We have had the Medallion Criterion for about 6 months which we purchased through Menards. So far so good and the customer service at Menards was fabulous. One drawer front was damaged and they replaced it no questions asked in about a week. Didn't need a photo or anything. My DH's brother has Schrock which has been in for over 10 years. They are a lighter colored maple and they still look very good. I looked closely at their cabinets when we purchased ours and the only real noticeable flaw was one bottom corner of one cabinet door located above a dish rack. I imagine it probably has gotten knocked into a few times with dishes. You really can only notice it if you are looking for flaws though. I would, however, if you have time, try a local cabinet shop just to see where they are at. I did not and I regret not checking one out. If you are near Amish people have had wonderful things to say about their cabinetry and pricing. If I am not mistaken badgergirls' kitchen has Amish cabinets and they look fabulous. I couldn't find the exact post to her finished kitchen but thread has some photos. Here is a link that might be useful: Badgergirls kitchen

I agree with susanka. Even if you ended up doing 1/2 of your door panels, that would be $600 saved, which is a very nice high-end kitchen faucet, or warming drawer (have seen several new ones on CL for $400 range), etc. I definitely wouldn't do your cabs near the sink, but maybe would consider it for the desk area, since it's more 'furniture' than just kitchen cabs. The french doors on the left: are they going out side, and usually closed, or are they going to another room, and will usually be open? I'm trimming out the bookcase at the end of my island, since it's somewhat exposed, but won't worry about my cabinet ends, since I only have one that would face the family room, and hopefully it won't be too noticeable, since it's sitting at the end of my large peninsula/eating bar.

Because each line has its own names for cabinet lines, door styles, and finishes; when comparing the two, you must be certain that you are comparing apples to apples. We did get quotes from two local Medallion dealers, but ended up purchasing Schuler from Lowes because we got a better deal. You may see some Medallion options that are not listed in the Schuler catalog; but if you have a knowledgeable sales person at Lowes, anything that Medallion offers, can be ordered from Lowes as Schuler. They all come from the same factory and the same production line. Our Schuler order was delivered in truck with Medallion graphics and two Medallion kitchens for a local dealer inside. The truckers said everything came from the same place. Only difference I noted was the paper invoice.

All of the cabinet companies you mentioned above having poor reviews make good cabinets. When you read reviews about finish it's often from people who don't understand wood and how it takes stain, that glazing is never uniform and that paint on wood is eventually going to separate at points where it expands and contracts. As far as fit, it's the poor installation, most often at fault, not the cabinet construction. If you stick with standard finishes you will avoid these problems that often (not always) based on misconceptions. For a frameless cabinet IKEA is an excellent value. I almost used them but I prefer framed cabinets with a 1/2" overlay so I went with Kraftmaid. They will be arriving in a couple of weeks. I did give up some storage space in favor of design. On the other hand Ikea was more restrictive in how I wanted my laout. I will be using there shallow tall units for a pantry on another wall in the future. At that time I will get the doors made elsewhere to match the wood of the Kraftmaid. No problem since it's hickory without fancy stains etc. It's be an easy "match". I also found that in the long run the cabinets cost about the same after you factor in all the special inserts that fit Ikea. For example the drawers don't have sides so you need to buy glass ones and the bottoms are radiused to fit all the Ikea specialty inserts etc. We'll do our own install and I bought my own special features like pull outs etc. online previously so I saved a lot there. Also hit a good sale at Lowes when I purchased the cabs.