Monogram: Innovation in Kitchen Appliances

When anyone says come join us for training, we'll cook for you, I'm in! Last week, I was invited to visit Monogram at their Chicago design center to experience their latest kitchen appliance offerings, and they did not disappoint! Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances are staples for our luxury clientele, but Monogram's innovation and technology advancements that make cooking simple and streamlined really give them a healthy amount of competitive edge. I'm not the cook in our family, but I was able to cook along with other designers and the Monogram team, and even I made a perfect omelette, so I know these appliances are set up for your success! If you're intrigued by what they have to offer, scroll through for a few of my favorite appliances.

This trip all came about because I was specifying these appliances for a client. After asking a bunch of questions of my rep, he asked if I had ever done the training that Monogram offers for designers in Chicago. I didn't realize they had restarted the training after being closed for COVID, but I jumped at the chance to be able to experience these appliances myself.

Not every company is willing to cover all the costs associated with training out-of-state, and Monogram's commitment to designers and the value that we provide to our clients is so refreshing. I like to align with other companies that see value in investing time in people like me, that in turn train our teams and clients that don't have access to all of this information.

Throughout our days with the Monogram team, I could tell that they want to make sure that we have the tools that we need and they do listen to our feedback, and develop new products based on that feedback. Some of us did actually mention that we had clients looking for a 60" range, and they don't currently offer that size, but now they know that the want exists out in the marketplace.

Ok, ok now it's time for the favorites of the trip!

5-in-1 Smart Oven

This is by far my favorite appliance of the trip. Remember when I said I wasn't the cook in the family? This oven makes me think I could get away with cooking almost anything! You can choose between the Minimalist and the Statement collection for this oven - the Minimalist is pictured above, and the Statement is pictured below. A more modern kitchen would look great with the Minimalist option, and the Statement fits into more transitional and traditional kitchens fabulously.

What I Love about the 5-in-1 Oven

This oven really does promote making better choices with your eating. If you can believe it, this 5-in-1 oven

• requires no pre-heating!! You can literally cook a full chicken in 23 minutes, and roast broccoli in 13 minutes. In my house, roasting broccoli takes 45 minutes, but if it took 13 minutes, it would be really hard to say I don't have time to make that tonight.

• can be used as a convection oven, toaster oven, warming/proofing oven, precision cook oven and microwave. I'm all for eliminating extra appliances if possible and clearing off countertop or cabinet space!

• can be diagnosed off-site if there are maintenance issues through the Wi-fi connection! If a part goes bad, the maintenance division can see what is wrong, order the correct parts, and have them sent straight to you. No more waiting for someone to come out, diagnose, order the part, wait a few days or weeks, and then coming back to fix it.

• comes with pre-programmed recipes, so you don't have to remember that broccoli takes 13 minutes. You can choose "roast" and "broccoli" and they'll come out perfectly roasted for you!

I'm highly considering this for us whenever we finally find a house (yes, that's still not resolved) and I would recommend this to clients looking for a luxury kitchen with easy to use appliances.

induction cooktops

I'll be honest with all of you - I've never cooked on induction cooktops. Normally, I just turn the heat all the way up, try to cook everything as fast as possible, and hope for the best, which doesn't happen too often.

This is where that perfect omelette comes in - the induction cooktops cooked SO evenly and none of us had burned edges on our eggs. I was really surprised that they worked so well, but if you're a more seasoned cook, this may not be news to you.

The other big benefits I'm seeing with an induction cooktop include:

• No flames and an entire hot cooktop make it safer for kids to learn about safety in the kitchen

• Being more energy efficient

• Having the option to wipe down the entire cooktop in less than a minute

If you love the look of the flame and the opportunity to have a beautiful range top, this option may not be for you. It's definitely a trade off. I think it works really well for more modern homes, but I would still be very torn about what I would put my own home.

Wine sommelier refrigerator

This refrigerator would be an amazing addition to a secret project that we're currently working on (stay tuned for that!). Can you believe that this fridge can hold 106 bottles if you use both the top unit and the bottom unit?! This is for your true wine connoisseur, and it comes with a glass wine fridge on top, an ice maker drawer, and the option for a refrigerator or freezer drawer below.

The top compartment is also dual-temperature zoned, so you can keep red wine and white wine together at the perfect temperature for each! This is definitely a splurge for a kitchen, but oh my goodness - what a beauty!

It wasn't too bad having this view from the showroom either! Thank you so much to the team at Monogram for hosting us, cooking amazing food, and taking the time to pass on this knowledge!

Are you intrigued by what Monogram has to offer, or do you have any questions that we can answer? If you're interested in any of their products, feel free to reach out to us.