We – fans of grilled and outdoor cooking – know: it is always time for the barbecue. Whether it is for a garden party in the summer or to accompany a delicious lunch in our outdoor kitchen, the barbecue is a must. Even when the season is no longer so warm, you can still keep it going. Just use some small tricks and you and your guests can spend a day (maybe an autumn Sunday afternoon) of relaxation with good food on the table. In addition to the barbecue, then, there are many solutions to enhance your outdoor kitchen. Here we tell you how to do it.
Barbecue, fireplace and grill in one configuration
One of the cleverest settings, we could say “smart” to use a buzzword, is to combine several resources in one! A barbecue, a fireplace, a TV, a grill and an extractor hood, all in one configuration in your outdoor kitchen. Is this too much? Well, you can give up a piece, but know that this solution is really convenient and chef-proof outdoors, even on the coldest days. Indeed, you can enjoy the barbecue until evening thanks to the fireplace that will keep you and your family warm. If, then, you are a fan of TV shows, a large screen television can be an additional company. We suggest you to place this solution on a patio under a high and sloping ceiling, with openings all around the fireplace and barbecue area. This allows the heat to be better directed and promotes better air circulation. However, this solution requires the addition of a chimney for the fireplace and a hood for the barbecue, which also sucks in all the fat air and the cooking exhaust.
Horseshoe design: no wasted space and a more intimate environment
When your outdoor kitchen is at the design stage, do not shy away from the furniture options that the designer suggests. Listen to his/her ideas and maybe add your own opinion: the aim is to create something unique! A great space-saving idea, for example, is to design your outdoor kitchen as a horseshoe. It is usually left some space behind the barbecue in this type of kitchen: you could use it to add some seedlings, utensils, furnishings. This could be the ideal solution for a patio in a garden. Complete with tiled floors and brickwork on the island, it really embraces the outdoor kitchen atmosphere. If you add a glass ceiling to the horseshoe island, you will get two things: the first is to be able to be sheltered even when temperatures drop, and the second is to allow light to flood the cosy and closed space. This way anyone can enjoy the view of trees and plants outside, in the garden.
Metal and glass for the most modern and elegant solutions
No getting around it: in our opinion, the most modern and elegant approach to outdoor kitchens is to use materials such as glass and metal combined. It is a sophisticated design, very tactile (smooth and linear) and definitely our favourite. The table in this type of kitchen should be thought of as quite large, so as to accommodate family and friends, and includes comfortable seating for everyone. In the colder season, you can think of vertical outdoor heaters, also made of metal. However, glass brings the modern elements to the forefront and matches perfectly with any sliding doors and windows in the house, always in the same material. In this case, the floor should be made of cement to give the final touch to this modern outdoor kitchen.
