Final Decision Time - Bluestar RCS vs Bertazzoni
michfbgal
9 years ago
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Bertazzoni or Bluestar? Gas or Dual Fuel? (My brain hurts)
Comments (10)Consumer reports examined dual-fuel ranges and found them not worth the extra money, overall. They recommended going all gas or all electric, depending upon preference and availability of utilities/prices. All gas is typically the most economical, if you have natural gas available where you live. On the contrasts between Bertazzoni and Bluestar, we have had some great discussions here. I am familiar with both because they both offered reasonably priced ranges in the 36" size we were looking for. I was sorely tempted by the Bertazzoni range. In my opinion, from the perspective of simple loveliness, the Bertazzoni range is the winner, hands down. It is an example of perfect proportionality, clean, modern, lines, and quality construction. They also have a good reputation among owners and have few drawbacks, a smaller-than-American-expectations oven being the chief detraction. The older Bertazzonis also had some kind of idiosyncrasy with the knobs that some did not like, but I think they changed that. In any case, you will likely really enjoy a Bertazzoni. Unless you are a Bluestar person. Bluestar people are folks who gravitate to restaurant ranges. The whole top of the Bluestar, minus the stainless front driprail and the peripheral trim, is made out of coarsely enameled cast iron. It is REALLY heavy. Pot-bangingly heavy. If something spills or boils over, it falls right down on the burners and from there down to a huge drip tray that you line with aluminum foil and clean out once and awhile. You can put the entire top of the range in the dishwasher if you want. I even run the burners through the dishwasher, ignitors and all, when I feel like it. I think the Bluestar is not as lovely as the Berta. It is more stodgy and muscular, and I don't think it has the elegance of finish one will find in a Wolf or Capital. But if you like cooking on big fire with open burners and a cavernous oven with the hottest broiler you have ever seen, then you should look at a Bluestar. So you can tell my Bluestar bias, I hope, and temper this recommendation with your own requirements and priorities, which may be markedly different from mine. But if I were looking for a range right now, I would be keeping an eye out for a deal on a 36" Bluestar RCS that I could upgrade one burner on to Ultranova BTUs. That is exactly what I did and I couldn't be happier with the result....See MoreGas range - Verona, Bluestar, Capital Precision, Bertazzoni?
Comments (5)I just spent the last few months looking at ovens. It would be helpful if someone would do a chart. I never found a Verona or a Capitol. I finally found a Blue Star and didn't care for the look. I have a vacation home and therefore two different kitchen setups. Over $6000.00 I didn't look at those ovens Over $3500.00 good quality sturdy racks, true convection oven, continuous grates, high speed burners, quality simmer burners, a must is a better ventahood for higher cpm, quality stainless steel, decorator look Dual Fuel requires 220 wiring. Some of the ovens have wok or griddles and some don't. Between $2000 and 3500, some with better racks than others, continuous grates, high speed burners, simmer burners are a bit high, good stainless steel quality, designer look, a ventahood may be necessary Between $1000 and 2000 microwave with fan is possible for the ventahood, self cleaning, timer, bake modes, convection oven, not as good quality stainless steel, little better racks than lower priced ranges; Between 500 and 1000 low quality stainless steel that can rust, scratch, show burn stains, few with ontinuous grates, most with flimsy racks, has a timer, regular burners, oven light, then there are the differences between the larger ovens and the smaller ovens. Smaller ovens pre heat faster. Take your favorite roasting pan and perhaps a 2nd pan to the store with you and place them in the oven and see how you like it. Bertazzoni height is small. American Range has a very large capacity. The Wolf has a very low simmer burner. The Viking grates are too heavy for me to clean up easily. A lot of the more expensive ovens do not have timers and some don't have temperature indicators or even oven off/on lights. Some knobs turn too easily and my new Kitchen Aid cooktop turns on when I clean. Also, I have to look twice to see if they are on or off. My new Kenmore electric wall ovens have a warm and hold feature and they heat evenly and rapidly. I'll be afraid to use the self cleaning oven for fear it will burn out the electronics. The Bertazzoni burners take an extra 3 seconds to start. The oven needs to be started with the door ajar. Some of the ovens I looked at have oven burners that will light with a match others don't. I liked the write ups on the Blue Star but when I saw it - I knew immediately it was not for me. There is a great deal of discussion about open burners vs. closed burners. I really liked the American Range but didn't want to spend that much money and I wanted a stainless steel top and the one I saw was black porcelain. My last oven rusted (a builder's model) so the quality of the stainless steel was very important to me. Take a magnet with you when you shop to see which stainless steel is better. The Bertazzoni went on sale for just under $2000 and I decided to go with that price. Did I get everything I wanted? - not quite. Do I really like my new oven? Absolutely. The look is exactly what I wanted, the stainless steel is high quality, the simmer burner is not low enough, the high speed burner is more than I need. The information says it is not necessary to preheat. There is no indicator beep when it does preheat. It has continuous grates that are the right weight for me and I find the closed burners and stainless steel exceptionally easy to clean. The oven is a little small but preheats rapidly and I think for my family it will be fine. It has good lighting. The fan noise is like my microwave on low. It turns off when you are through cooking. Some ovens keep blowing and continue the noise. Previously, I never used my self cleaning oven and this one doesn't even have one. I miss having a timer and will be buying something hopefully with a long ring. There are no electronics to burn out so I'm hoping I won't have repair problems. I purchased an oven thermometer to check the temperature. Either the oven or the thermometer is slightly off but not enough to cause any problems. I will probably purchase another thermometer to see which is correct. The convection, I assume, will take getting used to and so far I prefer not to use it. I did use it to dehydraate the other day and it worked fairly well making 'kale'. I like the heavy black knobs and I read that some of the stainless metal knobs on other ovens get hot. The black knobs are easy to read after one day of getting used to them and I immediately can tell if they are on or off. In addition, some ovens let heat out the front and possibly get hot. I am used to the ovens that let heat out the back top and don't feel I will get burned that way. I hope someone will make a chart. GOOD LUCK finding the right appliance for you....See MoreNew Bluestar RCS model - Any Info? (RCS366BV2)
Comments (80)" I dunno if the gains are minimized due to the different architecture..." It depends on the ability of your pan to capture the heat. A capped burner has more flare when you turn the burner up to high. If you are using a 14" pan it is a good thing. If you have a smaller pan you may not be able to turn the heat up all the way. For some it balances out because they use the highest heat on the biggest pans. Other cooks want to keep the high heat in a smaller area for something like wok cooking or if they have smaller pans. If the heat goes around the pan, your BTUs are being lost. " Early on in my experience with my new BS range I realized that I wanted (needed) more BTU's for my style of cooking. " It is key to have an understanding of your own needs in the kitchen. "Anyone who is saying the 22k isn't worth the $$$ for the upgrade hasn't used both burners side by side. " While I would agree that there is a big difference in output between the two BS uncapped burners, I would disagree with this. I know many passionate cooks, that are perfectly happy with 15K or much less. I personally cook currently on commercial burners and in that setting, the beasts are useful but at home I just don't even turn my 15K burners up all the way all that often. I also know two chefs. One just has a regular all gas low BTU range at home and the other has a commercial range in his kitchen. We don't all think the same....See MoreFinally made a decision, bought a Blue Star RCS
Comments (5)Glad you made the decision to go with Blue Star! You’ll love the performance! The design is fabulous because of the overhang, the knobs stay clean and never get splattered. I don’t even need Bar Keepers friend because with just a wipe with a sponge it’s clean. I use a spray on it once in awhile. When we got our Bluestar I got in touch with Bluestar and they sent out a compliment broiler pan. It doesn’t come with the oven but if you call them they’ll send it to you within a couple of weeks. I have All Clad pots and pans that I have picked up here and there. I LOVE the carbon steel pans, and cast iron. I also have a couple of heavy aluminum pans from either Sam’s or Costco that come in a two pack and you can broil with that too. I use them for roasting veggies and then might use the broil for a couple of minutes. They do fine. That’s all you need. Good luck! You’ll love it!...See Moremichfbgal
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