What Is a Solid Top Range and Do I Need One?

Walk into most professional kitchens and you’ll see either an open burner range, with individual gas rings, or a solid top range, with one continuous cast iron surface. They look different and they cook differently too, so it’s worth knowing which one suits the way your kitchen actually works before you buy.

How a solid top range works

Instead of individual burners, a solid top range heats a flat cast iron surface from underneath. That surface gets hotter towards the burners and cooler towards the edges — chefs call it zonal heat. It means a pan of stock can sit gently simmering at the cooler edge while a pan directly over the burner reaches a fast rolling boil. All on the same surface, at the same time.

That’s the main advantage over an open burner range: more pans on the go at once, each at a different heat, without needing a ring free for each one. Sauces, stocks, gravies, anything needing slow reduction alongside high-heat work — that flexibility earns its keep during a busy service.

Who a solid top range suits

Solid tops suit kitchens doing high volumes of pan work rather than wok-style or high-flame cooking, where an open burner range still has the edge. Pubs and gastropubs running a full menu, hotels with busy breakfast and dinner services, and any kitchen built around sauces, stocks and slow-cooked dishes tend to get the most out of one.

They’re also built to take a beating. A cast iron solid top is heavy-duty by design. That construction holds up well to years of daily commercial use, which is part of why so many turn up on the reconditioned market in solid working order.

The Falcon Chieftain twin bullseye

We currently have two reconditioned Falcon Chieftain G1006FX twin bullseye solid top gas ranges in stock, both fully tested and serviced and ready to go. The twin bullseye design gives two powerful 7.5kW burners set into the solid top, capable of reaching over 520°C. That’s targeted high heat alongside the wider zonal surface, all in one unit. Underneath sits a substantial gas oven, compatible with 2/1 gastronorm pans, with a reinforced drop-down door and anti-tilt shelving to keep things safer when the kitchen’s at full pace. This one’s on wheels too, with a plate rack fitted — easier to manoeuvre, and somewhere to rest food straight out of the oven.

Falcon has built a solid reputation in commercial kitchens over decades. The Chieftain range is a good example of why: a straightforward, heavy-duty workhorse rather than anything overcomplicated. All our reconditioned equipment is tested by qualified catering equipment engineers and comes with a 30 day warranty. Delivery costs vary depending on location, but collection is always welcome if that suits you better. Two are available now, ready for immediate delivery — worth moving on quickly if this one suits your kitchen.

Fitting it into your kitchen

A range like this needs a proper gas connection and should always go in via a qualified engineer. Worth checking too whether your existing extraction and worktop layout will accommodate the unit’s footprint before it arrives, since solid top ranges are substantial pieces of kit.

Still deciding?

If you’re not sure whether a solid top or an open burner range fits your kitchen better, we’re happy to talk it through. Call 01379 641223 and we’ll take it from there.