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flevy_gw

Lacanche vs Viking---please advise

flevy
11 years ago

I've narrowed my range choice to 3 options.

1. Citeaux

2. Sully plus 1

3. 30" Gas Viking plus 36" Induction Viking

I love the simplicity of the Lacanche. I love the beauty of the Lacanche. I'm a bit skeptical about the vertical convection oven. What can you cook in there? I broil steaks for the family about 1x week. DH easily will eat a 16oz steak. My son is only 2, but some day he will est like a growing teenage boy.

I love the idea of the smaller oven. If I'm only making a small dinner then it seems like a great idea to not have to heat up the big oven. I'm not sure I'm ready to commit to the Cluny and it's 2 small ovens. I like the idea of having at least one larger oven.

The other option is the Viking pair. I really would like induction but of course I can't get the induction hob in the US. The Viking set up will give me the induction plus gas burners I desire. But DH wants a griddle so I end up with a 36" gas range. Now I feel like having a 30" and a 36" oven is overkill. I wonder how long it takes that 36" oven to heat up?

Lastly when I was in the appliance store, I found that the hinges on the Viking door "jerked" my arm when I closed the door. I'm not sure if that is a deal breaker or not, but combined with Vikings service record, it certainly gives me pause.

So what say you....which range would you recommend? And what can I cook in the vertical oven?

Comments (23)

  • dodge59
    11 years ago

    So far, I have not been able to determine what part of the Country you live in. With your husband's penchant for large steaks, if you do not live where you can broil these steaks outside on an infra red grill,
    (Like I do, almost year around, S Calif), I would probably get the Capital Cullinarian as it has the infra red broiler, and have it painted to match the Viking Induction Range.

    The steaks really do come out much better using the Infra red, and in fact the best turkey I ever did, (Well actually my brother did it), was a turkey put on a spit and roasted over the infra red grill (which is part of my BBQ).

    Also as best I can tell, You are not "Budget Challenged" so find a place somewhere to build in a Speed Oven, not only do they heat faster, but you can speed cook things from 1/2 to 1/4th the time that it takes in any oven! (Example baked potatoes in 14 minutes instead of 1 hour)--preheat included, many ovens are still preheating after 14 minutes!

    I could probably "Get Clever" and show a Viking Induction Range and a Capital Cullinarian side by side should my suggestions have any interest to you.

    Good luck with your upcoming decisions!

    Gary

  • flevy
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Gary

    I'm very much a visual person so I'd love to see a CC next to the Viking Induction. If I'm not mistaken, I can order the CC in black. I spent all day Sat at the appliance store and I honestly don't remember which appliances I can order in color and which I can't.

    I'm in Va. In the winter, we usually don't grill outside because it's too cold. Last winter was an exception. In the summer, IMO, it's too hot to grill. I know...I'm a wimp. But today it was well over 95 and with the humidity it was disgusting out. In any case, during the week, I'm responsible for getting dinner ready. We have a huge grill outside that scares me so I don't touch it.

    As for the speed oven, yes, I'm getting one. I'm getting the GE Advantium 120. I would have liked the 240, but I also need it to be low enough that the kids can reach the microwave and the clearance required for the 240 is too high for them to reach.

    Thanks for the advice. I'm not sure why this is such a hard decision. I commented to my husband last night that I'm ready to go to sears and buy a generic range.

  • gr8daygw
    11 years ago

    If visual is important I have to say I am a sucker for the Lacanche. I love the knobs! A beautiful stove. However upon reading reviews online it seems to have some "issues". One said that the knobs get hot, have had to replace heating elements three times in three years, uneven heating in the ovens and the heavy oven doors don't close tightly, had to replace knobs, one interior designer said there is no way to clean some piece on the burners well and had numerous other complaints. There is no doubt it is beautiful but it seems to be a bit of a problem to own. You could look up some reviews online to see what you make of it. I still really love how it looks and there were some happy owners to be fair.

  • dodge59
    11 years ago

    Well so far, I've found a black Viking Induction Range, but so far I can't find a black Capital Culinarian, alto I'm sure womebody posted one here in the appliance forum, but doing a search, so far, has not turned it up. Perhaps somebody can send the link to it???

    If that fails, I will try some of my photo editing software on a white Culinarian I found, but I think a "real one" would look better.

    By the way, does the gas Viking have an Infra Red Broiler, It still has the longest warranty (assuming it is also 3 years).

    Gary

  • flevy
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I have no idea if it has an infra red broiler...lol. We currently have a GE Profile and it seems to work just fine. I'm sure infra red is better, but I've never experienced it.

    I was disappointed on the CC site that I couldn't change the range color like on the Viking site.

  • flevy
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I would get a 30" induction range and a 36" gas range so that hubby could have the griddle.

  • dodge59
    11 years ago

    OK here's a picture of both of them together.

    Of Course You should see both of them in person, (if at all possible before making any decisions, but if the Viking Gas Range has Infra red, (alto apparently not a "Big Deal" to you, I would go with the Viking Gas Range and Viking Induction Ranges.

    Gary

  • cottonpenny
    11 years ago

    Why don't you get a 60" CC range then an induction hob to go in the countertop next to it?

    I think 2 ranges of different brands is gonna look funny in a kitchen with a big enough space for 60" of range.

  • flevy
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Thanks for doing that Gary

  • dodge59
    11 years ago

    or better yet, The Viking Induction range, and then a couple gas burners.

    If you read posts by posters that have both gas and induction, they use the induction the most.

    I"Believe" Rhome has posted on that, but as I will turn 70, July 14, "Don't bet money that it was Rhome"!!!!

    YVW, far as picture goes, and I hafta agree with cottonpenny, "Not my "Bag of Tea" "Form wise".

    That would be an "Extreme case" of "Function over Form", Ya Thinks????

    Gary

  • joeboldt
    11 years ago

    gr8day:
    "If visual is important I have to say I am a sucker for the Lacanche. I love the knobs! A beautiful stove. However upon reading reviews online it seems to have some "issues". One said that the knobs get hot, have had to replace heating elements three times in three years, uneven heating in the ovens and the heavy oven doors don't close tightly, had to replace knobs, one interior designer said there is no way to clean some piece on the burners well and had numerous other complaints. There is no doubt it is beautiful but it seems to be a bit of a problem to own. You could look up some reviews online to see what you make of it. I still really love how it looks and there were some happy owners to be fair."

    Wow, I've had mine for several years and haven't had any of those issues. I don't see it as a problem to own. I think you should look over the lacanche thread.

    Joe

  • tyguy
    11 years ago

    If you are interested in viking, do yourself a favour and check out bluestar (bluestarcooking.com). The bluestar is on par performance wise with the capital gary pointed you too, but the physical appearance is much more similar to viking. So much so, that at a quick glance I have trouble distinguishing the two if I see them in a magazine. I have owned both a viking and bs, but still find them very similar.

    Bluestar offers a generous 190 standard colours and will custom match just about any colour you could give them. You will see most bs's with black knobs but they will paint them silver if you wish to match the viking. Or if viking still offers black knobs you could go that route.

    Fwiw I owned a viking without a single nightmare story to tell. I now own a bs and would buy a bs in a heartbeat over a viking but mainly because of the huge performance advantage of the bs. If you are also getting induction then I would imagine those performance gains of the bluestar (or capital culinarian) would be less significant.

    When it is all said and done if you are going to get one viking range(induction) I would go with the viking gas as well. I wouldn't be scared of the brand. However if you are going to mix and match, then the bluestar esthetically goes with viking a whole lot more harmoniously than with a cc (imo). Life is wonderful with so many choices. :)

  • dodge59
    11 years ago

    TV guy makes a good point, and at least (from recent posts),
    Blue Star seems to have an advantage in "Post Sale support".

    Of course , we hope you are as fortunate as we are, and do not have to encounter any "Post Sales Problems", particularly busticated things!

    Gary

  • MichelleDT
    11 years ago

    We thought we had it narrowed down to a Sully 1800 + 2 (over a 60" Bluestar) and visited Art Culinaire two weeks ago. The ranges are stunning. Abbey and Victoria are fantastic and I am sure we would have been well covered in the customer service area if we had problems. We were ready to send the deposit to make the October sailing. Something kept holding us back - the lack of power in the sealed burners and the electric coil broiler. I could not force myself to send the deposit.

    I spent a few more hours today with the Bluestar rep and I am back to the Bluestar - we broiled a steak (OH MY - GREAT) and made shrimp stir fry followed by a batch of gooey choco chip cookies. I was once again swooning over the Bluestar (well...i never stopped lusting over the BS). The broiler is amazing, the power of those open burners is to die for.

    We decided to go for it and ordered a 36 six burner with a 24 grill and 24 griddle companion ranges in jet black. All of this was only $500 more than the 60" BS range I was considering and $6500 less than the Sully ($2300 of that for freight, customs, etc.). The difference will cover the custom Modernaire vent system we will need.

    If you haven't looked at or considered the BS, take the time to see one and attend a cooking demo so you can test drive it.

    Cheers.

    M

  • flevy
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Oh Michelle....until I read you post I was all set. I have the paperwork from AC all printed out. I finally decided on the new Changy 1400. Yes the ovens are the small ones, but I think I would be okay. I turned my broiler pan front to back and slid it into my current oven and found out that it would fit in the Cluny size ovens.

    but yes I agree with you...there is something that is holding me back. Since while I printed out the paperwork, it's still sitting on my desk waiting to be sent back to AC. I also sent the specs to the kitchen designer but with the caveat that she needed to view the range as a 60" ameriican range and not a 55 5/16 th range.. I asked her to put fillers arou d the range to the 60" just in case I ever have to replace the range.

    The thing about the BS that I don't like is that it's all gas. Great for the cooktop, but I'm. It so excited by only having a gas oven. If they would do an electic/ gas oven config like Lacanche, I would be over the moon.

  • MichelleDT
    11 years ago

    Yes, I see your concern about all gas ovens. We will have a working/baking pantry and I will have a Wolf electric oven in there so it was easier for me to go all gas in the main kitchen.

    I felt it would be very awkward to pull a large pan out of the Lacanche smaller ovens (actually even in the Sully from what we saw) - you need to pull it forward, reach in and then grab the back. I am sure I could adjust to it after a few times as all the Lacanche owners who love their ranges have. However, not sure I would be thrilled about it with a heavy roaster and turkey. The racks were not horrible but not great either. They were hard to push and pull but I have full extension rolling racks today. I decided I could not give up the functionality and ease of use for the Lachance racks.

    Have you seen a Lacanche? Is there a Lacanche ambassador in your area? I am not trashing them - they are beautiful and so well made but at then end of the day, just not right for us. They are perfect for many happy owners here on GW.

    Good luck - will look for updates on what you decide.

    M

    PS - Capital has a new dual fuel range. Maybe that would work - not sure tho if the simmer issue is resolved and there have been a few recent complaints about oven temps/even cooking but the temp issue was with the all gas ranges.

  • winesnob
    11 years ago

    I can't tell you how wonderful my Cluny is because it is being stored at AC. But I can say that the customer service is exceptional, couldn't have more support (my remodel isn't complete) I think it is such a beautiful stove, but it is expensive and I held on to my checkbook and pondered over it for months, I think that is normal reaction to be on the fence about such a big purchase...There are some wonderful articles and magazine pictures out there of the LaCanche, I am passed the big cooking days in my life so this may be like a beautiful piece of art for me....Good luck to all of you on your choices.

  • finestra
    11 years ago

    I have the dual fuel convection Sully and love it. The electric oven cooks beautifully. I have had no problem with uneven cooking. It fits my 17 inch cookie sheets horizontally and the convection works beautifully. I find the temperature to be accurate so I don't believe there is any problem with the door seals.

    I don't have any problems cleaning the burners or the stainless steel top.

    I have never cooked on a Blue Star so I can't compare the two. I do love my Sully.

  • mc_p
    11 years ago

    I've had my Sully (one gas oven/one electric (not convection) oven) for 3+ years, cooking daily. I haven't had ANY of the problems noted ("hot knobs, have had to replace heating elements three times in three years, uneven heating in the ovens and the heavy oven doors don't close tightly, had to replace knobs. . . ). Quite the opposite. The ovens are a dream -- the doors are solid and make a great seal and keep the heat very consistent. The (burner) knobs get hot only if you leave the oven doors open! (and the oven handles never get hot). Absolutely no problems with the heating elements and the few little issues I had when it was new were dealt with by AC (either over the phone with the tech guys or sending the guy to adjust temps on burners) quickly and efficiently. And, that interior designer had no idea what she was talking about; the burners clean up beautifully, and with remarkably little effort (thank you, Bartender's Friend!). But, we are talking un-enameled staineless steel, brass and aluminum burners, so yes, they show some wear, but not dirt. I love them.

    I rejected BlueStar because after much poking around I just didn't think it was made as well as the Lacanche; things felt a bit flimsy to the point that an oven door disconnected when I shut it in the showroom! The stainless steel of the cooktop seemed to be thinner gauge than the Lacanche. And I've heard enough of BlueStar problems to confirm that uneasy feeling (admittedly, not anywhere near as many as about Vikings). Although the BS burners are supposed to be a bit hotter than the Lacanche, I have cooked on both and have found this to be untrue, in practice.

    All-in-all, I'm thrilled with my gorgeous workhorse, which looks as good as the day I purchased it. It took me awhile to learn how to cook on it, but the learning curve was worth it.

    (And, by the way, our kitchen is VERY modern - dark brown wood, white counters and backsplash, and black granite. The Lacanche fits the style beautifully!)

  • luv2putt
    11 years ago

    Just a quick vote of confidence on the Viking Induction ..The knobs are what really sealed the deal for me ...I love the look and the feel ...I can turn without looking while im cooking ,,,I lift the pan and it shuts off till i return the pan ..no time limit ...This range is a beast !!!! The oven is spot on temp wise !!! And its the sexiest induction stove on the market ..It gets the wow factor anytime someone enters my kitchen !!! And cleanup is a breeze ...I have it for three months now and couldnt be happier ... I have yet to a have an ounce of remorse over the purchase or the performance !!!! Brad

  • dodge59
    11 years ago

    No doubt about it Brad, Viking "nailed it" with that induction range.

    One hopes other (available in the US) induction ranges will take a lesson from Viking as far as design goes.

    To Me, it's the only induction range, (available in the US) that looks like a range.

    Too bad as there are many options in Europe!

    Gary

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