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Kitchen
& Bath - Design News: Gourmet Kitchen Features Amenities Fit
for a Chef
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Many
consumers these days are interested in having a pro-style
kitchen. But, for Giuliano Hazan, the need for a professional
environment was doubly important-because he's an actual pro.
The gourmet chef offers cooking seminars in both Italy and
his home in Sarasota, Florida (for more information, see http://www.giulianohazan.com/school).
Even
though Hazan and his wife/business partner Lael were buying
a brand new home (built on spec), they realized that the kitchen
fell far short of meeting the couple's extensive needs. "The
design of the kitchen [had to accommodate] the possibility
of doing classes here," explains Hazan. Additionally,
the chef spends a lot of time testing recipes. "The kitchen
is my work space, too," he notes.
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Though
the existing kitchen was newly built, it left a lot to be desired.
"The layout didn't make sense," reports Hazan. "There
was a sort of hallway in the kitchen that didn't have any use. The
store was facing the wall in the corner. It was an enclosed kitchen."
"We
have a beautiful view, and it wasn't taken advantage of," adds
his wife.
The
solution? "We started from scratch," recalls Hazan. "We
gutted it- took down walls and started all over." He adds that
the couple did rescue the existing brand new kitchen cabinets, re-installing
them in the laundry room and leaving a few for the garage.
"We
tore everything out," confirms designer Ronald G. Cook, CKD,
ASID, owner and president of Cook's Design Studio, in Sarasota,
FL, who brought the Hazans' concept for their kitchen to fruition.
"It really wasn't a difficult installation once we tore out
all those walls. It fit like a glove."
"The
idea was to have [the kitchen] open to the rest of the house,"
Hazan explains, "so that when we have friends over and entertain,
whoever's in the kitchen doesn't feel closed off."
"It's
a social kitchen," adds Lael Hazan. "It's the room we
spend the most time in."
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DRAMATIC
DESIGN
While
the square footage remained similar to the previous kitchen,
the layout changed dramatically. "One of the design features
of our home is the use of curves," says Hazan.
Central
to this concept is the room's distinctive boomerang-shaped
counter, which includes the cooktop. "It created the
ability to have this large counter surround you," notes
Hazan. "It's all easily accessible."
"We
did a [DACOR] oven to the far right of the island, so he can
readily get to it when he's entertaining. He likes to do the
show-biz stuff," Cook jokes. "He wanted to keep
it so he can move around and be very comfortable."
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A
boomerang-shaped counter features a multi-BTU
cooktop and extensive preparation space.
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"We
didn't want the oven underneath the stove," adds Hazan. Instead,
the space beneath the cooktop was used for a cabinet for pots and
pans. The Wolf cooktop has six gas burners ("We love gas!"
declares Lael Hazan) and a large range of BTU's. "It gives
you really good control," says Hazan. Additionally, the cooktop's
new location provides a stunning view of a nearby river.
The
Sub-Zero refrigerator has a freezer at the bottom "so that
you don't have to bend down when you go into the refrigerator part.
It's very convenient," offers Hazan. "We didn't get a
huge refrigerator, either," he notes. "We like to go shopping
fairly often."
For
the most part, the appliances have panel fronts. The AKSO dishwasher
even has inside controls so that its front panel completely blends
into the bank of cabinets.
The
Hazans selected bird's-eye maple for their Quality Cabinets. "It's
a honey-colored maple with black accenting," notes Hazan. "Since
the kitchen is open, with the upper cabinets against the wall, we
alternated between glass and bird's eye maple panels for a little
bit more of a sense of light."
The
maple has a matte finish with black handles. "I call it Shaker
classic," adds Cook. "The colors we picked are yellow
tones with bird's eye at the center of the panel, which illuminates
the door."
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ADDED
CONVENIENCE
Innovative
customization was key throughout the design of the cabinetry.
"We put drawers for lids in the toe kicks," elaborates
Cook. "Lids are a problem in the kitchen- they take up
so much space, and they're clumsy. So, we made all of these
lid drawers to go under the toes."
Other
custom touches include specialty drawers for cutting boards
and a special metal pullout for vegetables. "We did a
perforated steel drawer for onions and potatoes," Hazan
adds. A special knife drawer has insets for the knives, Lael
Hazan notes. A built-in lazy susan contributes to the kitchen's
efficient storage arrangement.
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Rather
than having an oven underneath the cooktop, a cabinet that
houses pots and pans was incorporated into the design.
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The
kitchen also features Franke sinks and Grohe faucetry, both in stainless
steel. "We actually have two sinks, because we created an island
in the center with a smaller prep sink and counter space around
it," notes Hazan. "When you're standing at the stove,
it's right behind you, so you can use it to fill up pots of water
and drain pasta without having to go all the way to the [other]
sink."
The
countertop is Uba Tuba granite, black with gold flecks that have
a sparkling effect. The ¾" thickness instead of ½"
allows the countertop to hold the clamp for their hand-crank pasta
machine, "which is very important," says Lael Hazan.
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This
kitchen incorporates many extras into the design, including
a small sink directly behind the cooktop for easy access,
and an easy-to-clean glass enclosed range hood that enhances
the room's aesthetics.
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A
custom vent hood combines a Vent-A-Hood motor with a glass
casing. "Since the stove is out front, if you put a normal
stainless steel hood over it, it would block and look very
big and overwhelming. A glass hood gives a much lighter effect,"
explains Hazan. Glass is also very easy to clean, adds Lael
Hazan.
The
kitchen's unique flooring is natural cork to coordinate with
the living room section of the great room, which features
bamboo. The cork's soft surface makes for a very comfortable,
springy floor to stand on for hours on end, Hazan notes. "Also,
if things fall, it makes it harder for them to break."
The cork is sealed with polyurethane, and has to be resealed
once a year.
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Though the original dimensions of the kitchen remained the
same, the redesigned room is more functional for elaborate
cooking, and the overall design coordinates with the curved
theme featured throughout the home.
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Lightning
also contributes to the kitchen's airiness and open feel.
"We have a huge, three-panel slider in the living room
that opens up to the deck where the pool is," Hazan elaborates.
"Therefore, you have a very open, wide view of the outside
overlooking the river."
The
kitchen area beside it is an eating nook that has windows
on all three sides, as well as a door that goes out to the
deck. There's an outdoor table for eating outside in good
weather.
For
inside lighting, strategically placed halogen spots are joined
by "star lights" over the counter-thirty 15-watt
halogens that give out very even light with no shadows. "They
almost twinkle," notes Lael Hazan.
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Over
the boomerang counter in front, a track of flood lights dovetails
a curved lowered ceiling that mirrors the boomerang.
A pantry
features a door for storing spices and other smaller items, as well
as other custom storage features. Overall, a color scheme of black,
natural wood and stainless steel contributes to the peaceful, open,
luxurious vibe of the room.
PROJECT
HIGHLIGHTS
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Though the home was new, the kitchen did not meet the extensive
needs of the owner- a gourmet chef who offers cooking seminars-
so it was reconfigured to make it better suited for cooking and
entertaining.
-
The couple gutted the original room, which had too many walls,
enclosing the kitchen and cutting off the outside views.
- In
keeping with the use of curves throughout the home, a distinctive
boomerang-shaped counter, which includes the cooktop was added.
-
Instead of having the oven underneath the stove, a cabinet for
pots and pans was installed. The refrigerator also has a freezer
at the bottom to make the kitchen more convenient.
- Bird's-eye
maple cabinets with black accenting add a sense of light and openness
to the room.
- Customized
elements throughout the kitchen include: drawers for pot lids,
which were designed in the toe kicks, specialty drawers for cutting
boards, metal pull-out and perforated drawers for vegetables,
a special knife drawer with insets and a lazy susan.
- The
¾"- thick countertop holds the clamp for the clients'
hand-crank pasta machine.
- A
custom vent hood combines a Vent-A-Hood motor with glass casing
for aesthetic purposes as well as ease of cleaning.
- Kitchen
flooring in natural cork blends with the home's décor,
and offers the added benefit of being comfortable for long periods
of standing.
- Kitchen
products include: DACOR oven; Wolf gas cooktop with six burners
and a large range of BTU's; Sub-Zero refrigerator with freezer
bottom; ASKO dishwasher; Quality cabinetry in bird's-eye maple
with black accenting; Franke stainless steel sinks; Grohe stainless
steel faucetry; Uba Tuba granite countertop in black with gold
flecks.
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