We put a Big Chill classic in our new build, we moved in at the end of April and it's one of my favorite parts of my kitchen. I went with white, it stays looking nice but the chrome trim areas and handles do need wiped down to remove fingerprints. I know they have lots of custom color options so if you'd prefer ivory they can accommodate a match to your cabinets. They have color samples you can request for about $5. I know people complain about them being standard fridges with a fancy paneling but they have a very solid feel and I find mine plenty spacious. I did design my kitchen to have a retro feel so if you're not wanting that aesthetic they do have other options besides the classic in the same colors.

Why not just get appliances with handles that wouldn't show fingerprints? Examples:

• LG LTCS24223S
• Bosch SHSM63W55N

Zline dishwashers are available in several colors.

Panel-ready refrigerators for less than $4K.

Consider spending $6K on a panel-ready fridge (Liebherr, F&P, or Bosch) and a few hundred on a dishwasher from a big box store that you can replace in a year or two when your budget recovers. You can donate the dw to habitat for humanity when you are done.

I vote for panel ready appliances (the DW should be well under the $2K range) to go with your Lacanche. Let that be the star of the show!

Ps - you'll love your Lacanche... so happy I splurged on mine!

Has anyone had any issues with a panel ready DW with steam ruining the front panel? Our current stainless DW gets a lot of drip marks from that.

wdccruise: Thanks for input! I never heard of Zline. And as far as just the handles, it is also a design thing--I don't really want the metal look.

I had a paneled Fisher-Paykel dishwasher drawer for years and it never had steam issues. My current KA doesn't either (but it's not paneled). Dishwashers panel well.

If you panel the fridge, get a fully integrated one, not the ones that have the panel stuck to the face. At least do so if you want me to like it. :)

(I have not been able to find a nice colored fridge either, so my new kitchen is still sporting a 25 year old black KA.)

Thanks Fori, I had not heard of the fully integrated concept so I will look into it.

OK, now I am learning about fully integrated vs panel ready and I am not sure how to discern. Wdccruise directed me to a fisher paykel panel ready which seems in my price range but I cannot tell how I would know what it would look like with panels? Is there something I should be searching for?

That photo from Sub-Zero makes me realize they have updated their built-in series since I shopped. I don't mind that look. The look I don't care for is this:

Maybe integrated and built-in are close enough nowadays--and regular built-ins do hold more than fully integrated. Freestanding paneled are generally bad. (Says the person with a 25 year old leatherette fridge.)

Just be sure you get something that looks nice and be super sure it can be installed to look good. :) It might be worth doing a paneled built in just to keep your stove happy.

The Northstar fridges come in colors. ($$) Be sure to compare sizes on all of these. I don't have a Big Chill because they're kind of dinky.

Still waiting for Smegs to grow...

To the OP, I have owned 2 paneled DW's in my life (2 different houses) and have never had an issue with steam ruining the panel. Ever. Both DW's have been Miele (which I love) and I know Bosch gets great reviews on here as well.

I also have integrated SZ fridge and freezer columns. You may want to look into that, but will be outside your budget

ETA: Just make sure you factor in the cost of the cabinet panel when calculating. You'll still be under your $2k budget for the DW, so you could apply the extra to the fridge budget. :)