How to design an outdoor Kitchen (what have I learned over the years?)

UPDATE: SHOULD HAVE UPDATED VIDEOS ON NEW KITCHEN IN THE NEXT MONTH OR SO!

As you can tell from the title we have an interesting one for yall. An Outdoor kitchen review. One we don’t always cover. After Three years we are ready to give you an honest review on what we thing is necessary and unnecessary in an outdoor kitchen.

First off we tackle where to start! This can be difficult if you make it. We believe that you gotta find the one grill that you will be using the most and build around that. For example I used the Memphis Pellet Grill, I loved it tat the beginning but gradually wished I would’ve gone with a gas grill. Why? Well the pellet grill is just a little more of a hassle to run. We prefer the smoke flavor coming from pour kamado Joe anyways. So with our next island that will be replacing the current we are definitely going with the Gas grill!

Another necessary product is storage! Why do I say that? You don’t want to have to store all your grilling supplies inside with your regular items. You want to be able to have your BBQ stuff right where your BBQ’s are. We thing the more space the more valuable and easy things will be for you. Another thing we recommend is a trash station. One that pulls out and you’re good toss whatever you need to toss. The ease is amazing and your patio won’t be littered with trash!

Now we are gonna dive into one of our favorite accessories to have out in an outdoor kitchen set up. We will take a look at our outdoor refrigeration! This is a NEED! We love this beverage center we have. It hold drinks and will keep them cool for ever even in hot weather. This is a need because you don’t want to crowd your indoor fridge with drinks then have to feel like you need to clear them out by drinking all of them when the guest leave. The beverage center is perfect for drink and can store them for weeks to come until the next get together. Now we take a look at the Kegerator station. Do we like it? Of course we do! Is it necessary, no it is not. We love the thing but we just don’t see the practicality of it and won’t be adding it into our new Outdoor kitchen.

Now we talk about the griddle grill and the charcoal grill. We LOVE the eco grill as an individual piece! As far as a built in option, we find it difficult to use it to its full potential due to the circular shape. We will be putting a griddle grill in our new outdoor kitchen it just won’t be the eco unfortunately. And as you can tell in the video… the Kamado is sticking out like a sore thumb. We bought this guy after we made our outdoor kitchen. In our next Outdoor kitchen we will be building this bad boy in!

Don’t forget if your in the Denver Colorado Area visit our showroom today.

Embers Living
7705 W 108th Ave
Westminster, CO 80021

[rogerf]

Good summation and presentation. For me I have a gas grill, a pellet smoker, pizza cooker and a big green egg. I use the gas grill for quick cooking. I use the pellet smoker mostly for burgers as it can cook frozen burgers in about 20 minutes and adds flavor and no attendance required. The gas pizza cooker once or twice a week. But if you want the very best steak, the big green egg (or any komato cooker) can not be beat.

[miketheman]

Love the video. You could get rid of that entry point on the counter and put a stone semi permanent cutting board on top. Set it for the charcuterie or cutting meat or serving whatever, white marble will offset the counter top.

[boogie]

Great information for me as I"m looking at getting an outdoor kitchen, Thank you! In regards to Kamado Joe, while I hear they are great smokers, I just can't deny the ease of smoking with a wifi pellet smoker. I have a CampChef WoodWind and it's great. I can set anything on it and with the connectivity control it from anywhere..as well as know what's going on.

[tonyberinger]

So glad I watched this video. It 's making me feel really smart. In reality I probably just got lucky with my design choices. What you are heading towards is pretty close to where I'm currently at. Big Green Egg, Bull Gas Grill, & 30" EVO all built in to stone and granite on one island with Bull storage (cabinets not drawers though) On a perpendicular matching stone and granite island is a beverage center and more stainless storage shelves, the top is an 8' x 3' granite prep/serving space that is invaluable. I have a third matching island that serves as a bar with a second beverage center and storage inside. My trash can is not built in, but could (should) be because I converted the gas grill from propane to natural gas and could put a trash can in the former propane drawer. The standalone can is just bigger so I haven't. I was really jealous because a kegerator and an ice machine were 2 luxuries I felt I was missing. I'm really glad to hear you don't feel they are crucial. I also do not have a sink or running water other than 2 standard spigots for the hose. I go back and forth over whether that was a whiff or if I dodged a bullet and a winterizing nightmare.Thanks again and I look forward to visiting your store on our next trip to Colorado. We lived there for 17 years and miss it greatly. Cheers!!

[MySliceOfLife]

Nice discussion, I appreciate your experience. I noticed there's no sink with water for cleanup?

[action]

Just bought an indoor evo for a kitchen expansion. The round shape works best for the space but I totally get the preference for a square or rectangle. For outdoor I was looking at “LeGriddle” in the 41”. It’s an awesome griddle made in France definitely worth looking into. Love the videos, keep up the good work👍🏻

[babakbozorgnia]

How about some roof ideas? You can have the best kitchen but if it’s raining you’re stuck.

[ericvonha]

We have the same outdoor KEF speakers.. nothing like rocking out while cooking out!

[jm-lcjp]

GREAT BREAKDOWN! Thanks for much for taking the time to share your experience!

[mikepiercejr.]

Great videos. I am a Primo guy for last decade. My dad bought a Green Egg when they first came out & we fell in love with kamado style smokers. A couple years ago I traded my Primo XL for a Kamado Joe Big Joe 3. It used A LOT more charcoal than the Primo XL so I sold it & went to the Kamado Joe Classic 3. It’s OK, more efficient but won’t cook as much food as the Big Joe 3 or the Primo XL. I now have a Primo XL on order for my new outdoor kitchen along with the largest Hestan natural gas grill. I called a month ago when I was driving thru Denver to see if the owner was in at Embers. Unfortunately you were not in. Maybe next trip to Denver as I’d love to buy the new Primo for a couple of my guys who live in Denver. Thanks again for your videos. Great job! Primo all the way!!! Gotta love Primo MADE IN THE USA!!!

[centralparkfitness]

I live in Florida and have a pool home. If there is one thing that is frustrating me about designing my outdoor kitchen right now is refrigeration. I honestly feel like I just want to put a regular full size kitchen fridge outside, that's how much space you need when you have 20 people over! My garage fridge keeps things cold in my hot garage so I don't see why it wouldn't work and be a fraction of the cost of small outdoor fridges

[raulmartinez]

The gap between the wall says you haven't learn anything 😂

[prasartpongpet]

Really interesting. Do you have 4 seasons where you live? Summer, autumn, sprinter and spring? I had to adapt my outdoor kitchen to be able to grill in snow, rain, sun, wind. So I had to have a lot of shelter and roof to protect everything from the weather. But I have a kamado, smoker, gas and pizza Owen. I will get a pellet smoker for the next summer.

[allib]

I am trying to find the super wide stainless steel drawers for the big Joe accessories. We are doing the Lakeland stone wkth a 44 Blaze grill. We have a Big Red Joe and trying to do it right!! Luv the suggestions!! Thank U from NorCal

[MJYontheFly]

I have two pellet grills one of which is a Yoder and I thought I wouldn’t need or miss a gas grill so I gave my old Weber away, but you can’t beat it for quick week night cooks. Needless to say I had to buy another grill.

[melissa]

Really enjoyed this video - it’s great to see someone break it all down and be honest about what worked and what did not. P.S. along the Gulf Coast we all just thought yes! One ice maker for soft drinks & ice tea etc and one for cocktails - of course we need that😊

[ronhall]

Nice video and review …… I’m in my planning phase for a full patio and bbq cook zone ….. thank you!

[sholaheavndavies]

How do you keep all the appliances protected from the weather? What do you cover them with?

[vnice]

If you have leftover beer in that keg, you are hanging out with the wrong friends….😆

[RyanFlores]

I'm guessing that you're going to replace the Kamado Joe with a WSK, if you haven't already. 😝

That's what I bought and what I'm going to incorporate into my island. I haven't seen it done yet, but I'm going to try to make it work.