enter food type etc or guess a time.
- no carousel - food would heat unevenly and I'd have to stop and stir or move the plate around several times during heating.
- despite being built in doesn't "disappear" - the face extends awkwardly from the face frame of the cabinets and there's no real option to flush it in as you can with e.g. the Wolf E-series ovens so it never really looks integrated if you're going for a clean looking kitchen.
- self-closing drawer finnicky.

I've honestly never found a better microwave for performance and ease of use than a $100 Panasonic Inverter/Genius. So the cheap white one I have now will continue to serve us in our new kitchen alongside a Wolf E-series flush inset oven, Sub Zero flush inset fridge and Miele integrated dishwasher. As with everything else I'm going for an invisible streamlined look, so the microwave will be tucked away behind a lift/tilt cabinet door.

Here is a link that might be useful: Panasonic Inverter Microwave

Thanks so much for all the replies! The funny thing about building, the more we have to choose/pick-out for builder, the more confused I get! I thought I knew exactly what I wanted with most everything, and yet I question my decisions daily! Can't wait to get through this build -- and hope I do a good job picking everything out! :)

Every person that has built or remodeled a home questioned their choices. I was set to buy Electrolux or Bosch appliances for the kitchen until we found a floor model sale on Wolf and Sub-Zero. The price of the floor models and a $1,000 rebate lowered the price to within our budget.

Cooking - 36" Wolf LP gas rangetop (love it!)
Ovens - 30" Wolf L Series double oven (great baking results, long preheat)
Frig - 36" Sub-Zero Frig on top/Freezer on bottom. Agree with poster that said it maintains freshness for long periods.
Dishwasher - Bosch fully integrated panel. This is my 3rd Bosch dishwasher and this one is not performing to past ones. Installing a water softener and hope this helps.
Microwave - Sharp 24" drawer. It works great and does have a sensor reheat that does not require pushing several buttons. It does not have a carousel. Sharp makes Wolf microwave drawer and the price was considerably higher.
Freezer - Frgidaire secondary upright in laundry room

I took a long time to decide between Milele and Wolf/Subzero but chose Miele because of the look and better reviews. Purchased Miele with 10% discount (in Canada we pay more and 10% discount is till higher than US pricing). So installed are :
Miele
24" Speed Oven
30" Fridge column integrated
18" Freezer column integrated
30" Convection oven
2 dishwashers integrated
Induction cook top

Wolf
Steam oven (it's a covection oven too).

So far:
One design issue. The speed oven has a full width handle and it was not possible to open the freezer which is immediately adjacent to it. Miele Help indicated DS4042 handle would fit. I called back and emailed to confirm as I thought it should be DS4043 handle but was assured DS4042 was correct. The appliance installers tried the handle and unfortunately I was correct. Had to return the handle and get the DS4043. Appliance installers had to return again ($400 minimum per visit and $199 for new handle). I had other handles to return and after 3 weeks, still no credit.
Brand new freezer doesn't work - two week wait for service call.

Very disappointed with Miele due to in incorrect technical information, lack of action on credit,freezer not working and two week service delay. Miele Help indicated the latter two items would be escalated so hopefully everything will be resolved.

Anyone else had issues?

We chose to do all KitchenAid in our new house.
Won't know how we like or hate for at least another month and a half!
Hope we made the right choice.

This post was edited by kaljr82 on Mon, Feb 4, 13 at 10:54

I guess I will throw in my choices even though I may be way out of "range". Lol! Dh and I chose Kenmore appliances for the whole kitchen and Samsung for the washer and dryer. I am one of those people that could really care less about high end appliances; we saved alot of money, they work efficiently so I am happy!

We are pretty sure that we are going all Kitchen Aid appliances...still considering Whirlpool Gold series and Bosch 500 series but leaning more towards KA

Our home is not finished yet but we bought all JennAir (48"sxs, 36" induction, speed oven, 30" single oven, warming drawer), except the dishwasher will be KitchenAid and the wine fridge is till TBD. We would have went with the Miele dishwasher that everyones raves about but when I went to showroom with my bag of plates, glasses, bowls, etc I couldn't load anything and immediately felt "meh!" about it. I put my dishes in the KA and it felt natural and easy. Instant chemistry, lol.

We just ordered a Bosch 800 series DW, double oven an induction stovetop even though we still haven't closed our construction loan! We got them close to 50% off!

To the OP, I am surprised you didn't like your Bosch DW!

Kitchenaid- found a display slide in and saved a bunch. Just bought the rest to match. We are not cooks and we have a tight budget.

Wolf 36" AG Range
Modern Aire hood
Fantech inline blower
Thermador Column Fridge
Thermador Wall oven
Miele DW

All stainless LG, with a red LG washer and dryer. We have been in the house 3 years now and I am in love with my appliances.

Laura12, how did you get those appliances for almost 50 percent off? Which induction cooktop and double oven did you get? I am debating between the mirror finish thermador or the miele. Love the look of the former but Miele seems to get better reviews in terms of function,

Miele 30" Masterchef Europa Wall Oven
Wolf Steam Convection Wall Oven
Thermador 36" frameless induction cook top in mirror finish
Bosch builtin microwave and 800 plus series DW
Leaning towards new KA 30 cu ft regular depth fridge

Bosch is running a really good rebate if you choose to buy 3 or more of their appliances.

Wolf - 60" range
SubZero - 48" built inrefrigerator
Kitchen Aid - everything else

Blue Star 60" Range Oven
Sub Zero 48" Fridge/Freezer
Sharp Drawer Style Microwave
Undecided yet on Dishwasher

Good Luck with your research!

GE Monogram 48" range/oven
GE Monogram 48" fridge/freezer
Sharp drawer microwave
Miele Dishwasher
Fisher Paykel dishwasher drawer for prep area
Cheapo mini fridge in pantry for kids drinks, snacks, etc.

We get too significant of a discount on GE Monogram to pass up. GC was pushing for all KA but we feel comfortable with our decision.

Bosch D/W
Bertazzoni Combo Gas/Induction Cooktop
Miele Speed Oven
Electrolux Single Wall Oven
GE Refrig
Kitchenaid refrig Drawers
Faber vent hood
Maybe an additional microwave TBD

Can't believe I am saying this but sense your a fellow southerner check out vulcan appliances. You can get a killer commercial top and oven for about 1500.

guess I am sort of an exception to the list up there....
did not require anything high end, just looks nice and super functional.
Needed all electric in the home due to the tightness.
Went with the Samsung 3 door fridge (29cf, great fridge...have been using it in our temp place for a few months now), Samsung flex oven electric range (looks promising with the tray to split the oven into 2 spaces for a double oven), Kenmore Elite dishwasher (.48db...needed something quiet), range hood undecided yet, washer/dryer is Whirlpool high Efficiency front loads Duets. Microwave is a standard on the counter one that will go into a shelf built into the cabinets just above counter height (full height cabinet).