There have been a few recent discussions, so you might want to check that.

We went to Thomas Marble and Granite in Gaithersburg for our install - they were nice to work with and reasonably priced - stay away from Stone Surfaces - they took our money, never held our stone, etc... uggg.

For the granite, we liked Avanti in Frederick, Arc Stone and Marva but ended up with Avanti as they had what we wanted.

Hi-I'm in Silver Spring. Hilgartner stone in baltimore seems reputable--can't vouch for it personally but will be making the trip up there in a couple of weeks to see what sort of soapstone they have. I'll report back--unless of course someone else has already been and waves me off!

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to hilgartner stone website

thanks.
But i thought, they quote you the stone INCLUDING installation? So, do you just tell them you want a different fabricator? I am all confused about how this works...
we went to the Stone surfaces today :) it's close to home.

I went to Stone Surfaces as they were close to work - they had no problem taking our money and held it for 2 weeks and were very nasty after a week as they wouldn't anwser calls and all I got was my stone was held. So I called Avanti who sells the stone and they said it had not been held. Stone Surfaces didn't care and told me to take what ever stone was available at another place - I think the other place was cheaper for them. Avanti was able to get me two slabs of what I wanted and recommended Thomas Marble and Granite - they are a tiny mom/pop shop that you wouldn't know was there in less someone told you - they are near the Great Indoors. Check Washington Checkbooks - they get very mixed reviews.

You find a fabricator, then they recommend where to shop for your granite - some don't care and will work with all the granite yards, some care (it probably depends on the price they get) and they you pick your stone and then you get a price for the stone/install. I think we paid $62 a foot or so for Gold and Silver from Avanti but I'd have to double check. Then you pay extra for the sink cut out and edging if you want more than a standard edge.

After stone surfaces didn't hold my stone, I demanded my money back as they were screaming at me over the phone. Then, I called Avanti crying and they had two slabs on hold for someone else who wasn't taking them so they released them to us - they went to our fabricator, who gave us one full price, which included everything from start to finish.

All great choices - except as mentioned, Stone Surfaces. I used GranTops in Frederick and they were super. They have stones there (outside) but also referred me to Bramati for more selection. They had a pretty good selection. GranTops is not open on Saturday, but they are there on Sunday. Marva has beautiful stones, as well as NSA which is close to BWI airport. I know these places are far, but traveling is worth it. Arc Stone has a huge selection. Every once in a while they have some really beautiful exotic stones. You can browse at your leisure there. Marva has a sales person that has to walk with you - difficult for some as it may put pressure on you to make a decision quickly. Visit several places, be sure you like the support as well as the stones. That comes in handy when you are down to the wire and it seems like things are all running together. The staff has been through this with everyone and if they are good, they will help you. They will also honor their word if something goes wrong, both pre- and post install.

Good luck, and have fun.

Wow, thanks, folks.
The Arc stone website seems to be down, but i heard about themm
I did not know about Grantops - thanks for the tip!!
The problem is - i sort of fell in love with a picture here, on this site - the granite in the picture is called Green Iguana - tough to find and most importantly - i can't find the same striped appearance. And of course now, that i've seen those stripes - i will be looking for them till i am blue in the face! :))

I have a salvaged piece of marble that I just love. Can anyone recommend a fabricator who will work with my marble? I want it made into a tabletop. It has to be cut to size and polished. I am near Baltimore but will go anywhere in Maryland.
Sam

Try Rocktops in Linthicum. They did our granite and their work is first rate. They also did my stepmoms kitchen and hers is wonderful too. HTH Sue

Stay away from Stone & Tile World in Rockville...they gave me such a run-around! I called in the AM to ask about an appointment...they said you cannot make an appointment until you pick out a "color" (e.g., AB, etc.) So, I told them I was interested in blacks, preferably not Absolute Black, but I was willing to look. Their response was "Oh, we have lots of blacks" and told me to come down to their showroom to see samples prior to picking a specific stone "color".

So, I left work early and braved the beltway from Greenbelt to Rockville at rush hour. No place to park...had to park in a mission parking lot nearby. I got into the showroom and was immediately helped. I told them I was looking for blacks. They told me they only had one black slab right now (huh??). So I asked if I could see it...no, b/c I didn't have an appointment!!!!

I patiently explained that I had called that morning and what was said...their response was, basically, so what? You still cannot see the one stone b/c you don't have an appointment. I don't remember why, but I mentioned that I was w/an EXPO Kitchen project and their next response was...oh, well you can't see the stone we have anyway we have to order one from NJ...and that would take 2-3 weeks once I picked a "color"... Plus they only order ONE slab...AND I have to pay for it in full before they'll order it! I asked what if I didn't like the slab they got...oh, then they send it back and get ONE more slab...another 2-3 week wait...

What a bunch of you-know-what!

I complained to EXPO and they responded that I was not the only person to complain about them and that they were looking for another granite yard...which they now have found (their name escapes me right now, sorry!) They no longer deal w/Stone & Tile World at all. Unfortunately, the new company in is in Herndon, VA! I haven't been there yet, but I'm told they will have at least 5 slabs for me to look at.

We used ADI Granite & Tile in Bethesda a few years ago and got our stone from Arc -- everyone did a wonderful job

buehl--

I'm in Northern VA, but we have done the gamut of places here. Apparently, NSI in Glen Burnie is great, but expensive. We trekked to Avanti in Fredrick last weekend. You need an appointment on Saturdays, but they are open the rest of the week w/o an appointment. They had a great selection and were wonderful pulling slabs and such for us.

In Virginia, we really like Eurostone and DalTile Stone. They are along the Rt 28 corridor and within about 20 minutes of each other. Both were very service oriented and had great selections. At Dal, the plant manager walked every stinking aisle with me with my cabinet door, helping me refine my thoughts, pulling slabs from the backs of piles, and really going out of his way to help.

If you just want to wander and look, without help at all, try Marble Systems in Merrifield, VA (just off the beltway). They are low customer service, but they have a great selection to peek at.

I have been told to go to Marble Systems in Merrifield, VA (near 495/66/50) and will probably get there in next 2 weeks. Good luck.

starfish24--

Keep in mind that at Marble Systems you can wander around without anyone talking to you for hours. It's not a huge yard, they just don't deal with many homeowners--more corporate stuff. Also, I heard from more than one fabricator that Marble Systems owns some of the quarries around the world. This is apparently unusual for a distributor and means that some of their slabs may be ones they could not sell to other distributors. Just something to keep in the back of your head--make sure your fabricator approves the slab.

Thanks for the info, teched. I will go just to browse first (don't even want to have anyone hounding me) and then will go armed with a designer when I'm ready!

for those of you in No Va - my next door neighbor has heartily recommended me to go to Granitech in Lorton - she said that quality, price and selection were all great.

Here is a link that might be useful: here

After using Expo/Stone and Tile World the first time around (BIG mistake on both counts with major problems), we went with Classic Marble and Granite in Jessup. They were outstanding - very professional, excellent customer service, etc. While Expo and Stone were terrible to the extreme, Classic was at the total opposite end. We ended up getting our granite from NSA but looked at Arc and a couple others prior to that.
NSA has gorgeous and exotic granite but also reasonably priced granite as well. Our cost with Classic was very competitive and we went with a mid range stone. Cannot recommend them highly enough!

I would highly recommend a place called Top Granite, Inc. in Crofton, MD. Phil Nguyen is the owner. They not only have the most reasonable prices but their workmanship is impeccable. Phil has invested in very expensive CNC machinery and has a way of doing granite with the most beautiful seams and very few of them. A true craftsman. He did a wonderful job on our kitchen and many people commented on how great our granite looked.

Here is a link from their website: www.atpossystem.com/Granite/contact.html

Also used ADI Granite & Tile in Bethesda about two years ago and they did a great job. We were able to get a slab from them (they don't have a huge selection in the warehouse but we found what we liked). The other option would have been to find a slab at Arc (big selection.

I had great luck with Capital Granite and Marble. They are located in DC, just moved there about 2 months ago from Lorton. Their number is 202-290-1306. Ask for Mercedes. They were great and easy to work with and did whatever it took to make me happy. They bent over backwards to give me 2 instead of 3 seams, which would of been easier for them. They were also very keen on making sure the best looking piece was the most visible.

Check out this website pretty soon.

Here is a link that might be useful: Discount Granite Counter Top