Most people on Houzz who have a CSO quickly discovered that it became their most versatile and commonly used appliance. This is especially true, if you can get a plumbed model, as that really lowers the barrier to using it each and every time.

I also have a Miele SpeedOven (something very similar to an Avantium). I bought it, because I didn't want to permanently dedicate space to an appliance that we use, but only sparingly. We knew we needed a microwave, but we would much rather have another oven. A SpeedOven gives me those two functions in a single appliance. It works fine. It does what we bought it for. But honestly, it is rare that I find a use for the speed function. I personally would not buy it for that purpose.

Both the SpeedOven and the CSO have a broiler element. Again, it works. But it's not the main selling point. I have an infrared broiler in my gas range (Bluestar) and it runs circles around the electric broilers in my two other ovens. If a broiler is important to you, you will either have to get gas or you could get the Bluestar wall oven, which apparently is one of the very few electric ovens with a strong broiler element.

Thank you M. I’ve read how much people use their CSO’s once they have them. I had originally planned to have a rangetop, wall oven and speed oven to save space. But after learning about the CSO I’ve been trying to adjust my layout to fit one. Now I’m wondering if it’s overkill to have an oven, combi-steam oven and a speedoven. We are a family of 5 with very young kids so we’ll need to have a microwave whether it’s a speedoven or not.

If you need a microwave, you need a microwave. I can relate to that :-) Of course, the pragmatic solution would be to get a $100 microwave and store it on the countertop or in the pantry. But that might not necessarily be what you want to do.

As for whether this is overkill, it really depends on what you are asking. Is it overkill as in "would I be unable to cook without those appliances?". Oh absolutely overkill. I have for years cooked with just a single basic oven and not even a microwave. Certainly doable.

Or is it overkill as in "am I wasting money and would I never use all these appliances?". Quite possibly not overkill. I constantly use all my three ovens (CSO, SpeedOven, and big all-gas in-range oven), and I frequently use them all at the same time. I find, I can save a lot of time when cooking bigger meals by finding ways to make my ovens do the work. And saving time is important with a family.

Just prepping breakfast and lunch boxes every morning has me use at least two of the ovens. And if relatives come over for dinner, we keep all of them going so that we get a variety of side dishes for everybody.

Also, I find it allows me to easily scale up recipes. I recently volunteered to cook a multi-course meal for ~100 hungry students. I would not have dared take that on in my old kitchen. But with all these ovens, it was quite doable. Cooking mashed potatoes for this many hungry mouths sounded intimidating, until I realized that the CSO doesn't care whether I cook for 2 people or for 100. So, I used it to make ~20lbs of potatoes, ~20lbs ham (sous-vide for a couple of hours in the CSO, then later finished on the BBQ outside), about half a dozen heads of cabbage for cabbage rolls, and ~10 lbs of string beans w/ fingerling potatoes. And two giant pots of dessert. Oh, and 14lbs of freshly baked sourdough bread.

I am quite proud that I managed a $3/person budget and got everybody so full that we even had a small amount of left overs.

Wow, I’d love to sit in your kitchen and just watch M. I can’t imagine cooking for that many ppl.

Thanks for your input DrB477, that helps. Our oldest is 8 as well!

DrB477, how do you like your Thermador steam oven? I’m considering the 30in wall version.

Another parent of an 8 years old; and a 6 years old.

Please note that there is a difference between steam assist and a true combination steam oven (*). One of the the nice things about our Miele CSOs is the fact that you can select between 0% and 100% humidity across the entire temperature range. Steam-assist ovens usually can't do that.

Also, our CSO has very precise temperature control at the low end. This makes it possible to be used as a sous-vide cooker. And that opens up a whole lot of other possibilities. You can slow cook first and then in the same appliance roast to finish the dish.

Also, temperature and humidity control is great when baking bread. The short preheat times are great too. Bigger ovens frequently take a lot longer to change temperature. For some dishes that's ok; for others, it's a nuisance and requires careful meal planning.

@dorianday, no way would I let you sit and watch. I'll find a task for you. Do you like peeling potatoes, or do you want to pit a half gallon of olives?

*) Edit: It does look as if Thermador makes a real combination steam oven and not just a steam-assist oven. But the manual (like most of these manufacturers) is woefully inadequate. I can't quite tell in which modes I can enable steam and what temperature and humidity ranges I am restricted too. Also, I can't tell whether temperature control is sufficiently precise to allow sous-vide cooking. That only works, if temperature swings are really minimal.

Finally, while Thermador boasts to have the largest oven cavity of any steam oven, I can't quite tell how that compares to Miele. I know that my Miele can, in a pinch, hold a regular half-size cookie sheet. It won't quite fit with the railings, but it's close. According to Thermador's spec sheet, the oven cavity is much too small for an 18x13" half pan. On the other hand, their oven seems taller. Yes, no? Hard to tell. The Miele XXL is also quite tall, but I can't find precise numbers for its size. Arrgh, these manufacturers don't really make it easy.

I have the steam range, the steam oven in it is the equivalent of the older 24" cso. Im happy with it but id have gone with miele if i was getting a wall oven. Its a little bigger and has a few more features.

@DrB477 would you still choose the Miele if size weren’t an issue. The new Thermador is gigantic.

I think, that's the model that I looked at online yesterday. And I couldn't quite figure out what its dimensions are compared to the Miele XXL. Yes, it does appear to be bigger. But by how much and in which direction? From my casual reading, it looks as if it might have a smaller foot print, but then is taller to make up for that? But really hard to tell as neither manufacturer gives full documentation that would be needed to make this comparison.

The Thermador looks huge at first sight, until you open the door and realize that the bezel around the oven door is there for a reason. Only the outside of the appliance is this big. The inside cavity is noticeably smaller (although, still a very good size).

Also, I don't think it is available in a plumbed model. While I am not saying that you have to have a plumbed CSO, it does make it a lot more likely that you will use the steam function each and every time. I really like the convenience of not even having to think of checking the water level.

If i was buying a cso today, i would get miele. Its not like the thermador is bad, its not. Size issues aside, its just not quite as full featured as miele is. I havent used a miele cso personally (but i do have their speed oven) so i cant say ive put them truly head to head, but im still pretty confident in my answer. Filling the reservior isnt a big deal but id get plumbed if feasible, less hassle (even if its a minor hassle) is still less hassle.