I will try and attach my photos to this response:
First to the main kitchen:
The Aga (4 oven claret red). How to explain this thing? This entity? First of all, I would not buy a Legacy if you like the AGA as it is not an Aga in the functional sense, but rather a gas stove that looks like an Aga. Where cost is an issue (when isn't it?) I would buy a 2 oven AGA. I was nervous about the committment of the AGA as I know no one who has one, but recently an English colleague of ours came to visit and his eyes lit up when he saw it, saying "I grew up with an AGA and it was the center of our house". My DH and I thought long and hard about which energy source to order. These things come from Enlgand on the slow boat and we didn't want to make a mistake. We live out on the country and so cannot have natural gas, but we could have had propane as we have a large buried tank on the property, and in theory they can be powered by wood or coal, but we came to feel that none of the above were very environmentally responsible choices. We live in the Pacific Northwest and elctricity is cheap and plentiful and does not come (largely) fromt he Middle east... so we went with an electric AGA. As you know they are ultra-insulated as they are always on...here in the PNW, during our usual mild, rainy and cool weather they are like a magnet of gentle heat and coziness...hard to beat. When we had a week of 90'ish weather, we turned it off (and immediately missed it!), when the weather cooled off again we turned it back on. It took about a day to heat up. We love the way it is a great toaster (one less small appliance to clutter the counter), we love the way it "irons" the tea cloths and the cloth napkins we use everyday (see picture of them stacked on the warming plate), they come out very much as if you had ironed them on a board. And, as I work every day and long hours, I love being able to put a coq au vin or a stew in the 250 degree oven all day and have it be done (and not the least bit dry) when I get home. The AGA is that thing of beauty that is a joy forever. So I'll stop now about the AGA and for the 2 or 3 of you out there who want to know more, just ask.
The subzero refrigerator and the undercounter freezer drawerrs in the picture are covered with a piece of masonite when we painted with chalkboard paint and use as menu planners and to-do lists....
Ths Scotsman icemaker is addictive, it makes gobs of clear, dense, perfect, tasteless ice, but it is LOUD. We knew this already, but installed it anyway.
The cabinets are IKEA with custom fir fronts (IKEA quit making the fronts I had chosen).
The sinks are silgranit (LOVE it) and the counters in the main kitchen are honed absolute black granite. I love this, but I also love patina and many people do not. In the pantry the counters are zinc with an integral sink, which is great, but you have to really be into patina to like this choice.
You can see the side-by side Wolf gas cooktop and induction cooktop. My DH insisted on the gas, which we never use---even though we have been dedicated gas appliance users and cooks for many years, because the induction is better in every way. It is much faster to heat up, it turns off (or down) instantly, it is so easy to clean and it is very safe. No fumes, no flames, no burns... It beats the AGA hands down for ease of use and speed of heat; it gets much hotter.
The gaggenau steam oven is like the induction cooktop: it is better than any oven incuding the AGA, in the same sense that contemporary cars are better than old ones (though perhaps not as beautiful or fun). I bake bread, especially inlcuding artisanal sourdough styles and it makes the crust very crusty (if you want it to). Any specific questions, just ask. I bought the floor model at half off. That is definitely the way to go.
NOw for the Chinese kitchen. This is not for everyone, obviously. I am a serious Chinese cook and we had orginally decided to have Robert YIck of San francisco build us a custom restaurant style multi-wok wok cooker (propane), which is what you will see in most Chinese restaurants...very very hot, which is needed for Chinese cooking. Then I read about induction wok cookers and decided to take a BIG chance. To back them up and to be able to use my traditional clay pots, we also installed Wolf's gas wok cooker. The induction wok cooker is better in every way: it is much hotter, the handles of the wok stay cool, there are no exhaust fumes (the huge exhaust fan was installed for the Robert Yick stove we had planned for), it is safer (most Chinese cooks have no hair on their arms!). If you are into "wok hay" you will know what I mean. IN the Chinese kitchen the free standing counter is IKEA. The stainless steel sink with rinse faucet is from a commercial kitchen supplier (and cheap). Then there is the last bit of craziness that serves both kitchens: the dishwasher. In the past I have been a fan of German dishwashers, but I read in a book of Chef's Kitchens several who mentioned that they had had a commerical DW installed and loved it. The whole cycle takes 3 MINUTES! Imagine that on Thanksgiving.... it uses much less ebergy, less water and less soap. It takes some getting used to, but we are very glad we did it.
So that's our crazy kitchen, let's see if I can attach photos.
Q
color, style, ambiance
Q