Parade of Homes featuring the best of new homes in Manitoba, Canada
Issue link: http://publications.winnipegfreepress.com/i/1526195
FALL 2024 PARADE of HOMES 119 While the main kitchen area's quartz countertops glisten under the island lights, the spice kitchen can get caked in cooking grease and not a single guest will notice. ssentially a room within a room, the spice kitchen is built for labour. It's a secondary kitchen space off the main kitchen — which, most importantly, has a door that closes. Joan Wong is a senior designer with local cabinetry company Kitchen Craft who mainly works with new builds. She says spice kitchens typically range from about one third to half the size of a home's main kitchen space and their main purpose is to keep all of the cooking smells contained so they don't drift around the house. "It's primarily where the cooking is done," she says. "Clients will have another larger kitchen, usually spotless and not cluttered with small appliances. They want that to be their show kitchen. The spice kitchen is the work horse." While the main kitchen area's quartz countertops glisten under the island lights, the spice kitchen can get caked in cooking grease and not a single guest will notice. Many of the local clients Wong says she has designed spice kitchens for have recipes that call for roasting of fragrant herbs or have large multi-generational families that require big batch meals that simmer for long periods of time. Gourmet cooks and homeowners with a penchant for entertaining also benefit greatly from this separate space. A well-ventilated spice kitchen prevents odours from making their way around the home. Meanwhile, there's something to be said about closing the door on a messy kitchen space so you can enjoy a meal without becoming preoccupied by the grimy pots and pans in the background. "With an open concept home, you have your eating area and your living room furniture in the same space, so if you're cooking, all of those odours will drift over," Wong says. "If you're deep frying or cooking pungent foods, it's going to permeate into the fabric of your furniture, and then the oils will drift into the air and cling to the drywall." A significant budget and spare square footage are musts for those building a spice kitchen. The home must also meet all of the additional plumbing, electrical and HVAC requirements it calls for. E PHOTO BY DARCY FINELY