I've been grill shopping too. I narrowed my choices down to Lynx, Fire Magic, Twine Eagles and Alfresco. I saw all of these grills at local dealers. I did not consider Kalamazoo because of the high price, but I did research it on the Internet. All these brands have the reputation of being very fine grills (which should be the case in this price range) so it comes down more to a matter of personal preference rather than quality, build or performance issues, IMHO. Here are my impressions of each brand: Lynx -- I was very impressed when I saw this grill in person; its design is streamlined and elegant and certainly would win first prize for sheer beauty. It also has a nice set of features -- lots of BTUs/sq in of grilling surface, a multiposition, 3-speed rotis, an interior halogen light for night grilling, a spring-actuated lid assist, a smoker box (no smoker burner though) and the cast-brass main burners you mentioned. The pricing is right in line for this class of gas grills. It wound up being my second choice. Twin Eagles -- the Lynx dealer also carried Twin Eagles so I saw them side by side. Very similar features as Lynx, but not quite as pretty, not quite as many BTUs, and not quite as expensive. Like the Lynx, it's American-made of 304 SS, and the fit and finish appeared excellant. That's true of all the four brands I saw, and, I'm sure, also of the Kalamazoo, except that it's in a category by itself in terms of build and materials, as you would expect for the price. Fire Magic -- this is a very old company with an excellant reputation for selling very high quality grills. However, for the price, I think you could do better. IMHO, Fire Magic is lacking innovation in both the appearance of the grill, which I would rank at the bottom of this group and especially that tall, tear-drop shaped lid, and also in the ommission of such a desirable feature as an interior light. They sell a clip-on, but who wants that? All that, combined with distinctly higher pricing than the others (except for Kalamazoo) means you really have to want the special features they do offer--such as the ability to do charcoal grilling in the main burner compartments--to choose this grill. Alfresco (even though you didn't ask) -- this wound up being my first choice. I ordered an 30" LX2 cart model (the LX2 is the higher-end of their two grill lines) with one infrared sear burner, which was shipped today. I saw the Alfresco at the same store as the Fire Magic and there was no question in my mind. Alfresco was the winner. Why? The pricing is similar to my second-choice Lynx, but Alfresco has one feature that really iced it for me. The rotis motor is built into the grill and you can leave the rotis rod right in place while you're grilling other things. In all the other grills I saw, you have to store the motor and rod when not in use. With these others, the motor, when in use, hangs outside the grill and the rod penetrates through openings in the lid. With Alfresco, the integrity of the lid is not compromised in this manner, and you don't have to trouble yourself with storage or with installing the components when you start rotissing. It also makes for a much sleeker appearance. The warming rack has four positions, one of which swings it completely out of the way when you're rotissing so that you also don't have to worry about removing the rack. Also, unlike the Lynx (and like the Fire Magic), the Alfresco has a dedicated smoke burner right below its smoke box, another feature that's important to me. Plus, the Alresco is almost as nice looking as the Lynx. Still, if money were no object, I'd be mighty tempted by a Kalamazoo. Judging by the pix on the Net, they're built like a tank and those "dragon burners" sound like they'd survive more than a season or two in Hell itself. Not that you'd be using it there.

cpovey, I am surprised by your answer. I just can't see why flame would give a faster recovery time over induction. I thought induction heats the wok/pan faster and more efficiently, with no heat loss to air during the heat transfer. I believe (but cannot quote a source) that the reason that gas has a much quicker recovery time is the difference in temperatures between the heat sources. A gas flame burns at around 3500 degrees F. An electric (coil) burner cannot anywhere near that temp, as the melting point of nichrome (then material the coils are made of) is 2552 F, and the temp is obviously much lower, to prevent the coils from drooping. The greater the temperature difference, the faster heat transfers, thus a gas burner has a faster recovery time. Now, an induction burner itself generates no heat. It causes the pan to get hot by forcing the molecules in the pan to move. While very effective, the pan only gets to temperatures in the hundreds of degrees. Induction can heat much hotter-it can easily melt steel in industrial settings-but is obviously limited in cooking applications. I do know in wok cooking, oskiebabu has it right-the main cooking area is only at the bottom of the wok. The sides are indeed supposed to be cooler. Lastly, Cooks Illustrated recommends using a saute pan for stir frying if you have electric. They did not discuss induction, as their test was done several years ago, before induction became common. Unfortunately for all of us, thermodynamics is a very complicated field, often the killer in engineering programs, and I have a very, very, very limited knowledge of the field. It would be great to find a thermodynamicist who is also a cooking enthusiast who could explain all of this!

Out of those 2 the Fire Magic. If you want a real "BBQ" though I would go with some sort of a Kamado type charcoal grill. You can build those in also and they are way better than any gas grill, last a lifetime, can cook anything on them. Smoker, Oven, High Heat Grill. They are ceramic which is better than any metal. I would do something similar to this and maybe have a small Infrared gas grill built in next to it. Or this with the Infrared gas grill just for quick searing. If price were no object I would get the above pair. A Primo extra large oval Kamado with a Solaire Infrared gas grill, although I would opt to get the Solaire Anywhere grill which is Marine Grade 316 stainless steel and you can take it anywhere with you, take it to the beach, camping what ever and it would work perfect for anything I would ever need a gas grill for. Its also much cheaper at around $500. Comes with a nice carrying case. It is also lifetime guarantee. Here is a link that might be useful: Solaire Anywhere

This is a good thread. Almost two years ago, I purchased a 48" GE monogram dual fuel range. Before that I had a 30" GE Profile electric slide in range, so it was quite a change. For those contemplating the decision between a Culinarian and a Monogram, it might be useful to hear what I like and don't like about the GE monogram range What I like: - Dual ovens. I use the small (10"-wide) oven surprisingly often. Fits standard casserole dishes and comes with a small roasting pan which is perfect for roasting small pieces of meat. Also good for keeping food or plates warm. The large oven gets a work-out too. At 36" wide, it has plenty of room for multiple items. - multitude of oven settings. Both ovens have bake, roast, and broil settings with convection turned on or off, plus also proof and clean settings. One oven can be on clean mode while the other is cooking normally. Cleaning time can be set for up to 5 hours. - probes: both ovens have meat probes. A small plus since one could go out and buy a meat thermometer, but this way I can see the internal temperature on the oven display and the oven shuts off and a beeper sounds when the correct internal temperature is reached. - closed oven doors when broiling. The oven door must be closed to broil. There are oven vents that exit behind the range top at the rear of the stove that are used when broiling. This does two things: it keeps smoke from the oven out of your face and under the vent hood, and it is safer with little kids around. - timers: two of them low burner settings. On the 48" model, all of the range top burners are a stacked 5" burner. All are capable of reaching a low range of 140 degrees and a high range of 18,000 btu. GE has done a remarkably good job with the burners at the low range. You can place a piece of paper over a burner on low and it will not burn (I've tried it). I have melted chocolate and made hollandaise over the low burner without using a double boiler and it works like a charm. The burner is more than capable of holding a delicate sauce for hours and is also great just for keeping a single plate or dish of food warm. - easy clean up: food does not get baked on to the range top surface very easily. - fit, finish, design. looks good and functions well What I would do not like: - high burner settings: Despite being an 18,000 btu, the burner is not able to bring a pot of water to a full rolling boil without a lid, and even then it is not great. The reasons have all been given in this thread. The jets of the monogram burner (like all sealed burners) point out sideways under the cap that seals the burner. Consequently, the flames arc outwards and then upwards. When a pan is placed on top of the stove, the exit pathway for the gases forces the flame to arc even further out to the side. the result is that the flames do not come into contact with the pot, and it takes a long time for water to come to a boil. The problem is exacerbated with smaller pots because of the diameter of the burner cap. Put a 5" pan on the stove and crank it up to maximum and most of the flames are shooting out past the side of the pot heating the side of the pot, not the bottom. Put frozen vegetables in the water and the cooking time has already passed by the time the pan recovers to a boil again. Put too much meat in the frying pan at once, and the pan cannot recover to maintain a sear. Quite frankly, for high heat cooking, my 30" electric stove was far superior. It is at these high cooking temperatures when I really covet an open burner. Even at the same btu level, the monogram cannot match the Culinarian's heating properties. By comparison, I have also cooked on a Thermadore range. Their star-shaped closed burner does a much better job of delivering flame to the bottom of the pot and appears to be a good compromise between heat delivery and sealed unit. - wok cooking. Despite having a range top specifically designed to hold a wok, the monogram is useless at wok cooking. No heat is delivered to the bottom of the wok, the wok's curved shape ensures that all heat is quickly dissipated up the side. The result is that it is impossible to stirfry in a wok on the GE Monogram (note, the 36" monogram does come with smaller diameter burners, which may be better for woks) No infrared broiler: one of the downsides of choosing an electric oven is that there is no infrared broiler in the oven. The broiler that comes with it is pretty good, but is no substitute for an infrared. All in all, the GE mongram is an pretty good product and performs very well for 90% of the cooking functions. Compared with other sealed-burner ranges, Monogram offers good value for money. The only disappointment is its performance at high heat, but this is really a choice between a sealed burner and an open burner.. I hope this helps