Interest in outdoor kitchens has multiplied over the past two years. A number of providers are working on making the makeshift kitchen in the countryside an individual design object - with success. The result not only looks good, but also allows us to cook outside more comfortably and enjoyably than ever before. An overview of providers, equipment options and costs of outdoor kitchens 2024.
Planning an outdoor kitchen? It's best to start planning now
We were quite astonished when a few days ago we received an inquiry asking us to recommend a specialist kitchen retailer for outdoor kitchens. Now? In January? At these temperatures? Brave when you think of warm summer days and outdoor barbecue sessions. But also: wise, who is already dealing with the topic. After all, the market for outdoor kitchens is now so large and diverse that personal research is no longer limited to individual stainless steel modules and grill stations. If you are also dealing with your household budget at the beginning of the new year and are planning purchases for the house and garden, you would do well to save a few euros for the outdoor kitchen now. The trend product is a good investment in your own garden design, but anything but cheap. So why wait? Our overview of the topic of outdoor kitchens informs you about suppliers and equipment options of the "kitchen in the countryside", which is sometimes in no way inferior to its counterpart in the apartment in terms of luxurious style. We address the frequently asked question of whether you can design an outdoor kitchen yourself and what costs you have to reckon with. A little tip first: Many kitchen dealers have now expanded their exhibitions to include outdoor kitchens and, in addition to professionally planned garden kitchens, also offer basic equipment (barbecue, wine cooler, plancha) - for passionate hobby grillers through to top-class kitchens under the stars. Think about the outdoor kitchen in January: there are a few good reasons for doing so.
Suppliers of outdoor kitchens: from Germany, Austria, Italy and Sweden
With the growing interest in outdoor kitchens, the circle of ambitious manufacturers is growing. Well-known kitchen manufacturers are not always behind it; especially on the German-speaking market, the industry is largely dominated by climbers.
Germany
The brands BURNOUT.kitchen and OCQ outdoor kitchens have now made a name for themselves here. Both are working on positioning themselves as premium producers in the garden kitchen segment. Unlike many European competitors, the two companies do not primarily rely on stainless steel as an all-weather outdoor material, but on natural stone and real wood.
Burnout Kitchen is becoming a luxury brand for outdoor kitchens. Always firmly integrated: a good grill.
This takes into account the trend towards natural materials, which is already taking place in indoor kitchens. Real wood, stone and sensitive metals such as copper or brass are used to give a high-quality kitchen a patina over time and thus the final “individual touch”. Nevertheless, these kitchens are of course protected against corrosion thanks to special coatings.
Anyone who deals with the range of outdoor kitchen suppliers will quickly realize that there are a variety of planning options. More about this under Equipment.
Italy
As is so often the case in the outdoor kitchen deck industry, Italy is an extremely successful frontrunner when it comes to trends (and style): Arclinea, Abimis, Alpes Inox and Steel Cucine impress with luxurious stainless steel monoliths in which the gas grill and wine cooler combine with the kitchen unit to form an architectural merge unity.
Elegance in stainless steel: Italian outdoor kitchens are often made of solid metal.
Jokodomus from South Tyrol is even considered one of the first suppliers of outdoor kitchens whose trademark is the modular composition of blocks made of stainless steel and wood. The individual steel elements are already suitable for small terraces and gardens where storage and work space is required parallel to the grill. The modules can also be put together individually to form a large garden kitchen.
Austria
When an Austrian puts an outdoor kitchen through its paces, then of course he is drawn to the mountains. Where else can the robustness of a material be better tested than at an altitude of 2,000 meters – with extreme minus temperatures, intense sunshine and frosty snow flurries?
Martin Steininger, owner of the STEININGER architectural office, designed the “ ROCK.AIR ” model, a modular outdoor kitchen, back in 2016. He uses a powder- coated steel shell in anthracite or optionally sand as the material for the fronts, which he says protects the individual grill, sink and cooling blocks “from all unpredictable weather”.
STEININGER's outdoor kitchens are tried and tested - even high up in the Alps.
Sweden
Black-powdered steel modules, gleaming stainless steel inserts, warm real wood in light oak - and all of this in a luxurious setting under palm trees: Röshults, the Swedish supplier of outdoor kitchens, advertises Scandinavian purism in your own garden with completely unusual images. Instead of a Swedish country house idyll, buyers can expect elegant Mediterranean flair with precise steel technology and high-performance grill stations. The Booster BBQ Grill 94, for example, is the first charcoal grill in the world that is heated in seconds by infrasound - below human hearing range - and ensures an even, hot glow. Luxury under palm trees - with Scandinavian outdoor furniture and highly efficient grill technology. Yes, that fits together!
Other providers
Can outdoor kitchens be configured even more individually? Yes - with the planning help of a kitchen studio and various surface manufacturers who sell resistant fine stoneware or natural stone slabs.
This includes, for example, the Spanish company Cosentino, which has created an extremely weather-resistant, resilient and easy-care material with its product Dekton, which is amazingly similar to natural stone and, in addition to numerous applications in the kitchen, can also be used outdoors.
Competitor SapienStone from Italy, which belongs to the large IrisCeramica Group, also offers extremely durable surfaces with its sintered ceramic plates that can be individually printed. The UV-resistant panels can be selected in a marble or terrazzo look, for example, and are characterized not only by their resilience but also by their stable elegance.
Talk to your kitchen studio about the stone manufacturer MCR (Marble Center Römhild). The stone specialists from southern Thuringia have been working together with selected kitchen dealers for many years and deliver beautiful, made-to-measure kitchen islands for the garden. Would you have thought that even fronts can be covered with stone? With MCR, individual inlays are possible, which are worked into the stone surface. MCR already has various stone modules ready for the outdoor kitchen area, into which the BBQ grill and work surface can be integrated.
Customers can request individual outdoor kitchens made of stone from their kitchen studio - the supplier is the marble center Römhild.
Equipment of outdoor kitchens: It's so luxurious in the garden
Hob, refrigerator, space for cutting - if things were so banal, outdoor kitchens might not be so popular. The attraction lies in the sometimes almost superfluous luxury that makes cooking and enjoying in the open air as comfortable and special as possible.
Cooking on an outdoor kitchen deck
A spectacular grill, as embodied in the “ Big Green Egg ” and its red counterpart, “ Kamado Joe ”, naturally contributes primarily to this. Both grill modules are based on the Japanese art of cooking in clay pots, which has been practiced in the land of the rising sun for over 3000 years. The structured outer skin made of ceramic has the best insulating properties and ensures that temperatures between 70° and 250°C can be set very sensitively.
The "Big Green Egg" is available in different sizes and can also be perfectly integrated into an outdoor kitchen island.
Other high-quality grill stations are produced by Napoleon Grills (e.g. rear burner for rotisserie skewers, integrated smoker insert), Monolith (incl. wood chips for smoking and 3 grilling levels), Beef Eater (simple design with plancha grill steel plate) or Broil King (rotisserie with Engine).
There are now more and more large BBQ grill stations in German and Austrian gardens. The new luxury: outdoor grilling.
With Otto Wilde Grillers, a fairly new start-up has arrived on the market for grills and outdoor kitchens. The young company only started at the end of 2019 with top heat grills, which should also enable the perfect grilling experience indoors. Since 2020, Otto Wilde has been working on a spacious outdoor grill that is to be sold with various kitchen modules. Ever since the Miele group got involved, the kitchen industry has been watching the company and its development with suspense. The special feature: recipes can be sent to the grill using an app; the temperatures are automatically adjusted by sensor (or conveniently by smartphone).
Drink
Many an outdoor kitchen is used as an extension of the home bar. Understandable, as a cool aperitif or a drink after work is best enjoyed in a mild evening atmosphere on your own terrace. In many outdoor kitchens, wine climate cabinets and wine coolers are prominently displayed, in which other drinks can also be chilled if required. This is made possible by the different temperature zones in one device in which the bottles are stored. The “ bordbar ” has developed into an exciting design idea in recent years: the company of the same name transforms discarded on-board trolleys from various airlines into multifunctional storage locations that serve as a mobile bar on wheels, both at every barbecue area and directly at the table. A "cool" design alternative for storing grilled food or drinks.
Essen
In its "Artusi Outdoor" kitchen, luxury kitchen manufacturer Arclinea offers a built -in warming drawer that keeps the freshly grilled food warm from the grate for hours - practical for every master of ceremonies who also wants to sit down at the table while the grill is being grilled.
In other outdoor kitchens, such as Steininger's Rock.Air, refrigerated drawers can be installed to keep food and drinks fresh.
Materials for outdoor kitchens: stainless steel and stone, but also aluminum and concrete
When it comes to outdoor kitchen glamor, stainless steel is usually way ahead – closely followed by natural stone and wood. But new materials are not long in coming: the furniture label Kettal, for example, has designed an "outdoor kitchen" made of lightweight aluminum and available in 30 colors.
The Italian company Elmar Cucine, on the other hand, has managed to cast the idiosyncratic material concrete in a slim line – ecologically sustainable, of course. However, these kitchens tend to have high prices.
Aluminum or concrete? Outdoor kitchens are opening up more and more diverse possibilities.
How much do outdoor kitchens cost?
As with any conventional kitchen planning, the final price of an outdoor kitchen depends on the individual equipment, size and condition. But let me say this much: outdoor kitchens are expensive. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that they have to be made of absolutely high-quality and weather-resistant material in order to fulfill their target over the years. On the other hand, they are currently sold in such small numbers that you are more likely to buy a collector's item than an "off-the-shelf product".
Individual outdoor modules such as Jokodomus start at around 2,000 to 5,000 euros. A Bordbar module can also be purchased for around 2,000 euros. However, most common outdoor kitchens cost around 8,000 to 10,000 euros including equipment, with the high-quality outdoor grills alone costing around 1,000 to 2,000 euros.
Even if it still seems too early in January to plan an outdoor kitchen: It's never too early to start dreaming - and start saving.
A great investment for the summer: it's best to start planning your outdoor kitchen now.