Wifey and I are getting ready to gut out our current kitchen and re-do it from the wall studs out. (We previously had a nice kitchen I built myself but that's in a previous house) What one really cool feature of a kitchen would you recommend (that we might not think to put in otherwise)? Oh, she already vetoed the beer tap so don't start.
One of my favorites from watching MTV Cribs, some dude had a vacuum system built in that you just swept to, and it sucked it all in. Another one, heated tiles. Another: a built in deep fryer
I saw this in a high-end kitchen store and thought it was a brilliant idea http://www.mixerpro.com/machines/built_in/built_in.htm
A good friend of mine was in this business and while definitely high on the "cool" scale recommended against doing a "central vacuum" system as, basically, they often turn into a major PITA after a few years. My (more correctly, her) 02c. "Stuff" we enjoyed: - A *big* (6 ring) range - The central rings could be replaced with a griddle, but that was very seldom used - 6 rings saw much more use. - I haven't checked where you are, but here in CA we're really anal about recycling - We had a pull out with 3 seperate "bins" for different kinds of "outgoing" - Worked great until they allowed us mix our recyclables which rendered it a little redundant..... - A "Sub-Zero" refregerator - "Simply the best". - Two sinks - We only put a garbage disposal in the main sink - Mistake. Cheers, Ian
My G/F has an old version of one of those and all it really does is eat up surface space - Which always seems to be at a premium..... Again, my 02c. Now, one of these I could go for: http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=54616-39047-TKN68E75UC&lpage=none I haven't checked the above model, but you want it "plumbed in" to the water supply. Cheers, Ian
I installed a Model 60 into a friend's kitchen (built-in to the wall) about 15 years ago. a fabulous feature that I'm still hearing praise about. There's no substitute for the wood-fired flavor. http://www.earthstoneovens.com/index.shtml
built-in mixer has a cover plate that is flush with the counter when not in use. so it doesn't eat up surface space unless in use. I like the coffee maker idea.
Oops, sorry I missed that - I suspect hers also did at one point, but the cover's long gone - All it does now is collect crap......
Virtually anything you can do in an oven or on a grill. I've had steaks and ribs there several times.
One thing I'm getting for sure is a double dish-washer. They are the same size as a regular dishwasher, but it's two different compartments...one on top of the other. Never have to empty your dishwasher this way. Use out of the clean side, and put back in the dirty side. Then reverse... wash the dirty side and use those... and put those dirty ones back in the other side to wash again.
Check out induction ranges - can boil water in 1-2min, but are cool to the touch. Some people hate em and some people will never use anything else. I'd second the wood burning oven, too! Edit - an easy/realistic add that is very useful is a dedicated pot-filler faucet over the range - makes it easier to fill pots for pasta etc, especially if the large pot doesnt fit under sink faucet/too heavy for the wife/etc....
+1 - Fischer & Paykel (sp?) do 'em - We actually had two separate single versions - One on each side of the sink - *Great* way to go.
They also make very small hot water heaters (holds about a gallon of water) that connects under the faucet. No more waiting for hot water, instant hot water "on tap" until the regular hot water can make it thru the pipes to your faucet. Pretty cool.
The old house I'm refurbishing at present has one of these 50-year-old wall-mounted refrigerators in the kitchen. There's an idea that didn't catch on too well! I don't know how I'm going to get it out of there, it must be incredibly heavy! For your kitchen, I like the ideas of the instant hot water and the radiant floor heating. Image Unavailable, Please Login
A small computer. Possibly something with a flip-down screen under one of the counter tops. You can store recipes and look up new ones quite easily without having to print everything out. It goes without saying that you can spend more time on Fchat as well...
That was probably one of my moms favorite features in her new house. Uro, if your wife is anything like my mom she probably wants lots of storage space.
