Kitchen Tour: Dale & Adam's Slick Exterior

Dale and Adam have lived in an early 80's conversion for over six years and during that time they tolerated their hyper 80's kitchen. Finally, they couldn't take it anymore.

Instead of ripping out perfectly great infrastructure, Dale tried to keep as much of the original interior shelving as possible, replacing only the doors of the cabinets and their respective hardware. Major changes included the new viking stove, gorgeous carrera marble countertops, and a tiled carrera backsplash.

The high-end kitchen, replete with enough stemware for an extensive cocktail party, is tempered by the drying rack. Dale incorporated a rack to accommodate multiple baby bottles as well as wine glasses as he knew both forms of drinking vessels were inevitable.

Dale is an architect so he couldn't help including some great new features in his minimally renovated kitchen. Above every counter is a running grounded electrical strip, providing easy access and convenience for any and all appliances. In addition, Dale built in recessed lighting that aids in preparation but also provides an appealing, warm glow for the white counters.

It's a great kitchen made even better by reusing existing resources and creating a shrine to food preparation.

Enter Slideshow

Adam's Answers to the Kitchn Questionnaire

What's your cooking style?
Do not really have one. I started by picking recipes from The Joy of Cooking and following them as closely as possible. Nowadays, I follow principles that I have learned from recipes while trying to make them my own.

What inspires your kitchen?
I like lots of counter space for cutting and preparing. Spices should be neatly organized near the range. Really into using fresh herbs that Dale grows at our Fire Island house.

What is your favorite kitchen tool or element?
I love my Wusthof knives and my All Clad pans.

Best cooking advice or tip you ever received:
Don't overcook it.

Biggest challenge in your kitchen:
Space especially if Dale and I working together.

Biggest indulgence:
Wusthof knives and All Clad pans.

Dream tool or splurge:
I have always wanted a deep fryer. Do not know what exactly I would make with it, but the concept is so cool, even if unhealthy.

What are you cooking this week?
Doing a lot of grilling out in Fire Island. Love to do fish medleys.

What cookbook has inspired you the most?
The Joy of Cooking. It is my first and my best.

What's the most memorable meal you've ever cooked in this kitchen?
Thanksgiving 2008. It was my first thanksgiving for the whole family. Got home late Wednesday afternoon from work and virtually stayed up all night cooking and preparing. Everything came out great, even the turkey. My family now designates my house as our usual thanksgiving gathering place.

Resources:

• Cabinets - Refaced in walnut by Bulldog Interiors (general contractor for full renovation)
• Stone backsplash - Calacatta tiles by Walker Zanger
• Countertops - Calacatta Marble slab w/ built-up edge detail by International Stone
• Floor Tile - Porcelain Tiles by Walker Zanger
• Appliances - Repaneled vintage Sub-Zero Refrigerator, Viking Range and Microwave, Bosch dishwasher, KWC Faucet and Blanco stainless sink

Enter Slideshow

For the rest of Dale and Adam's home, check out the full house tour on Apartmenttherapy.com.

• Kitchen Tour Archive: Check out past kitchen tours here.

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(Images: Jill Slater)

Comments (11)

GREAT sink!

I'd love to know the size of this kitchen. It looks like they packed a lot into a small space with good planning!

White canisters and oil/vinegar holder - where do I get them? (This might be in the post, but right now under Resources it just shows bullets with no text.)

A viking stove...but doesnt seem like there is a proper vent hood....what good is that?

also not sure if i like the electric plugs hanging from the underside of the cabinets.

I'm pretty impressed with the book-matched veneer on drawer/cabinet. Most people or GCs wouldn't bother with this detail, but it's a great refinement.

Oh - just read Dale is an architect. That explains the book-matching! I'm an architect too, so I notice this stuff.

Dale here.

Thanks for the comments.

The kitchen is around 8'x9', good for NYC but tight by most US standards. We replaced cabinets where needed to make the kitchen more functional for us, which has really worked out well.

White canisters came from Crate and Barrel, while the bowl and oil and vinegar holder were one of our favorite wedding gifts from Alessi in Soho. www.alessi.com

Viking makes a microwave with an excellent built-in hood which can be used with some of their products. This allowed us to vent this range to the outside thru an existing duct (it also allows for recirculating, but I agree that venting to the exterior is better if possible).

Thanks all, I'd take credit for the book-matched veneer, but I have to say our GC included it right off w/o me needing to spell it out.

gorgeous!

where is the bottle brush in the last picture from?

"The high-end kitchen....is tempered by the drying rack."

What exactly does that mean?

The best stepping stool solution I've ever seen! Is this custom made? I want to do something like this . Where can I find a folding stepping stool exactly in that size?

Dale,

LOVE your kitchen, so mod and warm at the same time.

I'm getting ready to pick fixtures for my contemporary condo and wonder if you could tell me if you love your KWC Faucet.

Does this model have both a stream and a spray? If it has the spray function, can you "lock" the spray to that it stays on a spray until you shut the water off?

Thanks for any info -- I can't find anything about this online.