Look at Bosch ranges - they're in your price range.

Take a look at the Electrolux slide-in gas range. We installed one in our basement kitchen several years ago and like it very much. Easy to use, powerful burners, large oven and warming drawer give you a lot of flexibility.

I love my GE Cafe freestanding/slide-in convection gas SS range. Retail is about $3200 but it is definitely sold for less. I recently got mine off the floor fully intact and new (in the "scratch & dent" area of a PC R_____d outlet) for $1895.

Some people here like the NXR that can be bought at Costco for 2K. If you don't have a Costco membership, just get one for the $50.

http://www.costco.com/NXR-30%22-Stainless-Steel-Professional-Style-GAS-Range.product.11750009.html

Snetram,

Costco Canada no longer carries the NXR but it does sell the Blue Star RCS304BCN for a delivered price of $2399 ($CDN). That is what some would regard as a "high end" range within your budget and the envy of numbers of GW members on this side of the border. Heavily discussed here at GW.

Lots to like if a pro-style range with open, star shaped burners appeals to you. Minimal electronics (burner reignitor circuit and the usual gas oven glow-bar ignitor and thermostats.) Big oven with convection. Infrared broiler. Three full range burners (simmer to 15k btu-hr) plus a dedicated lower range simmer burner). But, no self-cleaning, no ssbbath/shabbat modes, etc.

GE Cafe ranges got off to a somewhat rocky start several years ago, but GE worked on the problems and the stoves have been getting good reviews here for the last couple of years. Do a search, I think there have been three or four longish threads within the last year.

Frigidaire makes a pretty decent gas range with a third (electric) element for the oven convection. Can't think of the model number right now, but you should be able to find it on AJ Madison. (I think it sells for about $1300).

Bosch gas and dual fuel ranges have received some favorable write-ups here and I have a couple of friends who've been happily using theirs for a couple of years. Not everybody likes the look, though. IIRC, there have been a couple of recent threads here on them and the stoves run from $1100 to $2k (maybe more) depending on the set-up. Again, do a search.

A suggestion: when you find some models you think you might like, download the manuals and check them out for oddities. Some gas stoves run everything through an electronic controller panel, which means you cannot light stove-top burners with a match during power outages. IIRC, some of the Electrolux gas and dual fuel stoves do this, as do some Maytags. May or may not matter to you, but something to consider if it does.

This post was edited by JWVideo on Sat, Feb 9, 13 at 14:56

Thanks for the advice. The blue star does look very nice. I am wondering what it would be like to service it since I am 3 hours from the nearest Costco. Has anyone had good/bad experiences getting blue star ranges repaired?

Do yourself a favor and get an electric stove. Gas puts off fumes or something that ends up on your cabinets making them and everything around the stove sticky. If not cleaned regularly won't ever get clean without ruining the finish. The first elec stove I bought I hated it, went back to gas and went back elec. Much cleaner and as of now I have a glass top and no taking a stove apart to clean it all. And on top of that I don't even cook anymore. LOL

Costco does not provide the warranty service, so the distance should be of no concern. Note that the ordering can be done on-line. There's a link below to the Coscto CA web page for the BS. Apparently, some Canadian Costcos have Blue Stars on the floor but many do not. (On the US side of the border, the NXRs are only available from Costco online). If you were thinking of going to that Costco to check out the stove, I would call ahead and find out if they have them in the store.

Lots of postings talking about service. Blue Star had some warranty issues for a while and there are the usual "I'll never ever by a product from XXX again."

Stoves like the Blue Star (and NXR, which is the model I bought) are very simple and standardized designs. So, not much to go wrong and pretty much anybody can fix them. When I say "anybody," I am including reasonably handy home-owners as well as, say, folks who service restaurant equipment. So, if you don't have the skills or tools, there are plenty of other options. Blue Star owners here at GW often recommend calling or e-mailing Prizer-Painter, the maker and say that the company is pretty good about responding to pre-purchase inquiries.

Here is a link that might be useful: Coscto Canada Blue Star 30

This post was edited by JWVideo on Sat, Feb 9, 13 at 14:58

regarding Emma R's post:

The comment points up the need for a range-hood.

Unless you buy some weird off-brand or a "vintage stove," gas stoves should not be putting off "fumes." But heat, goo and cooking vapors will be somewhat more of a problem with a gas stove than an electric stove. Every stove puts goo in the air that will wind up on cabinets.

Getting electric stoves only means that you will not be scrubbing surfaces as frequently. I've still had range hoods with my electric stoves and believe that, if you do much cooking, you need one with electric stoves as much as with gas stoves.

My perception is the goo-in-the-air problem is more pronounced with gas stoves because gas burners and ovens put out more "waste" heat besides the water vapor that is a combustion by-product. Gas burners are generally thought to be about 33% to 40% efficient, meaning that 60% to 67% of the heat is going around the pots and pans rather than into them. IIRC, radiant smoothtops are thought to be in the 50% to 60% range of efficiency, coil burners in the 70% range, and magnetic induction burners are rated to put 84% to 90% of their energy into the pans. Even with induction's much higher efficiency, there are many postings here recommending range hoods for induction stoves.

So, if you haven't thought about a range hood in setting your budget, do so now.

This post was edited by JWVideo on Sat, Feb 9, 13 at 15:00