Our Ilve Nostalgie Range | Full Review
We are so excited about our new Ilve farmhouse stove! In this post, I am sharing what we like about this stove – and what we don’t.
If you’ve been following me for a while, you might have seen our farmhouse kitchen reveal and one-year review. And some of you had noticed that we had a new farmhouse stove.
I am pretty excited about our new Ilve range however I wanted to test it and use it under everyday conditions before I do my full review. I updated this post in August 2023 after we have been using this range for over 3 years.
So here it is, the good, the bad, and the ugly!
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. You can read my full disclosure.
Why did we get a new stove?
There are many reasons why people buy new stoves. Honestly, our old Bosch gas range was still working perfectly.
But as we were in the midst of our full kitchen renovation, my husband and I talked about getting a stove that would fit better with the farmhouse theme and look a bit more pleasing. I am a professional blogger and Youtuber. Most of my Youtube videos are recorded in our kitchen and I love having a beautiful range.
What other ranges we looked at
At the time, we considered either getting a vintage stove such as an O’Keefe & Merritt or Wedgwood or one of those beautiful French farmhouse stoves. Although we liked their features, we did not like the look of the more industrial stoves such as Wolf or Subzero, and so on.
The issue was that the vintage stoves usually come in 33″ or 36″ widths which was more than we had space for. Our old stove was 30″ and that is what we had planned for. Had we installed one of those vintage stoves, we would have had to cut into the counter and cabinet space. But space comes at a premium in this kitchen so we didn’t want to do that.
The French farmhouse stoves on the other hand posed the same issue: most of them don’t come in 30″. Also, they were not an attainable luxury for us. Therefore, we had decided to keep our old Bosch gas range for the time being.
How we found this Ilve Nostalgie stove
One day, I think I simply googled “farmhouse stove” and that I when I found the Ilve 30″ Nostalgie stove. Don’t worry if you have never heard of the Ilve brand – I hadn’t either.
Ilve is an Italian company and apparently, it has been around since 1952.
We definitely loved the look: a bit more feminine, beautiful colors, old-fashioned handrails, and pretty knobs. Then I spent more time researching if people had issues with them. I even contacted some Ilve stove owners on Instagram to see how they liked theirs. They all did and nobody reported any problems.
This is the moment for full disclosure: we did purchase this high-end range but we received a nice discount from the distributor. However, we would have still bought the stove without the discount. Also, I wasn’t asked to do or say anything and all the opinions in this post are all my own!
Meet our white Ilve Nostalgie 30″ gas range
When this stove was delivered, we thought it was just as beautiful as in the pictures. The brilliant white fits much more seamlessly into our farmhouse-style kitchen. The chrome fittings go perfectly with all the existing chrome and stainless steel hardware.
The gas cooktop has five brass burners ranging from 7000 to 15500 BTU. We find that the brushed stainless steel is pretty easy to keep clean but I wouldn’t recommend any aggressive or abrasive cleaners!
The heavy-duty grates are very similar to the ones on our old stove. I love that they will even accommodate large pots with its continuous leveled surface. Even though I don’t clean them on a daily basis, they do clean up easily with all-natural products.
The oven comes with two removable racks and an electric rotisserie attachment. We have used conventional and convection heating, the defrost, and the grill function. All of them work really well!
At the bottom is a warming drawer that I am using as a storage compartment.
Best of all, this stove comes with a price tag of about half of what you would pay for a typical French farmhouse stove. That in itself was a big selling point for us.
Features that were important for us
I really wanted the stove to have a simmer burner and an oven that goes down to 100˚F. This Ilve Nostalgie gas range seemed to fit the bill.
Now, for the simmer function, we ordered a simmer plate and I am so glad we did. The center one is a dual, high-power burner, meaning you can ignite only the smaller burner. I am not sure how many BTUs it has but for true simmering, I place the cast iron simmer plate on it. This is perfect for cooking dishes for a long time or making bone broth.
As for the oven going all the way down to 100˚F, it seems that it is the dual-fuel model that does that (with the electric oven). Our gas oven starts at 150˚F. So when making yogurt, I simply turn it to 150˚F, turn it off for a while, turn it back on, and so forth. It’s not ideal but I have successfully made delicious yogurt with this workaround.
We even had some bad spills and broken glass in our oven. Looking at it you wouldn’t even know because it cleans up so easily that it almost looks like new.
How to customize your Ilve stove
Ilve color options
We were limited to a 30″ stove but the Ilve Nostalgie series comes in many different sizes from 24″ up to 60″. We also knew we wanted a white stove, even though it comes in 8 other stock colors, including a beautiful antique white. You can even get the Ilve ovens in a custom color!
Ilve fittings options
For us, the chrome fittings (knobs and railings) were perfect but we could have chosen brass or bronze as well.
The Nostalgie series offers gas stoves (both for natural gas or propane) and a dual-fuel option.
To make this stove look more vintage, you can order claw feet or a matching toe kick for a more finished look.
Potential issues with your Ilve range
There are four things I want to mention to anyone considering buying this Ilve stove.
- The first one is that you will need to keep the ignitor for the gas burners going for 8 seconds. The manual recommends 10 seconds but I have consistently been getting away with 8 seconds. In the beginning, it definitely took a bit of getting used to it but now we don’t even notice it anymore. I guess it is an extra added safety precaution that makes sense to me.
- The next thing is that the actual oven is not quite as wide as you might expect. Since our old oven was also 30″ wide, I can attest that the Ilve oven is smaller on the inside than other American models. Most if not all European ovens tend to be a bit smaller. This 30″ Ilve gas oven has 2.7 cubic feet. I haven’t roasted any turkeys in it yet but I doubt that I can put much else in the oven at the same time.
- Ilve appliances are made to fit the European standard. That means that these stoves are about 2 ¾” shallower than the standard domestic counter depth of 26″. Many people simply install a piece of countertop behind their range to fill the gap.
- The oven fan is loud. It is as loud as our vent. Ilve says that this keeps the internal control unit cool and comes on automatically.
Final verdict: is an Ilve stove a great choice?
You have probably been waiting for this: we love our brand-new range!! Would we buy it again (knowing everything we know now)?
Yes, we absolutely would! Even 3 years later!
Every day, we look at it, we admire the beautiful high end look and how well it blends into our kitchen. We are having a lot of fun cooking and baking with it.
If you would like to purchase it or learn more about Ilve stoves, click here: https://www.anrdoezrs.net/click-100164171-14488045
Common questions:
Can you cook a turkey in it?
I receive this question often whether you can roast a turkey in this oven. Remember that we have the 30″ Nostalgie gas oven, different sizes, and different fuel ovens may have other dimensions.
However, I did roast a 15-pound turkey in a lidded turkey roaster that is about 9″ high (with handle) and it just about fit. I will say that the turkey cooked a bit faster than I expected. Therefore, I should really check the temperatures and possibly make some adjustments. Other than that, it has been holding up well and we still love it every day!
How is Ilve’s customer support?
We have not had any issues with our Ilve range. However, I have heard from people that Ilve has terrible customer support and that they don’t get much help from the Ilve customer support number. I am just mentioning that so that you can do more research to decide whether this is the right stove for you.
What if you need a service technician?
When we bought our Ilve range, the sales team told us that anyone who repairs stoves would also repair an Ilve stove. We have not had any issues yet but I hear from other people that they’re having trouble finding a service provider that will deal with an Ilve product.
Is Ilve the same as Hallman?
From what I understand, Hallman uses the same products as Ilve but puts their own label on them.
Where can I get more information?
I have found the Facebook group Ilve-Hallman-Italian Range Group very helpful. Also, Hallman put together this list of videos for various issues and troubleshooting steps for Ilve ranges: https://www.hallmanindustries.com/explainer/index/IlveRangeVideos?fbclid=IwAR1hyGQVPt6a8j0fMdmCd3S6BuvoLXDJHcJevrNThBLM0f_uvvMHwWJFbc0
How to clean your Ilve gas stove:
Here are some articles about how to take good care of your stove:
How to clean a stainless-steel stovetop
How to clean the cast iron grates of a gas stove
Let me know all your questions and comments below!
Pin For Later:
How do you arrange the oven racks to fit a bread cloche or tagine? I have the 30 inch. I did bake bread but had to move rack so sits right on the drip pan
I have my rack on the second lowest setting. Sometimes, bread bakers have handles that stick out a lot so people take them off ~ Anja
I love the look of my Nostalgia gas/electric double oven unit, the gas burners work okay although they definitely have issues, but the oven…the oven…I hate the oven. It takes forever to preheat and then, if you even so much as crack the door to check your items, temp drops dramatically and takes a long time to get back up so any sort of pastry or temperature sensitive item fails to bake properly. Items burn on the bottom with regularity no matter which rack or setting I use. Oven temps are inconsistent at best. We have had repairmen here to remedy some issues, but those remedies left us with the same problem so I feel that it is not a flaw with my specific oven, it is a systematic issue with these ovens. I owned a successful home bakery for over a decade and now avoid baking at all because it’s such a stressful process having to constantly watch items, shift them from rack to rack, adjust from fan to top/bottom burners, etc. Sadly, my Ilve experience has been an expensive disappointment. Posting to see if anyone else has experienced the same.
Oh, no, that doesn’t sound good 🙁 Luckily, we haven’t had issues with ours but thank you so much for sharing ~ Anja
I just ordered a 30″ Ilve for our kitchen. It took me three weeks to finally pull the trigger. I am a bit nervous because of all the negative reviews but I am hopeful.
When we renovated I opted for more counter space instead of a larger range. My husband asked me if I wanted a built in range with microwave stack, a larger range or more counter space. Counter space is more important so I made that decision and I do not regret it.
I went with the blue range and brass trim. I am excited!
Thank you for your honest review. I feel better about my purchase.
Congrats on your purchase! Fingers crossed that it works well for you. I am aware of the many negative reviews but 1) people tend to complain more than they praise and 2) we have not had any issues with our stove ~ Anja
Hi! I just had this range installed and I have followed the instructions for the first system startup process multiple times (i.e. washed the parts and let the oven run empty on 440 for over an hour) & the unpleasant smells the instruction manual ensures will go away have not. This is the third time I have run the oven for over an hour. Did you experience this? Any tips? Thanks!
I am so sorry to hear this! I recommend you reach out to Ilve directly. There also is a FB group where you can ask your question (Ilve-Hallman-Italian-Range-Group). Hope this helps ~ Anja
Hi, I hope you’re still responding! I would love an ILVE based on the specs and style, but I can’t see one in person. They sell them in Portugal, but there is no place to see one. I would get a 90cm, but it sounds like you got a 60cm which is most common here in Europe. The time to light the burners is an EU safety condition. My questions are: the racks–do they glide easily even with a heavy pan on them? or do they resist pulling?
and the door–does it close slowly/quietly, or does it slam? Does it stay quite cool to touch?
Thank you!
The racks glide easily without anything on them but not so much with any weight. The door closes normally and the outside is absolutely cool to the touch. Hope this helps ~ Anja
It took 9 months for my oven to be repaired. There isn’t a repairman west of the Mississippi for Ilve. I called every repairman within a 3 hour drive and not one would service an Ilve. Ilve customer service is rude and unhelpful. My stove is beautiful. I hate it.
I am so sorry to hear about your experience! Have you considered joining the Facebook group “Ilve-Hallman-Italian Range Group”? You might get some support or better help there ~ Anja
Hi Anja. What kind of range hood/vent do you have
I responded to you by email but the product links are at the bottom of the post as well ~ Anja
I warn you to seriously consider my account before purchasing any Ilve product. It took 9 months to reach a resolution with Ilve. Terrible customer support for a brand new range, and trust me it’s not just one customer service rep that caused this, it was everyone I worked with.
Here is what happened:
– Ilve Nostalgie 36inch range arrived in sub-optimal condition. Gas burners would rarely ignite or hold flame, only 1-2 burners would work at the same time with low BTU.
– Began troubleshooting by calling Ilve Customer Support number, the Customer Support is contracted out to Superior Marketing who is their distributor in the US.
– Customer Support began trying to locate a service technician in my area (top 10 metro in USA). For weeks, I would call in once per week to check the status of my case, Ilve rarely reached out to me with updates.
– Customer Support could not locate a service provider in my area and asked me to find one myself. When reached, many service providers in my area said they would not service Ilve.
– At this point, the customer care team began to hang up on me when I would call in to ask for help with locating a service technician.
– At this point, I had to call into the Sales team and begin working with them for support.
– A service technician was finally scheduled and assessed my issue 3 ½ months after contacting Customer Support.
– It took 8 weeks to deliver the parts the technician needed.
– Technician re-assessed the range with new parts and concluded the range was not manufactured correctly and should be returned as it was irreparable.
– From this point, it took 5 weeks of constant requests to begin the refund process.
– After this, it took an additional 9 weeks for the refund to be processed and to get my money back.
A product issue was seriously compounded by a failing customer care team. This market segment of home appliances is often called “attainable luxury” – you get the high end look while sacrificing the backend support.
Please understand that your appliance may be optimal and working as it should when you purchase it. But buyer beware if you need customer support – that is when the buyers regret kicks in.
I am so sorry for your experience which sounds horrendous! All I can say is that we have not had any problems whatsoever but thank you for sharing yours ~ Anja
Hi. We just purchased the ilve 36” nostalgie model. Fuel fuel. Love the look and still getting used to how to use it. Wondering if anyone has had these issues:
Fan blows hard and makes a high pitched sound. Sometimes but not always using the conventional oven mode or quick start function, and sometimes once oven is shut off.
The flame setting isn’t as low as my previous gas stove. Is the summer plate the only way to achieve low heat?
Thanks!
Yes, the fan does go on for quite a bit but the high-pitched sound doesn’t sound quite right to me. I suggest you reach out to their customer service: https://www.ilveusa.com/contact.html. The simmer plate is the best way to create a true “simmer”. Hope this helps ~ Anja
Hi, I am searching for a liquid propane gas stove. This stove is absolutely gorgeous, my concern is, customer service and repairing in the US if something does not work. Have you had to call for customer service or a working issue? It is scary buying something that is not from here. About how long does it take for delivery?
Thank you, I need to make a decision.
Jacqueline
Hi Jacquline, I am not sure about current delivery times but they will also heavily depend on your model, size, color, etc. We have not had any problems with our stove whatsoever but I am certain that any qualified repair service can do repairs on Ilve stoves (my handy husband says they are well-built). Hope this helps ~ Anja
Hello, I’m looking at purchasing this oven. I bake a ton and was wondering how the gas range bakes cookies and cakes for you. I’m trying to decide between all gas or duel fuel. Pro and cons to baking with either so I have been indecisive. I currently have an all gas and like how it keeps food moist but the temperature fluctuates. With the convection gas that would help solve hot spots in gas.
Thank you
Amanda
Hi Amanda, my last oven was a gas oven, too, so I am not sure about the difference from an electric oven. However, on the regular setting, it seems to brown a bit more towards the door but with the convection, it’s pretty consistent. The oven does have a fan that comes on when the control unit gets too hot and automatically shuts off when it’s cooled down again. Hope this helps ~ Anja
I just found your website and have enjoyed watching two of your videos. Please tell me what your counters are made of. If Carrera marble (which they appear to be), how are you caring for them, and do you recommend them? Thanks so much!
Hi Nancy, our counters are actually quartz and we love them. You can read more about them in this post: https://ourgabledhome.com/our-farmhouse-kitchen-1-year-honest-review/ Hope this helps ~ Anja
Thanks for the thorough review- doing my own research on this range, so it’s been very helpful.
Do you find that upper bar (just above the knobs) to be impeding at all? I can’t tell from the video if it would create any issues when pulling something off the stove to go into the oven or vice versa, or get in the way of cooking maneuvers while using the stove top. Is it functional in any way for you? Do you know if it’s an option that can be left off?
Hi Aileen, We actually love the upper bar for its aesthetics and practicality (we often dry towels there, especially when the oven is on) and I have not found it impeding at all. That could also be personal preference. It looks like it would come off but I would confirm that with Superior Marketing just to be sure. I am glad you liked my review ~ Anja
What refrigerator did you pair with your stove. I’m looking and nothing seems to match well (handles mainly).
We have a LG refrigerator and the handles don’t match at all but it sits at a different wall than the stoves. Also the fridge is stainless steel and the stove is white. Have you looked into having a custom front for your refrigerator? Hope this helps ~ Anja
I’m looking into purchasing this exact stove, but my biggest concern is the oven size. What size cookie sheet does it fit? Also have you ever noticed that the outside knobs have been hot to the touch? I read this on some other reviews.
Hi there, you can use baker’s half sheets in this 30″ stove (https://amzn.to/3g8KW1M). We have not felt the knobs getting hot when we’re using the oven. It is a beautiful stove and we love having and using it. Hope this helps ~ Anja
I am so glad I found your review! I have been searching for a dual fuel in my small kitchen and am also besotted with the look of the Ilve and the functions it seems to have. I have a similar concern about the size. Will the oven fit 2 of the baker’s half sheets you recommended side by side or one sheet on the top rack and one sheet on the bottom rack? Also- I have read that the voltage required for the oven is different from standard sizes. Did you use a converter or did the installation require a plumber to install a different plug? Thank you!
Our stove is a gas stove and didn’t need anything special. My husband installed it without any problems. As far as I can tell, the dual fuel needs a 220 V outlet, though but all of their stoves have regular American plugs. I am using baker’s half sheets and depending on what I put on them, I can fit 2 of them in the oven (one on top of the other). We still love our stove and would buy it again. Hope all this helps ~ Anja
Thank you! It looks gorgeous in your kitchen. You’ve convinced me- I’m moving ahead with the Nostalgie.
Your stove is gorgeous! I love looking at farmhouse-style stoves for when we eventually get out of a rental in town and move to an acreage, but they always seem less user-friendly than more modern stoves. This looks like the perfect combination of practical and pretty!
Yes, we love our stove! It’s both beautiful but also very functional. I’d be happy to answer any questions. Thank you so much for your nice comment 💛 ~ Anja
This is beautiful… I hope to be doing a kitchen remodel soon and I’m definitely looking into this. Thank you for the review.
I am so glad you find this helpful! Happy remodeling (if there is anything like that …) ~ Anja
It’s beautiful Anja! Very excited for you! I really like the simmer plate option for broths and soups.
Thank you so much! We sure love this stove. And yes, the simmer plate is a great addition!
Such a great review of this stove. I looks so beautiful and functional. Whenever we need a new stove I’ll check this company out.
You are right, it is both very functional and beautiful. I am sure you would love it, too 😊