Need a new built in oven in south-west France

[carlux]

I should probably put this in the Kitchen Consumer forum, but I live in the Perigord, and haven't had much luck getting recommendations for European appliances. Although there's lots of information on the Web, my actual physical shopping opportunies are rare. And most of the so-called 'reviews' I've come across so far are of the type' I really like this oven!'

So I'm trying here. I have had a Siemens oven for 12 years, and was very happy with it. Then this week it died, and it will cost almost 400 Euros to repair it. Hardly seems worth it.

I have been looking at new ovens. I want a good one, which probably means German. Self cleaning, reasonable capacity, I don't need lots of pre-programmed functions. I do a lot of cooking, baking, and although there are only two of us, I'd like to be able to put several dishes in the oven at once, which was sometimes diffciutl with my previous oven.

I thought of buying another Siemens, but I have, and like, the Miele dishwasher and induction cooktop, and so another possibility is to go with them. Then I was told today in Darty that De Dietrich was a better brand. The one they recommended,(DOP 785) however, was ALL electronic, all pre-programmed, which I really don't need.

Does anyone have any comments on the various makers - Miele, Siemens, De Dietrich, Scholtes? Or experience, positive or negative with any particular models. I want this one to last at least another 12-15 years, or more. Obviously should be something that can be bought, and serviced,in France, either through a local shop or online

Thanks for any help

[catdaddy]

Are there USA made units available in France?

If so look for DCS or Viking.

Best of luck.

[Kerry Beal]

I put a small Miele wall oven in my last house - loved that oven, but it was small. There were a couple of roasting pans that I had that would not fit in it - and I had to take the racks off the side when I wanted to use my 4 loaf round bread pan.

It wasn't self cleaning, but had some sort of a finish on the walls that really meant that it didn't require a whole lot of cleaning.

It was convection - so I could put different things on different shelfs and it heated evenly though out the cavity.

It didn't require any servicing for the years I was in that house.

[dougal]

Going for "self-cleaning" (by which I take it you mean incineration!) takes you into specialist brands.

These tend to be expensive and not to use 'generic' spare parts.

Generic spare parts are the secret to economic longevity!

Everything is going to need the odd part from time to time. The questions are availability and price.

Miele are THE brand that makes a point of long-term appliance durability. (But I've never used their ovens.) However that reputation seems to come at the price of both initial and parts prices. But they do seem to pride themselves on being able to come up with parts for antiquated machines.

Some manufacturers operate several brands. Neff, Siemens and AEG are from the same company. Seems Siemens are up market, AEG relatively downmarket. Similarly De Dietrich is the upmarket range from the folks that also make Brandt.

All buying decisions are compromises! Good luck!

I had an externally basic-looking, but functionally versatile De Dietrich. I suspect it would be much more expensive on parts than the 20+ years old (non-self-cleaning, but with 'catalytic' liners) Neff that I use today. The DD was great. /sigh Loved having the spit. And it did work well, self-cleaning "pyrolytic" incineration and all. Seemed to have good insulation too. Some quirks though - like being blasted by the fan when the door was opened! Fan was just one of its possibilities. It also had a (non-fan) 'baking' setting giving 2/3 bottom heat and 1/3 top heat. Nice and versatile. /sigh

Fortunately the DD never gave a hint of trouble.

You might find that a Brandt (on a DD chassis, but with simpler/cheaper controls, and without the high style cosmetic trims) might offer what you are looking for. However, the DD version will likely have a more precise electronic 'thermostat' ...

For the benefit of North American readers, European ovens run on 230 volt, 50 cycles electricity and are almost all designed to fit into standard 60cm wide kitchen cabinet modules.

Edited March 13, 2010 by dougal (log)

[Dave Hatfield]

We have two ovens in our kitchen here in the Tarn et Garonne. Both are about 6 years old; they were installed when we put in our new kitchen.

We are very happy with both of them. We've had no problems at all with either of them.

The one that I think might suit your needs best is a French brand; ROSIERES. Our particular oven comes from their 'Creatis' range. It is all singing, all dancing with a host of cooking modes most of which we don't use. We tend to use just the regular oven, the grill & the self cleaning. It is the European standard 60 cm width and is built into a standard kitchen cabinet. I can't remember the cost, but it was modest. Around 350 Euros I think. Certainly it was a lot less expensive than the big German brands. It looks good and performs well. We bought it at a shop called Salson in Villefranche de Rouergue. I know they have a main store in Rodez, but I'm not sure if they have any other outlets.

The other oven is part of our gas range by Arthur Martin (Electrolux) This is a 90 cm range with 5 burners. The over is full width with a grill, but is not self cleaning. It does have the special ceramic coated side panel. This is a great oven (and stove) for when you're cooking for a crowd. This Thanksgiving for instance I was able to roast a 15 pound turkey and a 10 pound ham at the same time.

We mainly use the Rosieres oven, but having the second oven is a blessing when you need the extra space or want to cook things at widely different temperatures.

Good luck with your search.

[carlux]

Reporting back that I decided to go with a Miele wall oven, H5140BP. Expensive, but I hope the quality will be worth it (I have other Miele appliances that I'm very happy with.) It also has the features I was looking for - self cleaning, large capacity, at 66 litres, when many are only 53, shelves with stops so they don't slide out, temperature that can be regulated down to 30 degrees, for rising bread - no built-in programs, which I don't need. And it's beautiful!

I managed to get it a little cheaper than list price at a warehouse type place in Sarlat. If we ever move it's coming with me.

[Dave Hatfield]

Good luck!

We've had some friends who have had a variety of problems with Meile.

I just hope this works for you. Hopefully the performance will justify the price,

Deutschland uber allles!

[milkman]

Some manufacturers operate several brands. Neff, Siemens and AEG are from the same company. Seems Siemens are up market, AEG relatively downmarket.

AEG are not part of the Bosch Siemens Home Appliances Group.

Bosch, Siemens, Neff, and Gaggenau are their main European brands.

see http://www.bsh-group.com/index.php?page=1070 for a full list of the brands.

Edited April 8, 2010 by milkman (log)