Based on just my casual review of hoods by these brands, Zline isn't new to the market to my knowledge; it's just a lower-priced brand in general. Bertazzoni's quality and warranty service gets some abysmal reviews. GE has been around forever but has run into recent problems with quality on some of its products. I cannot comment as to range quality whatsoever with these brands since I haven't shopped for ranges recently, just hoods and refrigerators. You'll find more range reviews if you move up to more of the specialty lines like BlueStar, but those might be outside of the budget for you.

There are dozens of whites in this world that clash with one another. I would be cautious with a selection of a white stove. If you have a sample door and can compare it to the stove in the same type of lighting you'll have in your home and are satisfied, you might get away with it.

I think there are probably better options, even sticking in this price range. Yale Appliance Blog can be a great resource.

Based on this, I might take a look at Blue Star and Jenn Air

https://blog.yaleappliance.com/best-36-inch-pro-ranges

https://blog.yaleappliance.com/less-expensive-36-inch-professional-gas-ranges

If you’re just talking kitchen appliances for that money-well, we did a Blue Star RNB. About 6K, so that was our big splurge. $700 on a Bosch DW and maybe 1300 for a GE fridge. I have decided that fridges are all pretty crappy and disposable, so had no interest in spending thousands there. We are very happy with our choices and would do it again in a second.

Your ventilation and make up air for a 2 out of 3 junk 36” range will take that budget home into fantasyland. Stick with a standard 30”. If you up the budget enough to cover the ventilation and MUA, then the Cafe is a good, not great, choice. BlueStar would be better. And you’d still have the big ventilation expenses.

The budget I provided is strictly for appliances. Ventilation is incorporated separately into our budget.

sounds like a lot of folks recommend Blue Star. I’ll check that out - thank you!

To add on to live_wire_oak's point, my hood ranges have been more expensive than I wanted. For 2 kitchen renos with 8 feet ceilings, the range specs needed 36" clearance between the burners and hood. This left 24" height for the hood and I had very few and expensive options left for a rear vent hood ($2-3k).

As for range reviews. I really like the grill pattern on the GE cafe but I didn't want the matching fridge and DW in white. I decided to go all stainless to mix and match brands. My 1st choice was Blur Star range for the open burners if you like the commercial look. We ended up getting a fantastic deal on a Jenn Air so the choice was easy. I haven't installed the Jenn Air range yet but my GF loves hers.

some of this depends on how much cooking you do and what are your requirements for "better" performance. Cheaper usually comes at an alternate cost. Less even oven heating, less robust parts etc

if you really like to cook and do a lot of it, then I would go 30 inch and a better unit. You can certainly mix and match different mfgs to find the right pricing for you

If you go 30" I would prefer a Bosch 800 induction slidein. Better performance, easier to clean and requires less ventilation because of the substantially reduced waste heat.

The GE Cafe listed is essentially a Monogram but without the warranty. It is minimalist but has what I consider desirable tech: temp display, timer, meat thermometer. It is a great all-around range, great at everything except for maybe wok cooking. I wouldn't hesitate to get this but check locally for discount prices that they can't list.

The ventilation costs can not be shoved under the rug. You’ll need a 42” wide 27” deep hood with at least 900 CFM. And you’ll need a dedicated code required make up air system. You’ll be lucky if that only costs as much as the range does. If you need heated MUA with an ERV, it will be more.

Bertazzoni has been around for years in Europe. I can't speak about the gas 36" Bertazzoni but I have the Induction model and absolutely love it!

Berta is the most attractive, especially if you get it in YELLOW.

Berta is a toy. Looks over cooks. It also has the reputation of having just about the worst customer service possible. Only exceeded in infamy by the no name Chinese ranges like z-line.

@User, ZLine is actually based in the USA. Regardless, I'll keep your customer service feedback in mind.

@Fori My dream is an orange range but unfortunately my husband does not share the sentiment!!

@Kristin S thank you, you're spot on with how the cost is being split amongst different budget lines.

A company setting up a US shell doesn’t make them “based in the US” as Cliq found out when they went under.

Anyone considering a Bertazzoni range should read this very long thread. It started 6 years ago, but goes up to the present with current posts. If you don’t have the time for the entire thread, then just read the posts in the last couple years.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/770422/is-a-bertazzoni-range-worth-the-price

We installed our Bluestar rangetop over 6 years ago, and I am just now finding out that it is NOT up to code. A month ago, I was told that the wall behind the rangetop must be non-combustible which means no drywall and no wood studs in the wall. Even behind tile, unless I install a stainless steel backguard.

Evidently, heat supposedly builds up under the sheetrock which can start a fire inside the wall. (Drywall is flammable.) It makes no sense to me because heat rises, so the heat should go up the vent hood which has a high cfm. I can't imagine leaving the burners on for a long time to build up that much heat, and I don't have an oven there, just a rangetop.

For that matter, what about the wood studs and drywall behind my double ovens? I electric and I gas. They REALLY get hot. Nothing has been said about that wall catching fire.

So...be very careful and do your research on whichever stove you buy. Check the codes.

@Peke This is totally outside of my knowledge range (no pun intended), though hopefully not outside of our General Contractors. I'll definitely bring it to his attention.

What was your ultimate solution with this? Did you install the backguard or solve somehow else?

I have not done anything yet. Bluestar tells me one thing and pros on Houzz tell me something different. Codes say to follow manufacturers's instructions, but Bluestar doesn't seem to know the codes. They told me again today that tile over drywall is fine with an island guard.

As far as I have been told on Houzz, I have 3 choices:

1. Remove the upper and lower cabinets, rangetop, and vent hood, then remove drywall and wood studs and replace with metal studs and non-flammable material (not drywall). Then reinstall everything.

2. We pulled the vent hood and rangetop out 3" from the wall because of recommendations on Houzz. Because we did that, we have a problem in that if we try to install a stainless steel backguard now. I would have a 2" gap between my backguard and the wall that I would never be able to clean behind. Backguards are supposed to touch the back wall and attach to the rangetop.

3. Rebuild the rangetop cabinet and pull it out 3" more. That leaves us with a 6" gap behind the rangetop, but the quartzite countertop is only 3" wide there. Not sure what I would do to fix that problem.

I have found the codes on commercial stoves, but not on residential. If your GC can find out, I would appreciate knowing. My GC has not found anything yet.

I would go with a brand you know can be serviced and parts will be available in the future. GE is a good old staple. If you are not concerned about it being white you have some other choices within the GE lines. I am a designer and work with homeowners to select products in their price range. 10K is a healthy budget if you don't blow it all on one appliance.

Beko is a line of appliances that our local appliance store is also carrying and has a nice lineup in the same price range. They have been around for over 60 years in Europe.

Another important note that people don't realize, when you go to a 36" range, the oven becomes shorter. I often find people that people who want a "bigger oven" are dissapointed. Some of the 30" ranges have accessories such a griddles that slips in where the grate is.

MFGs are not going to comment on individual town codes. There are literally thousands of enforced and unenforced codes - they could never know them all. They don't want to play the "You told me" game. Many cities require an air gap on the dishwasher but how often do you ever see one?

Your GC should be the one who knows the local interpretation of what is allowed by code and what constitutes safe building practices

How much do you cook? Bake? Now vs what you want to do in the future? Others in the household who cook/bake? How long do you plan to stay in this house?

@opaone I would so I am fairly middle of the road with both. We use both the stove and oven probably 2-3x weekly for dinners, and then a bit more on the weekend for other meals. My husband may use the stove/oven a few times a month additionally outside of meals I make. We have no clue how long we'll stay in this house. We've never stayed anywhere longer than three years but perhaps this will break that cycle.

@delray33483 @Peke talking to various GCs in my area it does not seem to be common place that they worry the about the code referenced beyond simply installing a backsplash. AKA doesn't seem to be something that inspectors are enforcing locally. We are doing a renovation home loan and inspectors will come out at multiple phases to ensure code compliance, so I have to assume that our GC is being very prudent. To the best of your knowledge, do these same restrictions/code guidelines come with 30" ranges, or is it exclusively once you start getting to the larger "pro" styles.

General question to all on this thread though I think I know the answer - any thoughts on Verona? I actually think there 36" double oven is quite aesthetically pleasing, but the price seems too good to be true so I am assuming it is. Would love to hear any feedback from folks that may have considered or purchased. https://veronaappliances.com/ranges/36-inch-prestige-dual-fuel-double-oven ($3500)

Given what you've said I don't know that for cooking performance it's critical to splurge on a higher end range like a Bluestar RNB or Wolf unless you find a really good deal. OTOH, you may want to look at them for reliability and TCO. On the latter I'd focus on Wolf as Bluestar are gaining a reputation for quite poor customer service. However, you could spend a lot of money on maintenance before approaching the higher cost of a Wolf. Maybe worth it if you benefit from the better performance but likely not if you don't.

A frig other than SubZero will not keep foods as fresh but there's an easy (and healthier) workaround - buy smaller quantities of fresh ingredients more often and limit how much you freeze anything.

Do pay attention to your range hood and MUA. Builders will generally install the least expensive option in the least expensive manner they can get away with. The result is poor indoor air quality (IAQ) leading to a variety of health problems due to the byproducts of gas combustion not being properly exhausted. Then there is the issue of the lingering odors of meals past to haunt you and everyone who comes in your house. And finally the unnecessary and excessive hood noise that is not only mentally disturbing but then causes you to not want to use it when you should leading to worse IAQ issues. More if you're interested: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5161173/hood-faq

I think the lower back wall heat issue is addressed by having the range no closer than 2 inches to the wall. Usually the gas or electric connection takes care of this without anyone actually following the code. The above the range issues are proximity of combustable cabinets and backsplashes

One thing I have noticed about stainless steel is that Bluestar's stainless steel is super easy to clean. American Range does not have the same quality and is super easy to scratch. Bluestar's stainless steel is superior quality.

A range or rangetop with the required backguard passes all requirements. It’s only when you get people promoting pretty over practical that you run into issues.