How I chose the fridge & freezer and how it’s going.
Refrigeration (Fridge, freezer, CoolDrawer)
When I met Fisher & Paykel team through my pals at Novita PR, I learned their ethos is about helping people create personal cook spaces — no one size fits all. And that happens through lots of mix-and-match options — cooling and freezer columns and their iconic CoolDrawers (touted recently by Martyn Lawrence Bullard in the NY Times). I mean, it has cool in the name, how was I not going to try one of these?!
Aesthetics. Max Humphrey and a few Instagram friends insisted that F&P has the best handles — something that matters to design people, and me too.
Flexibility. I wanted a lot of produce bins (check!) and more freezer visibility as we are in a love affair with our milkman (yes!) and have an embarrassing array of frozen treats along with dumplings, and pre-made meals (this Ottolenghi lentil soup is now ready at all times). Re: hosting, the CoolDrawer is the ultimate party machine. The other night it held 6 standing bottles of champagne and another half-dozen laying down it is wasn’t at capacity. In peak farmers market season I’ll warm up the temp a few degrees and pack it with produce. Have you ever had one of those CSA’s that give you four heads of kale at once? This — and this salad — is the solution.
Functions. Firstly, specifically filtered water on the inside. I wasn’t sure if we were going paneled or not, but, I knew I preferred to not see the water spigot. Also: ice maker, duh. Secondly, the option to chill produce at a slightly warmer temp than you would milk. Both the lower fridge cabinets and CoolDrawer offer a 54F pantry option that’s awesome for more foods than you’d expect. Nuts, baked goods, and lots of fruits & veg for which the counter can expedite spoiling, but the fridge can compromise flavour and texture. (Think: Avocado, tomatoes, citrus, cucumbers, basil and eggplant).
My picks:
Integrated Column Refrigerator, 30″, Water — RS3084SRHK1
Product links: USA / Canada
Integrated Column Freezer, 18″, Ice — RS1884FLJK1
Product links: USA / Canada
Integrated CoolDrawer™ Multi-temperature Drawer, 36″
Product links: USA / Canada
Dish Care
Here, I was open ideas. Fisher & Paykel is the dish-drawer pioneer and, well, I’m an Aquarius and I like trying new things, so, here we are: Dish-drawer people now!
Biggest plus: In the same size or less than a conventional dishwasher, we have two stacked drawers, which means we can load the little guy midday and keep the biggie until after dinner. The staggered times also means there’s always a place for dirty dishes that’s NOT the sink.
Learning curve: By folding down or removing the tines there are beaucoup ways to configure the drawers themselves — but it does require a little thinking. Sometimes I ask my myself: do we just use so many more bowls than most families? But after a little configuring, I’ve got a bowl-friendly drawer. I’ve been super-happy with the performance so far.
Integrated Double DishDrawer™ Dishwasher, Tall, Sanitize — DD24DTI9 N
Product links: USA / Canada / Other countries