bigcat39

Have you tried a mexican/hispanic market? I'm not from Chicago, but every mexican market I've ever been in (a lot!) carries exactly what you are looking for.

I own a Duke convection. Wonderful oven! The two speed fan is wonderful, it comes to temperature super fast, and the outside stays cool enough to stack paper products on (even though I don't) Get the vent kit, or just get a square to round vent adapter. With that, you don't need a hood for it.

I work on laboratory equipment for a livivng, I second the reccomendation for the above unit. Durable, and fairly cheap to fix, the control and display boards together were ~$400. Very accurate, the display is within 0.04 deg. C, stability better than 0.009 C (standard deviation over 4 hours)

I have the Waring WSB33, and I like it very much, for big jobs. However, I have a Kitchenaid for the small stuff.

According to their website, 12 amps. And say hello to my lil' Cadco -- always looking for an opportunity to show it off! ← I must add my joyous love of the Cadco OV-350. I recently got rid of my hulking Duke full size convection oven. I now have two of the OV-350 model as my only ovens. What a joy to cook with! I couldn't imagine going back to a consumer oven.

Hmmm... as far as finish goes, this is a DCS, there inn't much in the way of finish there. According to the dimensions, this will handily span the left four burners. I find it attractive because of size. I have a Lodge griddle, makes it hard to cook like a mexican short order cook. I'm a taco buff, y'see. Ya, cast iron to span four burners (with sides and a grease drip) would be great.... but I think I'd probably need an overhead crane to move it around

Actually, I was hoping to use this indoors, on my rangetop. I'm just looking for opinions before I lay out 200 bones for it.

http://www.littlegriddle.com/ This looks like it would sit handily on half of my DCS rangetop. lessee, that's 65,000 BTU Think it might come in handy for a LOT of things.... opinions?

I am lucky enough to have Wasserstrom's superstore here in Columbus, OH. I buy nearly everything there! Cambro containers are the absolute best. Wonderful gadgets, hotel pans in a bazillion sizes. Of course, it helps that I have a french door Victory 47 cu. ft. fridge, and a full size Duke convection oven. I have no use for pretty pots, they are just hard to keep looking that way. One other thing.... if you are into the heavy german steel, ie Wusthof, etc..... they are less than a third the price of the boutiques. Pros use this stuff for a reason. Why buy expensive "pro look" stuff when you can have the real deal for MUCH less?

So, Fabby, what are YOU putting in? Rangewise, I mean....

Didn't GR say something about "Be on the lookout for something special in the trash"? I think it was a prize mucho better than the dumbass photoshoot, and they blew it & missed it....

One piece of advice: check Ebay for your appliances. I bought a 48" DCS rangetop (new, unused!) from an authorized dealer (authorized dealer = warranty) with 6 burners and a grill for $2K. Retail = $7K. I love it, nothing like high power burners. Also, if you bake a lot (like I do) look into used commercial convection ovens. They do not get hot, they are rated for installation @ zero inches from flammable material, and are built like TANKS. I bought my Duke for $900, can't tell it's EVER been used. It hold 6 FULL SHEET PANS & doesn't use any more electricity than a standard wimpy wall oven. Gorgeous, too. I also aquired a double door, 50 cubic foot Victory top mount commercial fridge for $400. My wattmeter tells me it uses the same electricity as the 20 cu. ft fridge it replaced, and there is nothing quite like having, in effect, a refrigerated closet. Oh ya, it's gorgeous, too.

In December, I proudly rendered 14 lbs of real, honest to god leaf lard, the stuff was still warm when I picked it up at the processors plant. I have a ton of pics if anyone is interested.

I gotta tellya, rp, I envy you. I spent many years at sea, Navy and offshore, and I miss the sea every day. Not a cook, though, just a techie who is an enthusiastic consumer. I did cook whenever I got a chance. I gotta tell you about the 600 lbs of shrimp that we caught with a net and a remotely operated vehicle in the gulf of Mexico sometime..... helluva shrimp boil for 120 guys. The 20 on, 4 off lifestyle can be brutal if you give a rat's ass about anyone on land, but most of the time I spent offshore I didn't And the cruise ship has gotta be nicer than the rigs. Just how segregated from the cattle, er, passengers are the crew? I have heard that they can be pretty strict about it. Looking forward to hearing more.

I have a full size Duke Convection oven that I love. I encourage anyone who can fit a commercial convection into their home to do it. Pros cook in these things for a reason.

Yep, Chinese food containers are top notch. For bigger sizes, look for Cambro @ your friendly local foodservice supplier. (betcha you can't escape the store without buying something else, too!)

Be sure to stop in the kitchens forum @ That Homesite! http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/kitchbath/

I must second Jungle Jim's. Great meat. A shocking produce section, bigger than most supermarkets. Live fish. Good bakery. Unbelievable international foods, including the biggest oriental section in the country. HUGE wine & beer selection. We make a 200 mile round trip to get there....'nuff said.

Well, we are in process of a very major kitchen remodel. We have gutted an old "florida" room addition that was attached to the rear of our smallish (9 x 16) kitchen. When complete, the entire room will be 21 x 16. A good chunk of it is given over to an eat in area, but I'll still have room for many square feet of additional countertop and a 7' maple work table. Now for the even better part... my equipment! (my, that didn't quite come out right, did it?) I have, ready to install, 1) a Victory 49 cu. ft, top mount, solid stainless fridge, with double doors. 2) a Duke full size, bakery depth, commercial convection oven with glass french doors 3) A 36" Bluestar rangetop, 6 burner. 4) interchangeable gas 12" char grille and flattop griddle from Garland. 5) 72", two hole, right drain, commercial sink with prerinse sprayer. 6) Ventilation for all of it. In the works: a brick bread oven. Alas, outdoor, since code requirements are too extensive to stickit thru the wall Pictures coming! Is there enough interest in this project to warrant a topic of it's own? Bigcat39, aka Bill

I have the smallest Waring Pro... http://www.selectappliance.com/exec/ce-product/wa_wsb33 Boy, does it ROCK! I do have bamix lust, tho....

At a state surplus auction, we paid $4 for what we thought was a box of Melanime plates. It turned out to be 3 pallets full of them! never opened. We sold 'em at swap meets for .25/ ea. There were over 3,000 pieces!!!

Heh, I grew up in Central California. In a vinyard. We had several male dogs. (you see where this is going, right?) They ALL loved to hose down the trays of raisins sun drying. I couldn't eat raisins for many years thereafter.....

Fabulous, I totally agree with you..... and it still hurts to consider $3K++ for a cooktop.

I'm an engineer, too. Even if I buy a used hood w/ makeup air, I can still make out on the deal. I've seen 72" makeup hoods in working but dirty condition go for $200 @ auction. As the kitchen is basically new construction, I think I can reach NFPA standards fairly economically. I think the newer models are electronic ignition, but I agree, this is probably overkill. Sooooo, I'm probably going to end up with a quality cooktop of some sort, a consumer wall oven, and a Cadco countertop convection. Sigh, I really love those big burners, though..... I cooked line for a time, and they are addictive. Thanks for all the responses and insight, all.

After looking at Blue Star, DCS, et. al, I started looking at commercial stuff..... mind you, we are doing the kitchen in pure commercial style. It fits us. Anyways, you can get a 60" range with 2 convection ovens, a griddle, 6 burners, and a SALAMANDER! for less than $1 1/2 large. Which won't buy me anything in the expensive residential lines. Dissent? Comments?