Considering an Outdoor Kitchen This Spring in Brighton and Ann Arbor, MI? Keep These 4 Tips in Mind
Outdoor kitchen and fireplace in Ann Arbor & Brighton, MI
If you are considering adding an outdoor kitchen to your Brighton and Ann Arbor, MI, landscape this spring, there are design principles you’ll want to note for creating the perfect cooking space. Keep these tips in mind as you think through the details for an outdoor kitchen.
Plan the Cooking Triangle
You might never have known that math figured so prominently in a kitchen design, but it actually forms the most productive and easily navigated way to cook. The theory is that the three main cooking areas—the cooktop, refrigerator, and sink—should form a triangle in relation to one another. It’s not a requirement but this formation makes it easy to access any of these foundational kitchen features without having to stop your process.
The triangle also applies to an outdoor kitchen. Unless you are only planning a grill station, the three elements could be planned as a triangle to make cooking effortless.
Decide the Relationship of Indoor to Outdoor
Some homeowners want to have a complete kitchen indoors and outdoors with all of the same amenities for convenience while others prefer connecting the two spaces to allow for extra cooking space for large groups. Do you want to designate the outdoor kitchen for specialty meals like wood-fired pizza from the pizza oven or slow-smoked meats? Would you prefer that the indoor kitchen house the pantry supplies, or would you like to have them in both places?
If you have the luxury of opening French doors wide to combine the two kitchens, do you want to have different appliances outside such as an ice machine or a wine cooler? When you think about how you plan to use the indoor vs. outdoor kitchens, your landscaper can plan the details more accurately to avoid overlap and to maximize the available space.
Remember: Appliances Matter
Since the outdoor kitchen will most likely see a lot of use and have to weather the elements, it can pay big dividends to have your landscaper install quality stainless steel appliances that can withstand the cold and hot temperatures and all the fluctuations in between.
The easier the kitchen is to use and clean, the more you will use this space when faced with the choice of inside or outside. When your landscaper plans for built-in trash receptacles and plenty of storage for plates and utensils, you won’t have to run back and forth making mad dashes into the house for basic supplies.
Decide on the Style
Often your landscaper uses the existing architecture and exterior colors and landscape style as guides for choosing what an outdoor kitchen will look like, but some homeowners want this to be a time to add a completely different style to the outdoor space. Discussing your vision with a landscape specialist can help you know what is possible and what is not.
Done thoughtfully and blended well, a contemporary kitchen of sleek, monochrome stone-like flooring and walls can be an eye-catching contrast to a brick and shake shingle exterior. Using wood like teak that weathers well can really set off a contemporary home design and add warmth to the aesthetic, especially when topped with white countertops for a cool finish.