Depends on your budget. "Middle of the road" means different things to different people. And there is no one brand that will give you best performance in all appliances. Is your budget $1000? $3000? $5000?

I don't think there is a pat answer but a good place to start is Yale's Appliance store blogs. They have a lot of good information on different appliance brands.

This is for a fixer upper that will be listed for $300,000 in the Houston area.

I would maybe consider samsung, Kitchenaid, GE, I think in this case, would go with a package. Are you doing a range or cooktop and built in ovens.

People tend to care about the stove more than anything, and seem to love gas. I would do a gas stove that is an appropriate size and price for your neighborhood, and then coordinating all else within the budget. A counter depth fridge!!