LIVE BETTER outdoor cooking

AN ALFRESCO KITCHEN WILL MEAN YOUR GARDEN IS THE PLACE TO BE COME SUMMER DESIGN IT RIGHT AND YOU'LL GET HOLIDAY VIBES ALL YEAR

- Hugh Metcalf

Outdoor kitchens are the latest thing in garden design, but while you might think installing one is the answer to make cooking outdoors easier and more accessible, that all really depends on how well you locate and lay out your space. The best outdoor kitchens encourage you to use them because they’re as simple and hassle-free as your indoor kitchen, with the added benefit of being able to enjoy your garden.

To begin with, it’s worth considering the proximity of your outdoor kitchen to your house. An outdoor kitchen at the far end of a large garden might feel like a nice idea – a way to create your own dining getaway separate from the house – but you might find it’s less than practical. ‘I like to keep the outdoor kitchen close to the house because that way you can easily go in and out to get things,’ explains designer Linda Hayslett of LH.Designs. ‘Indoor kitchens tend to have more accessories. It can get exhausting going back and forth if the barbecue is far away.’

If you do want to have your outdoor kitchen further away, you may want to make some additions to the space to help with this limitation. ‘An outdoor kitchen that’s a distance from the main house may need to contain more utilities like a sink and a fridge so that the area can be self-contained,’ says Magnus Nilsson, lead designer at Blakes London. ‘This may be overcomplicating the requirement, especially if there’s a trade-off for space. An outdoor kitchen close to the main house can benefit from fewer utilities, compensated by a little more organisation prior to the food going onto the heat. It really comes down to how often the area will be used and budget.’