Clarke: Where Dream Kitchens Come to Life

Experience Luxury Kitchen Design at Clarke Showrooms

Imagine walking into a drop-dead gorgeous kitchen you’ve only ever seen in the pages of your favorite home magazine. Sleek, spacious, outfitted with a suite of top-of-the-line appliances. Close your eyes and picture yourself there.

Or visit a Clarke Showroom and immerse yourself in up to a dozen fully operational, designer kitchens to find your sweet spot. Clarke’s vignettes showcase premium appliances within a variety of design styles—from minimalist and uber-contemporary to classic and traditional.

Discover High-Performance Kitchen Appliances and Expert Guidance

Clarke is the region’s exclusive “brand ambassador” for high-performance appliances—among them Wolf ranges, cooktops, and ovens; Sub-Zero refrigerators, freezers and wine storage; Cove dishwashers; The Galley kitchen workstations; Best range hoods; and Scotsman ice machines. However, Clarke doesn’t sell directly to the public. Visit any of its three New England showrooms and you won’t feel any pressure to make a decision on the fly, says Marco Barallon, corporate showroom director in South Norwalk, Connecticut (the other locations are in Boston and Milford, Massachusetts). What you can expect is guidance from a staff of exquisitely trained consultants who will answer all your questions and help you match your kitchen appliances to your lifestyle. It’s an unconventional business model that homeowners, architects and designers appreciate.

A recent visit commenced with a warm welcome, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies, and an espresso from a built-in coffee bar. When the resident chef came by to offer up small bites, it was clear that Clarke was serving up hospitality, as well as helpful information and design inspiration.

Must-Have Kitchen Appliances

The tour highlighted everything you need (and didn’t know you needed) to take your kitchen to the next level. Today’s top five upscale essentials, according to the experts at Clarke:

1. Specialty ovens. The Wolf Speed Oven combines the power of a microwave with convection and broil capabilities, while the versatile Wolf Convection Steam Oven (chosen by 8 out of 10 homeowners who see a demonstration) consistently turns out cooked-to-perfection vegetables, eggs, grains, and artisan breads. Don’t forget to ask about Wolf’s Gourmet modes, which take all the guesswork out of cooking.
2. Warming drawers. Designed by Wolf to keep meals hot for family members who don’t always sit down to eat at the same time and can heat pies until you’re ready to add ice cream. Some designers even plan these into the master bath to warm towels!
3. Point-of-use refrigeration. Endlessly customizable by Sub-Zero, options include under-counter refrigerator and freezer drawers, full-height refrigerator and freezer columns that allow you to mix and match widths to fit your space and small models that fit in a pantry, wet-bar or closet .
4. Wine storage. Engineered to be the guardian of your favorite wines, Sub-Zero offers a wide array of options to suit your lifestyle—whether you have an enviable wine collection or just like to enjoy an occasional red or white.
5. The Galley workstations. A new category of kitchen appliance, The Galley is a complete culinary system that lets you prepare, serve, and clean up all in one place.

Scheduling an Appointment at Clarke

You can see and test drive these appliances (and many others) by scheduling a Clarke Showroom appointment online. “An appointment typically lasts sixty to ninety minutes,” says Barallon. “It depends, because we have people at every stage of their design journey. Some are just ‘kicking the tires,’ while others may show up with their architect or kitchen designer and floor plans.”

At the end of your tour, you’ll leave with a brochure tailored to your interests. A follow-up email includes pricing. You’re invited to schedule as many additional visits as you like. “Often customers will return with their spouse—and sometimes with a favorite dish or a loaf of bread so they can test-bake it here,” says Barallon.

Clarke won’t sell you anything, but they will connect you with trusted appliance dealers who sell the appliances you see in their showrooms. Plus, if you are early in your planning phase,  your Clarke consultant will be happy to share recommendations for designers and architects to help you bring your dream kitchen to life.

Make no mistake, Clarke appliances are considered world-class brands. “These showrooms are where you go when you want the best,” says Barallon. “We work with architects, designers and homeowners before, during and after they create their dream kitchen to ensure it is all they imagine.”

Clarke Showrooms

• 7 Tide Street, Boston, Mass. 02210
• 64 South Main Street, South Norwalk, Conn. 06854
• 393 Fortune Boulevard, Milford, Mass. 01757