I don't have any knowledge of the Delta, but I have had the Grohe Ladylux Plus for SIX years, and it has performed flawlessly, and looks like the day it was installed. What Chmpgntst said above about the Ladylux Cafe's spray control is true. However, the Ladylux Plus spray works by just pressing the button and letting go, no need to hold down the button. Many Grohe faucets operate the way the Ladylux Plus does - Grohe calls that "dual spray control - switches back and forth between regular flow and spray", or sometimes Grohe also calls that "locking" control. Conversely, Grohe describes the Cafe's spray control as "dual spray trigger - hold and release". I know it's confusing, but it's worth it to look at the Grohe website for faucets that are dual spray control, and NOT "trigger - hold and release".

Also, Grohe faucets are best bought online IMHO. I've bought several faucets at faucetdepot, and the prices were good, and the faucets came perfectly packaged. When I shopped for Grohe locally, the prices were sometimes double.

I have the ladylux 3. It is really nice to use and very flexible. And beautiful. But it does bug me about the spray control not staying on. And it doesn't hold in up position very easily. I called Grohe and they shipped me a new part to fix that which i have yet to figure out how to install. So mixed message on that.

For my other sink in butlers pantry i bought a delta leland. the reviews were so outstanding and it does hold the spray and the price for stainless finish was hundreds less than grohe i couldn't resist. it should be installed this week.

I have the Arabella - installed a year ago. I love it and don't know how I got along without a pull down. I had a Delta pullout before this one and it functioned flawlessly for 10 years before the remodel, but compared to the pull down the pull out was not as flexible.

I love the magnetic dock for the pull down, I love the fact that I do NOT need to hold a button to have it spray, and I love to be able to pull out the head and rest it on a pot to fill while it frees up my hands to do something else. I can easily swish the head around the sink for an easy cleanup.

I have it in the stainless version bought on eBay at a substantial discount. Just be aware that there apparently is an earlier version with a different model number which was not California compliant - essentially it didn't have certified lead-free tubing. Check the model numbers to be certain you're getting what you're paying for.

Helene

Love my Grohe Bridgeford which is a pulldown.

Thank you everyone for the responses. I was leaning toward the Grohe but hubby hadn't heard of them before so was not sure of quality. I think this style has an on off button for the spray? At least that is what I think it means in the description listed below. I really like the clean lines of the Grohe.

Thanks for the information on the Delta also, I would love to buy a made in the USA faucet but I can't find anywhere where it says the Delta is made in USA, I know some of their faucets are but on their site and also the box it doesn't say.

360� Swivel Spout
Convenient Dual Spray Trigger (hold and release) with on/off spray control

Lynn85 - As I mentioned in my post above, if the Grohe description says "trigger - hold and release", it means you DO have to keep holding the button to keep it on spray. I.e. when you "release" the button, you release the spray. As I and Chmpgntst have mentioned, the Grohe Ladylux Cafe faucet you cited in your original post is the "trigger" style, which means you do have to keep holding the button to keep it on spray.

lynn85,

You can email Delta through their site to ask them....or call them. I know when I've called them for repair parts (under their lifetime replacement warrantee) I've always gotten fast and efficient service. They really have been a pleasure to do business with. I had no hesitation in purchasing Delta when I wanted to update my kitchen faucet or when I redid my bathrooms. Pretty much every faucet in this house, as well as shower faucets are Deltas.

Helene

My old faucet was a Delta. It leaked soon. I mentioned it to a plumber who was doing some other work in the house, and he said "tjats what you get for buying a Delta.". Hmmm. I thought back then that Delta was decent. I wouldn't do another one though after looking at Delta chrome bathroom faucets at the plumping showroom. They were chrome-like (NOT chrome), flimsy, and felt very cheap.

Grohe, while you and DH may not have heard of it, is an excellent brand. Quality products, heavy chrome fixtures, and they stand behind their product. All the fixtures in my new master bath are Grohe. Expensive, but worth it. Hansgrohe is another good brand about which you may not have heard.

People seem to want to pay up to $399 but resist going to a higher price. OTOH, you use a kitchen faucet 10 to 20 thousand times in decade. (my estimation of number).

A kitchen faucet is the one thing that doesn't fit into the decor by hiding along with the other lines and trim. It stands out. It doesn't blend in. It's round tubing, bent into a praying humanlike shape. I think it is worth it to spend more.

" Does anyone have them, do you like them and how have they held up? "
" I was leaning toward the Grohe ... I think this style has an on off button for the spray ..."

Call or email Grohe about getting a model with a spray button that stays on spray once you press it.

Call or email Delta about getting a model with a spray button that stays on spray once you press it.

Some of the spray "wands" have a button you press once, others have a need-to-hold-down button. A spray button that stays on spray once you press it is a feature that I would like to have, and I would want to know about it on the main page describing the faucet. But, all too often, this is detailed feature information that the marketing people everywhere don't highlight on any web site of any faucet maker. I've heard them say to me that they prefer to hold back on this information so that the customer has to ask; it helps the showroom salesperson add value and play a more meaningful role. Hmm this might have been true back in the day when glossy brochures were the only text information available. The world has changed since then: participant discussion forums are now the key to getting informed. Terms vary. One fancy faucet maker has a term "mousseur" for a certain kind of wand, and they don't apply that term consistently across the line (!).

Grohe is consistently high quality, and Grohe supports you if a problem happens.
Delta is consistently medium quality, and Delta supports you if a problem happens.
I may be too generous towards Delta. But, millions have them. Grohe is well known worldwide.

Asia is where all the parts are made. There is no point trying to "manufacture" faucets inside the boundaries of any country, although it is possible to do some of the assembly (and call it made here). In Australia faucets often cost less, because it is too easy for any hardware store buyer to get on a plane and go negotiate face to facem and bring back a small batch (smaller than e.g. 5000 units). We are too far away, and nobody seems interested to place orders to bring small batches halfway around the world after using photos or video conferencing as their only way to see what they are talking about.

--

Chrome can be very good looking when a high end manufacturer makes it.
Chrome in medium quality faucet (the kind you can see in a hardware store) can be less than attractive.

Stainless steel plate finishes can vary in hue from one maker to another. There is a range, from industrial gray to attractive light nickel to beautiful.

If quality and looks are both important to you, broaden your search to compare KWC faucets. See them in person. Livello is available in 100% solid stainless steel; Ava in plated. A beautiful bent praying shape can be had in the Eve and Sin models, with a small pulldown wand that hides in plain sight, being housed inside the tubing. Of the four Sin models, I got the one with a Highflex memory hose that springs back to reset itself. Its wand has a press-once button to switch to spray. This is good for my Silgranite sink because it's much easier to rinse Silgranite sink walls down with a broad spray than with a narrow jet.

I called Grohe last week to ask a few questions about the locking spray issue. I was told that, currently, the Cafe faucets do not have a locking spray. That is, the button must be held for the faucet to be in spray mode.

However, they are changing that "early in the new year." On the new models, users will be able to push and release the button that will lock the spray in place. She told me that if I purchase a Cafe model now, I will be able to call Grohe and get the replacement head shipped to me, at no cost, when they are available. I didn't think to ask her if that offer was open to customers who've owned their faucets for a longer time; it might be worth a call for anyone interested.

Just want to echo what was said:

OP: "I was leaning toward the Grohe but hubby hadn't heard of them before so was not sure of quality."

Grohe *IS* high quality. Top of the line. I've had several plumbers in my house during the build and since then. They all have commented on how nice Grohe products are...

I have a Grohe Bridgeford pull-down. Spray doesn't lock, but I am not sure I would need it to lock for any reason. It is a great faucet.

Thank you all for the additional information! It is all very helpful. I guess that the Grohe does not have a spray button but it is nice to know that we can get the replacement part for it. The Grohe is a beautiful faucet (I purchased both the Delta & Grohe to compare). You can really feel and see the quality of it! Quartz is being installed next week so hopefully the faucet will be in by the weekend!

lynn85 since you purchased both, and you can now see both under the same lighting at the same time, can you describe the differences in the chrome? How it looks, one versus the other. The visual surface.

Sorry for dredging up an old thread, but I just emailed Grohe and they said that the "locking" spray button would be available for _purchase_ rather than free of charge. I hope that the information that ecf1216 received was actually correct - but thought I just add this into the mix.