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As I write this, my “Beach House” Pinterest board has exactly 1,323 images saved in 44 different sections. There’s a whole folder just for “kitchen items.” Another one called “vibrations???” That’s exactly what it looks like. Six years of planning and permitting our beach house renovation gives you a LOT of time to make decisions and then re-make them as you discover new ideas and your taste inevitably evolves.
But despite all that obsessive research, there was one area where my board came up pretty empty: the outdoor kitchen.
I knew what I saw when I imagined it: an organic, earthy space where you would flow between the prep area, grill, and pizza oven. Where the materials told a story: teak weathered by salt air, terracotta tiles that looked like they had been there for decades, stucco walls that connected everything to the landscape. Where the inspiration was equal parts Mallorcan cuisine and a long weekend in oaxaca.
What kept coming up in my research? Quite the opposite of that. So many outdoor kitchens that looked like a carbon copy of the last: stainless steel appliances, polished concrete, and too-perfect brick. Many of them were pretty, but very much their lives (in a way that made you feel like the grill had never been on).
So…Adam and I did what we always do when designing a space. We turned to our camera roll to start drawing inspiration from the photographs we had taken on our travels.
Our visual references
We reviewed years of iPhone travel photos. There were meals at long wooden tables on dusty patios, kitchens tiled with patterns we’d photographed through restaurant windows, and pizza ovens that glowed orange at dusk. We draw designs on napkins. We put together a reference folder that was half travel diary, half mood board, and gave it to our landscape architect, Michael Fiorewho received it immediately.
What is taking shape is a space that is unlike anything you have ever seen before (which is always the goal).
So what are we really building?
The outdoor kitchen will have three main structures working together: a full countertop workspace that will house our grill, a separate pizza oven station, and a central bar-height teak table that ties the entire space together. That table is doing a lot of work on this design. It’s the gathering place, the extra prep surface, the make-your-own-pizza station during the holidays, and honestly, probably where everyone will end up sitting with a glass of wine while Adam grills.
One of my favorite details that you can see in the renders: the Clay Imports Terracotta Brick underfoot, placed in a herringbone pattern that gives the entire space that warm, sun-kissed feel. There’s nothing like terracotta to make a space feel lived in and loved from day one.
The kitchen will also connect directly to the interior kitchen through a huge window with sliding glass, which will allow for an outdoor countertop that will act as a passage. I keep imagining serving trays passing by the window, or just sitting on a stool with a drink while the pizza comes out of the oven. The line between inside and outside will be beautifully and intentionally blurred.
The grill we chose (and why)
We are installing a Flammkraft Zwilling Grilland I’ll just come out and say that it is hands down the prettiest grill I have ever seen. German engineered infrared technology, individual cooking and heating zones, which is really key when you’re trying to grill an entire meal at once. (Basically what we do every weekend). built-in gas grill It will be completely integrated into the countertop design to make it look truly custom. Which, if you’ve been following, you’ll know is exactly the vibe we’re going for.
The tile that started it all
When we were in Mexico a couple of years ago, I took a photo of the kitchen of this small restaurant that had terra cotta tiles along the countertop and backsplash. It was one of those moments where I stood there absorbing every detail so I wouldn’t forget it. I’ve referenced that photo more times than I can count while planning this space.
So for the backsplash behind the grill, we’re working with our friends at Clay Imports to use their Antique matte terracotta tiles 2.5×8. They have a wonderful warmth and light texture that can be seen even in renderings – they catch light differently throughout the day, making the entire wall look hand-crafted in the best way possible. It’s the element that I think will give the kitchen its true signature look.
The pizza oven situation
Well, THIS is the part I’ve been dreaming about since we started talking about this house. we order a DIY kit from Forno Piombo to build a large, custom pizza oven, big enough to cook 3 or 4 pizzas simultaneously. (Read: real pizza parties are happening.) We’ll install it on the countertop and build a dome with a soft stucco cover to give it that rustic Italian farmhouse look. You can already see it in the renderings: that shiny arch, sitting there like it belongs in the Italian countryside.
The detail that will do everything
In the center of the space we are planting a large ornamental olive tree. This is what I will look at every morning from the kitchen window. Just a perfect old, gnarled olive tree in the middle of a Mediterranean garden, with lavender floating around the edges and terracotta pots of herbs and little citrus trees scattered everywhere, so I can literally grab a handful of rosemary or squeeze a lemon straight from the tree while I cook.
Looking at these renderings—the table set under that canopy of branches, the bowl of lemons outside, the lavender in full bloom in the foreground—already feels like the space I’ve been trying to find on Pinterest for six years. Turns out it didn’t exist yet, so we’re creating it.
Construction is progressing quickly and we are planning to complete it in June. Which means we have a great outdoor kitchen ahead of us this summer! Sooner.
