It’s funny you pay an 80% premium for something without bells and whistles…
Of course, the great thing about Viking and similar top-end brands is that their controls are much more accurate. My crusty beige gas range at home has 2 settings. Low and Inferno. Guessing where the sweet spot is with Stainless pans is a risky adventure.
As far as higher end residential stuff, I’ve been impressed with GE’s high end series. You still end up with random buttons, but the burners and ovens are great.
Also, on the IKEA tip, I’m glad you noticed that their made for IKEA by other companies. I think the fact that they do that speaks to what companies like KitchenAid, etc think the American (North American) public wants in terms of kitchen gadgetry. The IKEA stuff is seen as European, so they pare down the options and give it a clean simple look. Something that would probably sell well at Sears.