Hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill.
So 1950s.
Steaks on the barbecue.
So 1960s.
Fish and shrimp on the grill.
So 1980s.
Vegetables and fruit on the grill.
So 1990s.
So what's hot in outdoor cooking now? (Yes, pun intended.)
How about pancakes? Yep. Pancakes, made possible by flattop griddles, just like in Waffle House and other diners, for eggs, veggies, Japanese-style cooking known as teppanyaki and, yes, pancakes.
There also are infrared burners that crank up to 700 degrees for searing meat just like the fancy restaurants. LED lights surround the grill's knobs because well because they're cool-looking. Wine? Not so much on the grill as next to the grill in a refrigerated cooler. But you can grill the fruits that go into wine, if you'd like.
Overlooked
One piece of equipment that often is necessary but sometimes left off an outdoor kitchen is a vent hood for the grill, says Clay Dennis, owner of Southern Hearth and Patio.“Every manufacturer requires it, but people don’t want to spend the money and contractors don’t want to read the manual,” he says.They’re only needed if your grill is under a roof of some type, he says, but they’re critical if you don’t want to chance a fire, especially with grills these days capable of pumping out 800 to 1,000 degrees.“Do you know the temperature of your roof, the temperature at which it will catch fire?” he asks. Most people don’t, he says.Best-case scenario, the underside of your roof will turn black from smoke and grease.“You ever grilled with glasses on? Your glasses get greasy within seconds,” Dennis says, and the same thing happens with the ceiling if you’re cooking under it.Vent hoods are going to run between $3,000 to $5,000 properly installed, he says, but how much is your house worth if it burns?
Outdoor living spaces have been trendy for years with people wanting the same experience on their deck or patio as they have in their living room. Comfortable furniture, music, TVs and, of course, something to eat.
Food has taken a higher outdoor profile in the last several years, with some folks not only wanting to grill, but to bake and sear and simmer and serve. But reaching those dreams can mean reaching into your wallet or bank account.
No longer is it enough to have a swank deck or a pool or even a firepit, now many people are going the extra mile - and money - to have an outdoor kitchen that includes a refrigerator, a sink with running water, a wine cooler, an icemaker, plenty of storage, maybe a pizza oven or even a dishwasher. And don't forget granite countertops, which some don't take into consideration when it comes to making a budget.
Oh yeah, and a grill. But not a $200 one that you put together yourself. We're talking one with a rotisserie, multiple burners (including infrared), a griddle and built like a stainless-steel tank to retain heat. A grill that's probably going to start at about $2,000 and can crank up to $10,000.
"It's a second functional kitchen that has all the bells and whistles of their indoor kitchen," says Jim Ginocchi, president and founder of Coyote Outdoor Cooking, which makes higher-end grills and outdoor-kitchen equipment.
Weber's Grill Watch Survey for 2015, an annual look at outdoor home cooking, found that there was an 8 percent rise in spending on outdoor appliances between 2014 and 2015. And, according to the DIY Network, the outdoor "leisure lifestyle" industry now nets $6.2 billion annually - up 5.4 percent compared to 2002.
Clay Dennis, owner of Southern Hearth and Patio in Chattanooga, says he's seen the desire for outdoor kitchens for many of the 16 years he's been in business. Just like remodeling a kitchen, you can spend as much as you want, he says, but to get a solid outdoor kitchen that's not going to rust away in a couple of years, that looks spiffy and has what everything you want will probably run from $12,000 to $20,000. And that's just a general estimate.
"Just like a kitchen, the bigger the kitchen, the more money," he says.
Dennis acknowledges that high-end outdoor kitchens only are being built by 3 to 5 percent of the homeowners in the Chattanooga region. In his business, they're going to older folks who've been working a while and saved up money or people have some equity in their home that they can borrow against. There also are folks who are buying a new home to step up in size and luxury, and some whose "mom and dad left them some money."
"The average person simply does not have $4,000 for a grill," he says. "If they did have the money, it's going to school or another car or going to pay bills." Yet his business is still steady and even rising, he says, "not in volume but in dollars."
Ginocchi says he sees two reasons for the growing popularity of outdoor kitchens. First, cooking outdoors - and doing it well - is simpler these days.
"The Internet has recipes and how-to videos and TV channels like HGTV and the Food Network make it so much easier," he says. "People watch them and think, 'Hey, I can do that. It's not as hard as I thought.' People are more educated.
"And people are cooking at home more," he says, "and they're doing it with more diversity in their menus, in their entertaining and in their offerings to their guests."
He sees the most growth in outdoor kitchens in the mid- and upper Atlantic states, and they're going into both new homes and homes that the owners are expanding by refinancing and rolling the cost of the kitchen into their new mortgage.
"They've pretty much maximized their indoor space, so they expand outwards," Ginocchi says.
But, like so many other home decor areas, outdoor kitchen trends come and go. For instance, woodburning pizza ovens were big for a while, but a good one that's properly installed is going to run $8,000 to $10,000 and people are finding better uses for their outdoor-kitchen cash, Dennis says.
"We don't do many of them anymore," he says.
These days, folks want lights in the grill, refrigerators, infrared burners for quick high heat and powerful side burners, he says.
Ginocchi says nice cabinets - be they wood or stainless-steel - are rising in status.
"We're seeing less on grill pieces and more on storage pieces; people want more comfort storage-wise," he says. "Before it was just access doors and a cabinet; now it's dry pantries, pullout ice chests, full garbage cans and combinations of storage and drawer units."
Both Dennis and Ginocchi say one newer element of outdoor kitchens - and outdoor living, in general - are infrared heating elements, which help folks use the space even when the weather turns cold. The heaters can be tastefully and unobtrusively added to the decor - and, boy, do they keep things cozy warm, Dennis says.
"I've had someone sleep outdoors at my place when it was 30 degrees outside. True story," Dennis says. "We just threw a blanket over him."
Contact Shawn Ryan at sryan@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6327.