Kitchen - handleless, or would you rather not?! And would you prefer a stone countertop?

We have calculated back and forth, changed things, and now the stone countertop is available for an additional price of about 800 instead of 3500 euros.

Hm, and doesn't it feel like you got tricked? I mean, going from 3500 to 800 by bargaining or almost 80% discount??? How is that supposed to be serious. Ok, XXXL Lutz, I take back the serious part [emoji6] I’m just saying block offsetting... [emoji849] Regardless, have lots of fun with the kitchen! Stone countertop: how about natural acids, red wine, and hygiene in general? I seem to remember that stone isn’t great hygienically because of its open porosity. Stainless steel > artificial/laminate > stone > solid wood, if I remember correctly...

What do you mean by XXXL Lutz? What is that?

No, the price did not go down through bargaining. We threw out quite a few things that we don’t necessarily need. I wrote that above, didn’t I? Replaced the super fancy lighting with normal ones, switched to a cheaper model for the extractor hood, removed the second oven but left space to install one if needed, changed from handleless to with handles, different cooktop, etc.

I don’t care about the openness. I like a flush-mounted sink and that it’s not a big deal if water stands on the countertop sometimes.

Now that I’m reading your post again, I find it somehow sarcastic. I don’t understand. I’m glad that we finally got the countertop at our target price and compared to others I find the price fair. By now, we have compared 4 kitchen studios plus Ikea. And cheaper appliances lowering the price is not a "rip-off," right? And it’s nice when you find something within your own price range where everything you want is included in the price.

Ypg, yeah, you're probably right about the doors [emoji23]. But if they then have to, for example, unload the dishwasher, they will definitely not find the right drawers [emoji23]. The risk is too high for me. Besides, we often have visiting kids who also sometimes help set the table, etc. With "normal" handles, it's probably easier. Even if the other option would definitely be more stylish [emoji41]

@ruppsen: I just meant that I wrote above that we need to "save" something. That probably wasn't clear enough what I meant by that. But not compromise. Or maybe a little bit. But mainly to check again if we really need every little gadget in the kitchen and if there's potential to save without regrets. And that worked well now, and the nice kitchen consultant actually spent 2 hours with me flipping through catalogs and looking for cheaper alternatives that also meet our requirements.

Regarding the wider oven: since I definitely want it built higher up, that didn’t work out in that kitchen studio. But so far, using a normal oven works well. We just have to bake three trays of pizza one after the other, which isn’t actually a problem.

... then you get yourselves a gas grill with a pizza stone, and then the pizza baking gradually becomes fun too ;)

Even the two of us bake our pizzas one after the other, so there is always something fresh on the table :)

So, the appointment was successful. We calculated back and forth, changed things, and now the stone countertop is available for an additional charge of about 800 instead of 3500 euros. A black one with a wavy surface. We moved away from the handleless front and now have regular handles. You can immediately see in which direction the cabinet opens, which I find more practical for us. The final price is still pending.

We have had a handleless kitchen in high-gloss white with a quartz countertop for almost 3 years, cleaning is easier than ever "no handles that get in the way." I use water + sponge for the surfaces and a microfiber cloth to dry and that's it.
Opening the drawers and doors is just as logical. You grab the top drawer from above and the lower one from below.
The wall cabinet is the same, you have a handle recess that allows the cabinet door to open to the left or only to the right.

What do you mean by XXXL Lutz? What is that?

No, the price didn't go down through bargaining. We threw out quite a few things that we didn't really need. I wrote that above, didn't I? Replaced the super fancy lighting with normal ones, switched to a cheaper model for the extractor hood, removed the second oven but kept the space to install one if needed, changed from handleless to with handles, different cooktop, etc.

...

Ruppsn, now that I’m reading your post again, I somehow find it sarcastic. I don’t understand.
I’m glad we finally got the countertop for our target price and in comparison I find the price fair. We have by now compared 4 kitchen studios plus Ikea. And cheaper appliances lowering the price isn’t a "rip-off," is it? And it’s nice when you find something in your own price range where everything you want is included in the price.

You totally got the wrong idea there, probably caused by my somewhat clumsily phrased writing.
Somehow, while reading about the XXL appliances, a synapse went on vacation and I was mentally at Lutz. The possibility of having the stone countertop through downsizing really didn’t register with me. So of course that makes sense and I have nothing against it. The congratulations and have fun with the kitchen were meant sincerely by the way. But I understand how it could have been understood very differently if you took my awkward words the way you did. Certainly a bad feeling when you are happy about making the desired stone countertop possible and then something so grumpy seems to come out of nowhere. Sorry, that was not intended. Another try: good decision and lots of fun with the new kitchen [emoji1303][emoji4]