“So what have you got in your kitchen?” I ask Edmund K. Schorr, Director of Sales for Asia-Pacific for the Sub-Zero Group, who is in Manila for the inauguration of the Philippine distributor Focus Global’s sprawling new showroom at Twenty-Four Seven McKinley at the Fort.
“Sub-Zero and Wolf, of course,” he replies, barely skipping a beat. “In fact, my kitchen in Bangkok is under construction now. And these kinds of kitchens take a while to finish.
products makes the kitchen a powerful playground for culinary minds –
hobbyists and professionals alike.
They don’t happen overnight. You’ve got to order the cabinetry from Germany to house the appliances in; everything is custom-made. Our products are made-to-order.”
With prices starting at P300,000 each, Sub-Zero and Wolf both represent the pinnacle of their respective categories: cooling and cooking appliances. Think of Sub-Zero as the Rolls Royce of refrigerators, and Wolf, the RollRoyce of stoves. Sub-Zero has been around since 1943and remains 100% made in America, as does Wolf, which started out in 1933 as a leading manufacturer of commercial cooking equipment. Sub-Zero acquired the residential business of Wolf in 2000.
“One of the unique and special things about us,” he continues, pointing around the 11-kitchen howroom, “is even the most expensive unit is built into the cabinet, so there’s an integration that has to take place, a marriage between the cabinet and the unit. So everything has to be designed perfectly, however long it takes.”
In the interim, he is making do. “You’ve got to plan your renovations and work with what you have while waiting.”
Both he and his wife cook, and he confesses that the Wolf stove with the built-in steamer “is my favorite item. There are two types of steamers, the one for the wall and the inbench steamer, which is what we have. We love using ours.
We find it more user-friendly, we can prepare vegetables and stuff. Or like a risotto, you can just throw the stock in and the rice and let that go. It’s more forgiving. You don’t have to worry about things like burning.”
In fact, you can prepare virtually everything in the steamer – noodles, dimsum, spaghetti, soups. “Think about anything you cook with water – a lot of things!”
“Custards?” I ask, thinking of desserts cooked in a bainmarie.
“I suppose you could!” he says, “But I haven’t tried that yet.”
“So how did you decide on which model to get for your home?”
He pauses for a moment. “Cooking is very specific. Let’s just take the Philippines. What you want to cook, your comfort food and your recipes, and what you like are different from your neighbors. And maybe it’s different in Cebu as well. And what you cook is different from the Taiwanese, the Thais, and the Singaporeans want something else… So each customer is different and we have many more models on the cooking side. You kind of pick and choose and do combinations of what specifically works for you.”
His favorite in-bench steamer, he acknowledges, may not work for someone “who prefers a teppanyaki plate next to an induction cook top next to a wok. It’s that kind of mix-and-match that sets us apart.”
The same goes for gas or electric: it’s up to you. “The Chinese, for instance, believe that you can’t get flavor in cooking unless there’s a flame involved. I mean, Chinese food on an induction cooktop? It’s not on.”
The choices for ovens, believe it or not, are just as dizzying.
“We have ovens that match not just your cooking needs but your size requirements and your style.”
Like Wolf, Sub-Zero integrates flawless design with exceptional performance and innovative technology. It’s easy to get excited about a sleek, stainless steel-encased stateof-the-art refrigerator. Energy-saving capabilities, check.
Frost-free interiors, check. Consistent cooling abilities, check. Well-designed compartments and racks, check. Icemaking and water-dispensing functions, check.
All that is pretty much standard in refrigerators today, but at Sub-Zero, that’s basic. To start with, a Sub-Zero fridge is beautifully designed, with a level of sophistication not found in your bog-standard appliance store brand.
Second, it is the only refrigeration system equipped with dual compressors. Which means that each compartment – freezer and refrigerator – cools separately and functions independently, yet seamlessly, of each other.
Another defining feature of Sub-Zero fridges is that the compressors are positioned at the top of the unit, not at the bottom, like most brands.
Like Wolf, the built-in character of each Sub-Zero unit lends itself to endless customization.
“What width do you need? Do you want it to sit proud or do you want it to totally disappear beneath the cabinets?
There could be a refrigerator behind here, “ he indicates a row of cabinets, “but you would never know.”
The technology inherent in a Sub-Zero is so innovative and advanced that food does stay fresher longer, and uncovered at that.
“These flowers can last a week inside this fridge,” Schorr declares. “Or cheese, without any mould developing. And in the freezer, ice cream keeps without any ice crystals forming on the top.”
He’s not exaggerating. As I’ve learned in the hour I’ve spent with Schorr, neither Sub-Zero nor Wolf make claims that cannot be substantiated. For a peek into Sub-Zero and Wolf kitchens,