How to Build the Perfect Outdoor Kitchen
Time to invest nearly as much outside as you do inside
In 1952, Richard Rosen published The Terrace Chef, a collection of recipes dedicated to the then novel idea of cooking and eating outside. (My copy, a gift from New York friends, was originally given to someone by Dick and Doris at Lake George, USA, in 1960.) “The day of elaborate entertaining is past and the informal, casual barbecue has taken its place,” Rosen wrote. “This is much to the delight of hostess and guests alike.”
Trouble is, it’s taken more than six decades for outside facilities to catch up with those inside. How many of us have awkwardly balanced a plate piled with steak in one hand, barbecue utensils in the other, while transferring everything to the red-hot grill? Put the steak on the ground and it’s in danger of being eaten by the dog or mangled by the toddler. And you can never find a place to put your beer since there’s nowhere to put it. But help is at hand.
Trouble is, it’s taken more than six decades for outside facilities to catch up with those inside. How many of us have awkwardly balanced a plate piled with steak in one hand, barbecue utensils in the other, while transferring everything to the red-hot grill? Put the steak on the ground and it’s in danger of being eaten by the dog or mangled by the toddler. And you can never find a place to put your beer since there’s nowhere to put it. But help is at hand.
Solve the gas-charcoal fight
The argument of gas versus charcoal or wood refuses to die. Gas is easy and fast, while charcoal or wood takes time and contemplation, the kind of careful cooking that just can’t be recreated on a gas grill, not to mention a distinct smoky flavour*. But why should you have to choose? The best outdoor kitchens come with both – in this lovely kitchen, there is a pizza oven for long, slow evenings, and a stainless-steel hob for when something a little faster is required. (Kudos for task lighting here as well.)
* Disclosure: author is a charcoal obsessive.
The argument of gas versus charcoal or wood refuses to die. Gas is easy and fast, while charcoal or wood takes time and contemplation, the kind of careful cooking that just can’t be recreated on a gas grill, not to mention a distinct smoky flavour*. But why should you have to choose? The best outdoor kitchens come with both – in this lovely kitchen, there is a pizza oven for long, slow evenings, and a stainless-steel hob for when something a little faster is required. (Kudos for task lighting here as well.)
* Disclosure: author is a charcoal obsessive.
Live outside. Permanently
If you have the space, it is wise to build the kind of outdoor kitchen that means you never have to go inside again, as with this one. Rug up and hang out there in winter as well as summer. I love the dishwasher-wine fridge combination here, though I’d question the sole reliance on propane.
Adding a few domestic touches – such as the fantastic feature light, not to mention the built-in day beds (yellow!) and maybe a suede coffee table – will make your guests want to linger, if not stay for good.
If you have the space, it is wise to build the kind of outdoor kitchen that means you never have to go inside again, as with this one. Rug up and hang out there in winter as well as summer. I love the dishwasher-wine fridge combination here, though I’d question the sole reliance on propane.
Adding a few domestic touches – such as the fantastic feature light, not to mention the built-in day beds (yellow!) and maybe a suede coffee table – will make your guests want to linger, if not stay for good.
Extend your inside kitchen.
If the outdoor kitchen is as close to the indoor kitchen as this one, carry on the look and feel outside as well as in. In this example, hard-wearing stone benchtops have been matched to the inside, while the high leaner and bar stools match the look of the cabinetry. The result is that – even with the doors closed – the kitchen area looks bigger, flowing seamlessly across your back deck.
If the outdoor kitchen is as close to the indoor kitchen as this one, carry on the look and feel outside as well as in. In this example, hard-wearing stone benchtops have been matched to the inside, while the high leaner and bar stools match the look of the cabinetry. The result is that – even with the doors closed – the kitchen area looks bigger, flowing seamlessly across your back deck.
This works especially well if your indoor kitchen is small. Use the outdoor kitchen for some things you can’t fit inside, such as extra bench space or a kitchen island. In this case, bar stools and an island are outside on the covered deck, but flow seamlessly from the inside kitchen. The outside kitchen adds some much-needed bench space and storage.
Make it part of the landscaping – and give yourself a view
The best outdoor kitchens are seamlessly integrated into your deck or garden – include them early in your plans. In this case, the kitchen sits on the edge of the roof deck, in place of a balustrade with a view out over the neighbourhood.
Smart designers give kitchens the great views – hell, you spend enough time in them – and outdoor kitchens are no different. In the above rooftop outdoor kitchen in Chicago, USA, the kitchen has the best view in the house. Too right.
More heaven-sent rooftop spaces
The best outdoor kitchens are seamlessly integrated into your deck or garden – include them early in your plans. In this case, the kitchen sits on the edge of the roof deck, in place of a balustrade with a view out over the neighbourhood.
Smart designers give kitchens the great views – hell, you spend enough time in them – and outdoor kitchens are no different. In the above rooftop outdoor kitchen in Chicago, USA, the kitchen has the best view in the house. Too right.
More heaven-sent rooftop spaces
Have fun
You’re outside. In an ideal world, it’s hot and there is a cold beverage in your hand. Your outside kitchen should be fun to spend time in – and what better way to do this than with some brightly coloured tiles? I love the way this bench blends into the eclectic collection of plants and furniture. Also appealing: the ability to waterblast it after a long winter of neglect.
You’re outside. In an ideal world, it’s hot and there is a cold beverage in your hand. Your outside kitchen should be fun to spend time in – and what better way to do this than with some brightly coloured tiles? I love the way this bench blends into the eclectic collection of plants and furniture. Also appealing: the ability to waterblast it after a long winter of neglect.
Make it beautiful
Perfectly-milled timber: check. Stainless-steel touches: check. Custom cabinetry for the rustic yet refined look: check. Then there’s the timber table and benches with exposed joints and the loungers in the same tone as everything else sitting beside the pool looking out over a white-sand beach. Need I go on? This is one of those pieces of design that makes you realise the value of architecture. Every piece in this kitchen has been carefully considered – right down to the dishwasher. Yes please.
Perfectly-milled timber: check. Stainless-steel touches: check. Custom cabinetry for the rustic yet refined look: check. Then there’s the timber table and benches with exposed joints and the loungers in the same tone as everything else sitting beside the pool looking out over a white-sand beach. Need I go on? This is one of those pieces of design that makes you realise the value of architecture. Every piece in this kitchen has been carefully considered – right down to the dishwasher. Yes please.
And again, this time with view. Sigh.
I love the combination of fish-tail ceramic tiles – more commonly seen on the roofs of temples in southeast Asia but used to brilliant effect here – with the copper extractor and white sarked timber ceiling. The cabinetry is made from long-lasting hardwood and the bench is concrete, all of which adds to its gently hippy south Californian vibe. (It’s actually the kitchen of a pool house in Melbourne.)
Or it could disappear
At the other extreme, you could always hide the entire thing away. In this Brighton, Melbourne home, the kitchen was designed as an exercise in cool timbery restraint – so naturally, the outdoor kitchen disappears inside this lovely timber hutch housing barbecue and a small prep area. The whole thing closes up with a door – which gives you shelter from inclement weather. Genius, though probably not an option for those that like to see their toys on display.
At the other extreme, you could always hide the entire thing away. In this Brighton, Melbourne home, the kitchen was designed as an exercise in cool timbery restraint – so naturally, the outdoor kitchen disappears inside this lovely timber hutch housing barbecue and a small prep area. The whole thing closes up with a door – which gives you shelter from inclement weather. Genius, though probably not an option for those that like to see their toys on display.
Make it social
This courtyard garden in Hawaii has it right: low-n-slow barbecue perfect for smoking ribs and brisket, pizza oven and a tasteful dry-stone rock bar. Nearby, a pétanque court to while away the hours with a glass of wine – or perhaps an IPA – while waiting for those ribs to cook. No pressure.
This courtyard garden in Hawaii has it right: low-n-slow barbecue perfect for smoking ribs and brisket, pizza oven and a tasteful dry-stone rock bar. Nearby, a pétanque court to while away the hours with a glass of wine – or perhaps an IPA – while waiting for those ribs to cook. No pressure.
And yet sometimes, the perfect outdoor kitchen is as simple as a freshly washed deck, some simple cedar cabinetry with a few string lights and a view out over a flagstone, Japanese-inspired garden. I’d cook here any day – especially given the presence of a Big Green Egg, which may be the perfect charcoal barbecue.
TELL US
How do you cook outside? Tell us in the comments section.
MORE
20 Amazing Outdoor Kitchens
Stickybeak of the Week: A Mornington Peninsula Pool House
How to Plan a Kitchen That Spills Outside
TELL US
How do you cook outside? Tell us in the comments section.
MORE
20 Amazing Outdoor Kitchens
Stickybeak of the Week: A Mornington Peninsula Pool House
How to Plan a Kitchen That Spills Outside
One thing hasn’t changed since Dick and Doris: active participation. “One guest can be appointed bartender, another fire watcher, another server and so on,” Rosen advised. “Nothing makes a successful party like making your guests feel important and needed – and they are!” With these outdoor kitchens, you’ll do exactly that.