When we were looking, we felt the Meile, Wolf and new Dacor models were the top tier. I don't know if the other two offer a rotisserie. We use one on the grill outdoors and can grill year round, so that wasn't a feature we were looking for. I'll give the nod to the Bosch DW, although you might want to check pricing on the Thermador models (made by Bosch) if you plan to use cabinet panels on them. I found the Thermador panel-ready models were less than the Bosch, but the stainless doors were less in Bosch. Quiet, clean well, and dry as well as any DW I've had (some folks think they don't dry plastic well) Micro -- Sharp makes many of the micros out their both with their name on them and with others. I don't think you can go wrong with Sharp, and you won't be paying for someone elses name on it. We did the drawer undercounter -- the only solution for micro placement that didn't cause problems in our layout. It works very well and has some nice features I didn't really pay attention to before we got it (sensor reheat and keep warm among others). Fridge -- if you are looking at Subzero, I would also look at the Thermador Freedom series. I have 2 of the colums and LOVE them. Range -- I have a range top and separate ovens, so my experiences may be a bit different. I have Wolf and am quite happy. Some folks seem to be having some issues with certain range models, so I'd look into that further. I hear a lot both ways about Viking, but all the others are pretty solid performers. You will hear that some love Thermador but others can't get past the cycling simmer. Think about how much you would actually use an extra low simmer function -- I have used mine no more than I could count on one hand in a year. The other one you will hear about here is Bluestar -- you may or may not find a distributor in your area. Among those brands, I would look for the look, feel and features that fit you best and feel good about your choice. Hood, I also looked at Independent, but they had along lead time then and got ruled out. I went into a dealer to look at VAH after reading comments about the difficulty cleaning one. Didn't seem like an issue to me, but the salesman I talked to recommneded Best by Broan over VAH after being able to do side by side comparissons (in a lab -- not the store -- the buyer never sees that). I've been happy with it (went with an external blower but didn't have room for a silencer) and DH greatly prefers the look of baffles over the open style of the VAH. I think I do too. It would be easier to know how big an issue that would be if any of the VAH dealers actually had one installed in a realisting setting and height. We had another issue over what kind of lighting and controls were on each model -- many things to consider. Good luck with the whole process. Enjoy your new home.

Tropic brown, tan brown are two others. There are very dark golds like Juparana Tobacco or Paradiso which might work. You might also consider something like teak wood. Etching leaves white marks. On a brown marble it will be very visible. For fun, I got a two buck pink marble tile from the box store and had "science" when I was trying to decide about counters. Science consisted of pouring a small qty of lemon-lime soda on a bit of the marble and seeing if I could get it off before it etched. The answer was NO! I would suggest you spend a couple bucks to get a tile similar to what you want to use and have your own science project.

Here's white oak with a very dark stain (scroll to bottom picture). If you're going that dark, it's gonna tone down the oak grain a good bit. Here is a link that might be useful: white oak with dark, dark stain

I love the look of your wide door casing with the taller molding and the crown detail above the door. That is beautiful. However with the right side trim cut off so skinny it really draws attention to the mistake. That would drive me crazy even if the cab and counter was not notched. Do you need that small counter space? I'd maybe do a skinny pull out pantry next to the fridge. Something like this? If that's not an option, then I would do as Karenseb suggested. What do you need a door there for? I thought you said it leads to the dining room. I'd have it just an opening. My only other thought was lose the thick fridge panel on the right or maybe do a thin one?