You have plenty of new choices for professional ranges.
Miele, Jenn-Air and Dacor have great technology. Wolf, Thermador and the evaporating Viking companies are the better known brands.
However, there is a tier of lesser known brands you should consider.
Capital would be that type of brand. It has great features for the price. How good? We will be comparing Capital to the very popular Thermador for some perspective.
We will look at the companies and products, then compare them to each other. Let's look.
Capital
Capital’s dual fuel Connoisseurian range boasts innovation and quality at a very affordable price. Capital ranges are a true commercial range fitted for residential use. These ranges combine some of the most powerful burners on the market.
Capital offers a variety of top configurations:
- six burners
- four burners with a grill
- four burners with a griddle
A unique advantage with this range is the option of choosng open burners, or sealed.
Open burners are typically what you’ll see in a restaurant. More oxygen is able to reach the gas flame on an open burner which allows the flame to reach a higher/hotter temperature. The Capital range with open burners will offer output of 25,000 BTU’s on all burners, which is significantly higher than the 17,000 BTU average on the market. This is great for searing and boiling water quickly.
The sealed burner will offer 19,000 BTU’s. Another exclusive with this range is a feature called Moist Mode. There is a water reservoir where you can add water. The residual moisture will stop food from drying out during cooking resulting in juicier meats.
Another great option with this range is a built in motorized rotisserie. The rotisserie allows you to cook meats that will self baste sealing in all of the juices. The ribbon broil element is under glass allowing for super even heat distribution as well as easy cleaning. Another advantage with this range is the option to customize colors.
Capital COB366N - $6,669
- Moist Cooking
- Moto-Rotis
- Self Clean
- Meat Probe
- Duel Air Flow Convection
- 5 Cooking Modes
- Hidden Glass Enclosed Broiler
- Timer
- Clock
- Cool Touch Door
- Sabbath Mode
- Flex Roll Oven Racks
Thermador
The Thermador Pro Harmony range has always been one of our best sellers. As a package they become very aggressively priced, while still offering premium brand recognition. Thermador is a whole product line, whereas Capital’s main focus is cooking products.
Thermador’s 36" dual fuel range is also available in three top configurations with burners, grill or griddle.
Their exclusive brass star burners are sealed. The idea with the star shape is more surface coverage when cooking, whether the pan is small or large. It’s great to have a large round super high out burner, but it doesn’t help when using a smaller pan. The star shape allows for even heat distribution and faster heating on any size pan. All of their burners reach a high 18,000 BTU’s with an extra low simmer. On the six burner configuration, the back two left burners will reach an ultra low temperature of 100 degrees. This is the lowest simmer in the industry.
Thermador is available in stainless only and is also self-cleaning. The inside will offer a large interior with a convection fan and an additional heating element, for super even heat distribution when baking. There is an option on the control panel for extended bake this is great for slow cooking and can also be used on Sabbath mode. The Thermador’s broiler is an infrared ceramic broiler. The ceramic broiler gets super hot and also ensures even heat distribution.
Thermador PRD366GHU - $7,249.99
- Star Burners
- Quick Clean Base
- Self Clean
- Precision simmering as low as 100 degrees
- 8 Pass bake and broil elements
- Third Element Convection Fan
- 1 Full Extension Telescopic Rack
- Sabbath Mode
Thermador vs. Capital 36 Inch Professional Ranges
For most customers, it may come down to how they specifically use the range as well as if it's just a range replacement vs. a whole kitchen.
Capital offers a great high output commercial grade range. The advantage to their top is the high output. Plus the option for either sealed or open burners and even color. The range can simmer, but they do suggest using a simmering plate. Thermador, on the other hand, also offers a better simmer with less powerful (but still hot) burners.
Also consider that most ranges we grew up with were 10-12,000 BTU at most, so anything is better than what you grew up with. Either way, I always say, everything is an adjustment. You cook a couple times on either and will get used to it.
If you’re the type that does a lot of oven cooking, between these two the Capital offers some amazing advantages. It has a clock, a timer, a temperature probe, rotisserie and even the glass enclosed broiler. In addition the moist mode, and dual convection fans. The interior space is also slightly larger.
Thermador’s big advantage is they offer a full line of products. They also leverage that by offering great packages including free dishwashers and hoods with qualifying purchases. They are also the industries most reliable premium luxury brand.
So the answer really depends on what you buy and how you cook.
Recommended Reads
Additional Resources
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