KBB - May/June 2015 - 28

TRENDS

According to Faulk, people can embrace outdoor living at any end of
the spectrum. An old tub ﬁlled with ice can serve as a party bucket, and
a brightly painted, wooden picnic table can make a design statement.
Along with glazed ceramic ﬁre pots for ambiance, bring out some pillows
when the weather is conducive. If the client wants to change out a plain,
concrete slab, stain it another color or cover it with wooden decking tiles
to cut costs.
"Homeowners with a smaller budget really have to be careful," advised
Shead. "They should reduce the scale of their project while ensuring they
purchase high-quality outdoor products. The last thing someone wants
when they go outdoors is to ﬁx a problem caused by low-quality products
that can't hold up to the elements."

It's All about the Result
The main product that should hold up and deliver is the grill. Most of
the cooking will be done here, so like a baker splurging on a great oven,
the outdoor cook's main investment will often be the grill.
"The biggest trends in outdoor kitchens are performance, performance
and performance," said Faulk."People want to cook amazing food like they
see on Top Chef or Iron Chef, and they want to do it outdoors as much as
they do indoors."
Adding that the demand for restaurant-quality performance is getting
even stronger this year, Faulk explained that people want equipment with
specialty capabilities, like Argentinian-style grilling or slow barbequing.
And according to Jim Ginocchi, president of Coyote Outdoor Living, infrared burner cooking is also coming into outdoor kitchens.
"These burners (sear or rear rotisserie burners) offer intense heat output
for searing meat or ﬁsh like the professionals," said Ginocchi. "High-output
burners for more diverse cooking give outdoor chefs the ﬂexibility to create
culinary dishes once reserved for indoor kitchens."
Along with a stronger demand for infrared burners, hybrid appliances
that mix gas and charcoal are growing in popularity. Charcoal grills traditionally offer more ﬂavor and a live-ﬁre experience. Gas grills boast convenience and consistent temperatures, so these unique blends come from
the best of both worlds. Artisan-style pizza ovens and massive barbecues
are additionally taking center stage in outdoor kitchens.
"I think that in the outdoor kitchen, artisan-style cooking is a strong a
trend as internet-enabled cooking is in the indoor kitchen," said Faulk."We
have seen some new explorations into Bluetooth-connected and app-enabled grills, but these are not yet changing how people cook outdoors."
Perhaps because people are more likely to cook leisurely outdoors
and have less need of time-saving apps, outdoor technology focuses instead on performance and quality cooking. Many grills allow consumers
to smoke, roast and slow cook items such as chicken or pork. Consumers
can also use the grill to make pancakes, eggs, cookies, pies and more
with the use of a griddle attachment, making cooking any dish conducive
for the outdoors.
"Cooking in an outdoor kitchen creates a sense of occasion around
every meal in a way that is difﬁcult to match indoors," said Faulk. "Overall,
outdoor living spaces quite simply and directly add to your quality of life." n

10.

9. NanaWall Systems has unveiled the thinnest proﬁle and most energy-efﬁcient opening glass wall on the market - the SL80181 Folding
Series. Framed in aluminum, the system with a thermal break allows
for expansive glass walls and broad vistas when opened. Circle No.
208 or visit kbbonline.com/freeinfo
10. From Laboratorio Mattoni, the Fantesca system for cooking and
storage works outdoors or indoors with a sliding and lifting mechanism and an electrically operated rotating TV. Circle No. 209 or visit
kbbonline.com/freeinfo
11. With a thin, ¾ -in. proﬁle, Lumière Eon LED luminaires from Eaton for
the outdoors or indoors offer three beam patterns and are designed
to last 50,000 hours. Circle No. 210 or visit kbbonline.com/freeinfo
12. The Coyote CCX4 36-in. Grill from Coyote Outdoor Living offers
80,000 BTUs of power, combined with stainless Heat Control Grids
for a total of 875 square inches of cooking space. The grill starts at
$1,599 MSRP Circle No. 211 or
.
visit kbbonline.com/freeinfo

11.

- By Erinn Waldo

+
K BB

May/June 2015 / www.kbbonline.com / The Ofﬁcial Sponsor of KBIS www.kbis.com

12.

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KBB - May/June 2015

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