• Hi, I am the owner and main administrator of Styleforum. If you find the forum useful and fun, please help support it by buying through the posted links on the forum. Our main, very popular sales thread, where the latest and best sales are listed, are posted HERE

    Purchases made through some of our links earns a commission for the forum and allows us to do the work of maintaining and improving it. Finally, thanks for being a part of this community. We realize that there are many choices today on the internet, and we have all of you to thank for making Styleforum the foremost destination for discussions of menswear.
  • This site contains affiliate links for which Styleforum may be compensated.
  • We would like to welcome House of Huntington as an official Affiliate Vendor. Shop past season Drake's, Nigel Cabourn, Private White V.C. and other menswear luxury brands at exceptional prices below retail. Please visit the Houise of Huntington thread and welcome them to the forum.

  • STYLE. COMMUNITY. GREAT CLOTHING.

    Bored of counting likes on social networks? At Styleforum, you’ll find rousing discussions that go beyond strings of emojis.

    Click Here to join Styleforum's thousands of style enthusiasts today!

    Styleforum is supported in part by commission earning affiliate links sitewide. Please support us by using them. You may learn more here.

Are stainless appliances becoming passe?

dkzzzz

Distinguished Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2006
Messages
5,294
Reaction score
21
Originally Posted by SField
What? Are you insane? Have you ever been in an English manor house, or especially a great french chateau? Have you ever been to Greenwich CT or Westchester NY? I'm guessing not, unless whatever passes for fine homes and estates in Norway is different than in these locations. Restauarant type equipment is so common in these types of homes that I really question if we're talking about the same things.

Calm down please. You are mixing cheap stainless-steel-like looking products covered with polyurethane for real stainless steel apliences of professional kitchens that could be cleaned with a steelwool.

Your comment about marble in kitchens also deserves a reply. Italians have them in every cheap restaurant because it is cheap. However it is not durable nor hygenic for use in modern kitchens.
 

Agnacious

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 20, 2008
Messages
677
Reaction score
4
Originally Posted by shoreman1782
An anglophile professor of mine was very excited when he got an aga. I didn't really understand the appeal--what is it?

They are very impressive and some English I know do love them.

Here is an inside look from their website:

http://www.aga-ranges.com/aga/inside.asp

I love the way they look, but I fear it would take me an hour each time to figure out how to boil some water. And the ovens seem smallish to me. I think one must approach this range with a different mindset than what I consider to be a more conventional one.
 

Gus

Stylish Dinosaur
Dubiously Honored
Supporting Member
Joined
Sep 18, 2007
Messages
18,576
Reaction score
8,072
Our appliances are all white. We have black granite countertops and white cabinets. The white brightens up the place. It works for me.

After living through the 60's and 70's I will never buy colored appliances.
 

Douglas

Stupid ass member
Spamminator Moderator
Joined
Aug 17, 2007
Messages
14,243
Reaction score
2,166
Stainless may go out of popular fashion but it will never become like avocado green because it is a derivative of professional kitchens. It may not be the rage but it will still make sense.
 

sloane3

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2008
Messages
264
Reaction score
0
Aga?

Talk about yuppie status symbol. At least Viking and the like are practical.
 

johnapril

Distinguished Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2004
Messages
5,600
Reaction score
11
Over the summer I visited a friend in Geneva whose refrigerator/freezer doors looked like cabinet doors. It was a cabinet depth applicance. Cool.
 

freshcutgrass

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 5, 2008
Messages
689
Reaction score
56
Where do you buy one of these conversion kits?
Any half-assed kitchen cabinet dealer should have them these days (or can order them), as it is fairly common practice. There's not much to it...it just allows the cabinet door hinge and the fridge door hinge to swing in unison. It's basically just a slider that attaches the inner part of the cabinet door and the outer part of the fridge door. Since your new fridge is cabinet depth, it could be a good candidate. I'm pretty sure the fridge needs to have a flat door, and the handle needs to be removable. Just order a matching cabinet and door to fit it (probably not going to be one, so you may have to have that part custom cut/fitted). If done right, it really doesn't cost much, but will have a more dramatic affect to the look of the kitchen than any mass market appliance will.
Aga? Talk about yuppie status symbol. At least Viking and the like are practical.
If you have an AGA just as a status symbol, then that is pretty stupid. AGA is not just an ordinary stove...it's a way of cooking. If you use it correctly, not only is it very practical, but an amazing cooking device. Although a lot of the newer ones are programmable, the basic principle behind them is that they are always on, so they can be expensive to operate. This is fine in the UK, where it is generally cool and damp a lot of the time...they are also a heater (and can even be hooked up to an HRV), so a little more of an issue it hot climates, or places with hot summers. They are also practical in the sense that they are very versatile and multi-functional...not just in the methods of cooking (you will never toast bread in a stupid cheap toaster ever again when you have an AGA), but in how it can be run...it can run on electricity, natural gas, oil, wood, coal, peat, kerosene...or even bio-fuel. It's also practical because not only will you never have to buy another stove...neither will your children...or grand children. This makes them environmentally sustainable (not to mention they are also made from 70% recycled materials). They may be a one-time up front expense, but in the long run, they are cheaper (and you'll be a better cook in the process).
I love the way they look, but I fear it would take me an hour each time to figure out how to boil some water. And the ovens seem smallish to me. I think one must approach this range with a different mindset than what I consider to be a more conventional one.
It would actually be stupidly simpler, as there are no buttons, knobs, dials, or settings to operate. You want to boil water, you just put the pot on the boiling plate. You don't even turn anything on or off. And there are 2, 3, or 4 ovens...so there's nothing wanting there (unless you want to roast a whole cow or something). And yes, AGA cooking is different than conventional cooking ( 80% is done in the ovens)...but well worth getting used to.
 

DocHolliday

Stylish Dinosaur
Dubiously Honored
Joined
Apr 21, 2005
Messages
16,090
Reaction score
1,158
Originally Posted by Douglas
Stainless may go out of popular fashion but it will never become like avocado green because it is a derivative of professional kitchens. It may not be the rage but it will still make sense.

Sheerly in terms of resale value, once the stainless fad passes, I'm skeptical it will matter much what professional kitchens look like. When avocado green is in, the kitchen is either avocado green or it's not.

I suspect stainless will take a big hit shortly, as it's ubiquitous, usually non-magnetic, prone to fingerprints and looks awful when dinged. I know more than one casual cook who has it and doesn't like it. Once the industry moves on, stainless will be as dated as any other bypassed trend. High-end appliances will still have appeal for the select few home cooks truly concerned about such things, but the luster will be gone for your average home buyer.
 

sloane3

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2008
Messages
264
Reaction score
0
Originally Posted by freshcutgrass
If you have an AGA just as a status symbol, then that is pretty stupid. AGA is not just an ordinary stove...it's a way of cooking. If you use it correctly, not only is it very practical, but an amazing cooking device. Although a lot of the newer ones are programmable, the basic principle behind them is that they are always on, so they can be expensive to operate. This is fine in the UK, where it is generally cool and damp a lot of the time...they are also a heater (and can even be hooked up to an HRV), so a little more of an issue it hot climates, or places with hot summers.

They are also practical in the sense that they are very versatile and multi-functional...not just in the methods of cooking (you will never toast bread in a stupid cheap toaster ever again when you have an AGA), but in how it can be run...it can run on electricity, natural gas, oil, wood, coal, peat, kerosene...or even bio-fuel.

It's also practical because not only will you never have to buy another stove...neither will your children...or grand children. This makes them environmentally sustainable (not to mention they are also made from 70% recycled materials).

They may be a one-time up front expense, but in the long run, they are cheaper (and you'll be a better cook in the process).


Do you have an AGA?
 

itsstillmatt

The Liberator
Dubiously Honored
Joined
Mar 11, 2006
Messages
13,969
Reaction score
2,086
Who knew appliances could stir such emotions. Ours are stainless, so is our countertop. I got used to stainless working in a restaurant and never wanted to go back. It is pretty beat up because we cook a lot, but it is thick gauge, and the people who made it can come back and polish it up, but I don't imagine we will ever ask them to do so. White doesn't bother me at all, unless it is that cheap pebbly white which kind of sucks.

I wouldn't use an AGA stove if somebody paid me. They are too ugly. The fact that people talk about them being more than a stove, like they were some pair of pants with built in socks, or footies or whatever, just makes them that much uglier.
 

otc

Stylish Dinosaur
Joined
Aug 15, 2008
Messages
24,449
Reaction score
19,020
What's the best option for someone who enjoys cooking and wants some semi-serious power without hitting into the "lets buy a giant wolf/viking and be trendy but never cook"?
 

antirabbit

Distinguished Member
Joined
Oct 8, 2006
Messages
3,728
Reaction score
155
You can get an NXR, which is chinese assembled of german and American parts.
You can get them sub $2K (a 30 inch) they are kick ass and will deliver the features and near the same performance.
I have a Caldera, which is very high powered, you could also go with Bluestar, more expensive but less than Wolf or Viking, but also much better in performance and you are not paying for the name.
 

gdl203

Purveyor of the Secret Sauce
Affiliate Vendor
Dubiously Honored
Supporting Member
Joined
Jun 9, 2005
Messages
45,595
Reaction score
54,357
Did anyone give the right answer yet: that it depends on the design/style of the kitchen and apartment?
smile.gif
 

freshcutgrass

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 5, 2008
Messages
689
Reaction score
56
Do you have an AGA?
No...my current situation does not suit having an AGA.



I wouldn't use an AGA stove if somebody paid me. They are too ugly.
Well, aesthetics aside (many people think they are better looking than anything ever made), a traditional design AGA is a serious workhorse. They are suited to homes or institutions where cooking is an all-day affair. It simply doesn't make sense for the "average" person.


Did anyone give the right answer yet: that it depends on the design/style of the kitchen and apartment?
Since when does stainless veneered appliances go better with any kind of style of kitchen more than white or black??? It doesn't. I thought we covered that already?


What's the best option for someone who enjoys cooking and wants some semi-serious power without hitting into the "lets buy a giant wolf/viking and be trendy but never cook"?
Induction.

I plan on switching to induction by spring. I'm not interested in those multiple burner built-in cooktops....I think I will buy 3 (for me personally, I don't see a need for more than three) of those pro version portable Viking single burner units (or something else if it catches my eye). I also plan of installing a nice stainless work station in the space where the old conventional stove used to be, and have the induction units on top, with open storage/shelves for an oven and pots/pans underneath.
 

Huntsman

Distinguished Member
Joined
Jul 3, 2004
Messages
7,888
Reaction score
1,002
Originally Posted by Agnacious
That's when you buy an Aga: (they don't do stainless)
_1429930_aga300.jpg
I had the Viking stainless in a home of mine, along with stainless everything else. I did it because that is what the market wanted. As someone mentioned the stainless is a b1tch to keep clean if you do any amount of cooking. The problem arises when a serious cook wants future resale value. I am not serious so I was able to keep things looking nice. My mother is a serious cook and her 6 burner Thermadore looks like it has been in hells kitchen for 40 years, even though it is only about 15 years old or so. But then real cooks don't worry about resale value or appearance, just performance. If she were to move, even though the range works great, she would have to replace it because the buyers would not be able to understand why it doesn't look like the one in the magazine. I am quite past the look. I will never get big box stainless appliances again. I much perfer some of the italian designers out there for kitchens, who use stainless more judiciously.

Ah! I knew a couple in northern England who had an Aga and loved it. But as you say, it is part of a whole lifestyle -- these were pastoral farmer type people and it suited them down to the ground. I have a 6-burner Thermador, too -- I love it, and the backsplash is getting heat rainbows, the burner pans definitely have a layer of carbon on them that is never coming off, yadda yadda yadda. It cooks really really well, though I beat up on it pretty bad and it's due for the third service call of the 11 years or so I've had it. I really don't like flat or mirror-bright white or black -- they are both too much. A nice charcoal grey would probably be my next choice.
Originally Posted by freshcutgrass
If you have an AGA just as a status symbol, then that is pretty stupid. AGA is not just an ordinary stove...it's a way of cooking. If you use it correctly, not only is it very practical, but an amazing cooking device. Although a lot of the newer ones are programmable, the basic principle behind them is that they are always on, so they can be expensive to operate. This is fine in the UK, where it is generally cool and damp a lot of the time...they are also a heater (and can even be hooked up to an HRV), so a little more of an issue it hot climates, or places with hot summers. They are also practical in the sense that they are very versatile and multi-functional...not just in the methods of cooking (you will never toast bread in a stupid cheap toaster ever again when you have an AGA), but in how it can be run...it can run on electricity, natural gas, oil, wood, coal, peat, kerosene...or even bio-fuel. It's also practical because not only will you never have to buy another stove...neither will your children...or grand children. This makes them environmentally sustainable (not to mention they are also made from 70% recycled materials). They may be a one-time up front expense, but in the long run, they are cheaper (and you'll be a better cook in the process). It would actually be stupidly simpler, as there are no buttons, knobs, dials, or settings to operate. You want to boil water, you just put the pot on the boiling plate. You don't even turn anything on or off. And there are 2, 3, or 4 ovens...so there's nothing wanting there (unless you want to roast a whole cow or something). And yes, AGA cooking is different than conventional cooking ( 80% is done in the ovens)...but well worth getting used to.
Agreed on the 'stupid as a status symbol' but not so much on being a better cook necessarily, but you will be better at that particular style of cooking. ~ Huntsman
 

Featured Sponsor

How important is full vs half canvas to you for heavier sport jackets?

  • Definitely full canvas only

    Votes: 55 35.5%
  • Half canvas is fine

    Votes: 60 38.7%
  • Really don't care

    Votes: 17 11.0%
  • Depends on fabric

    Votes: 27 17.4%
  • Depends on price

    Votes: 28 18.1%

Forum statistics

Threads
505,159
Messages
10,578,942
Members
223,882
Latest member
anykadaimeni
Top