BlueStar's new dual fuel range has
excellent output and the ability to customize as well, and a few problems.
So should you buy it?
In this video, you'll learn their best
features, prices, and whether you should consider BlueStar in your kitchen versus,
say, a Wolf, Miele, Thermador SKS or other pro range.
The X8 burner is based on the eight points of flame.
Unlike their current gas unit,
the burner is sealed rather than open. With a 20 inch circumference to cover most
pans and 152 heat ports for more distribution than any other cooktop.
It's the same claim behind the Thermador
star burner, which is yet to be determined.
More heat from more places doesn't
necessarily translate into more evenly cooked food from a pan.
That said, the burner excels for other reasons.
The X8 burners deliver the same 25,000
BTU output as their open burner on their gas stoves.
For years, open burners were marketed
to have greater BTU because of greater flow of oxygen.
However, Hestan has a sealed 30,000 BTU burner,
Wolf has a sealed 35,000 BTU burner.
So BlueStar changes seal was inevitable.
The range is hot, really hot.
In fact, it's the hottest range in the market.
You have 25,000 BTU burners in the front and 18,000 BTU in the back.
Hestan and Wolf have hotter single burners,
but BlueStar has the highest total BTU output by far.
Each burner simmers at 500 BTU on all burners.
SKS the Thermador have 100 BTU simmer, but only on two burners.
Wolf has a 340 BTU burner on all their
burners, but 500 is decent, especially with their high output.
The griddle is a gas 15,000 BTU.
Gas is an instant on and better than Thermador's electric griddle.
Wolf and Miele have better-directed infrareds at 16,000-17,000 BTU.
Wolf has a gas at 18,000 BTU.
The BlueStar griddle is commercial steel, much like a Wolf.
However, the Chromium Jenn-Air griddle will be easier to clean.
You just have four models, two each in 36 and 48.
BlueStar has a decent capacity of 5.1
cubic foot for the main oven and 2.7 cubic foot for the smaller ovens.
Like all their appliances, the ovens are made to hold a commercial baking sheet.
Both ovens are single fan European convection.
Some brands, like Jenn-Air and Miele offer
twin convection for even more heat distribution than larger ovens.
Wolf switched their high speed blower convection and their dual fuel in 2021.
BlueStar all gas ranges offer no controls, not even clocks and timers.
If you're surprised,
neither does Thermador and their Harmony series, Wolf in all gas and even La
Cornue offers just basic knob controls.
New BlueStar dual fuel offers a seven inch
touch screen. The screen tilts like the Monogram
and Fisher Paykel to be viewed easier.
The controls are excellent. Your Monogram,
Wolf and Miele may have better functionality.
We'll explain why in the problems section of the video.
While many brands like Wolf, Miele,
Monogram, SKS, Jenn-Air and Thermador offer stainless as your only choice.
BlueStar is at the other extreme, offering a thousand colors and ten trim styles.
You can even customize one of your own.
75% of all BlueStar ranges bought by customers at Yale are in a custom color.
And by the way, the range is a perfect place to add color even in a white kitchen
because it is central and the primary focal point in your kitchen.
Dual fuel is certainly an improvement.
You have the highest output along with a good simmer on every burner.
The capacity and controls are decent,
plus the ability to customize with color is unmatched by any other brand.
Your choice is limited,
but the configurations with burners and griddles are the most popular.
That said, the following features are missing. The most popular in standard size
range is 30 inch, yet the new BlueStar is not offered in the 30 inch.
I could say the same for 60 inch,
even though BlueStar makes it in their all gas models, but it's not a popular size.
They have grills and French tops in all gas
series, so they should be able to do it in a dual fuel.
However, the French tops can cook many
items at different temperatures at the same time.
Not that popular,
but BlueStar already produces the option in a larger 48 and 60 inch range.
Wolf and La Cornue are the only others with the French top option.
Grills are not as widely sold as
Griddles, yet Bluestar again has it in their RNB series gas ranges,
so why not in the dual fuel. Induction has become a more popular option.
Fisher Paykel, Thermador and SKS now
offer induction in their pro range, mostly because induction doesn't need as
much venting as gas and has a lower simmer.
There have been advances in convection
technology with Wolf being the best with their VertiCross
blowers. BlueStar has the standard single convection oven.
Thermador and SKS offer a steam oven option
in their ranges so you can cook a whole meal in steam for tastier food
because steam doesn't bake out the nutrients.
Miele has steam assist adding up to three
bursts of steam to bake bread and to caramelize the tops of food like lasagna.
The BlueStar controls are decent,
but the Miele MasterChef and Wolf Gourmet are more robust.
In both you can input food type and how you want to cook,
both will calculate correct time and temperature.
Wolf will even set rack position, while Miele will offer the steam functionality.
Smart functionality has been slow to evolve.
The original smart ranges just offer the basics turning on the range on and off
from your phone and setting the temperature.
The more recent smart ranges, however, will have recipe tie-ins to Innit,
SideChef and Hestan. Monogram adds new
modes to its built-in menu like turkey and steakhouse to name a few recent ones.
For your other choices, click on this video for your best 48-inch
ranges or for
the best vents for a powerful range like this
click here.