“Open Kitchens” are the product of a residential design evolution which began in the 1960’s and 1970’s with the conversion of artist’s lofts into live/work spaces and eventually into luxury apartments. In of themselves, open kitchens weren’t a design decision at all, but rather the most cost efficient and practical solution to introduce cooking into spaces originally designed for light manufacturing and heavy floor load storage.
Over the last 5 years, the open kitchen concept, has been renovated out of many existing apartments and is being designed out of many new developments. The motivation for the design correction is staggeringly simple. Food has once again become the foundation of the entertaining experience and a key virtue in overall wellness. The kitchen, once perfunctory and a design after thought, has again become the critical element in not only apartment design, but also lifestyle design. Buyers of real estate want to be in the kitchen and they want their friends and family to be there as well. We are seeing a huge upswing in dining options within the kitchen, as does the The New York Times.
In case you missed it, they took a look at how the closed kitchen is making a comeback. “Kitchen size aside, the pendulum has started to swing back toward enclosed kitchens. Several new residential buildings in Manhattan have offered separated kitchens – a nod to prewar apartment design, but also to the growing demand from potential buyers looking for separate cooking and entertaining spaces.” CORE’s 173-175 Riverside Drive, 8/9B is a prime example of this trend, listed by agents Tali Berzak and Isaac Metcalf.
For the full article click here: The Closed Kitchen Makes a Comeback