An Essential Ingredient: Gourmet Kitchens

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IF IT'S FOOTBALL season and the Steelers are playing, chances are decent that Logan Circle resident Noah Raizman is whipping up tailgating treats for 20 or 30 friends. A surgical resident by day but home chef and amateur mixologist by hobby, Raizman's football parties — complete with "big, hearty dishes people can tuck into," from vats of stew to roasted pork shoulders — are a feat made possible thanks to a kitchen that makes his foodie friends drool.

"The kitchen is integrated into the social space, so I can cook and work in the kitchen, but watch the game and talk to people at the same time," says Raizman, 32.

When Raizman bought his renovated two-bedroom apartment in the Hawarden Cooperative in 2006, its kitchen had just been upgraded with built-in appliances and what many might call the holy grail of kitchen perks — a six-burner gas stove atop a 5-foot-long island, capped with an exhaust hood.

"I took one look at the kitchen as I opened the door and just fell in love," he says. The island multitasks as bar, buffet and centerpiece where clusters of partygoers often gravitate.

Indeed, the cliche that great parties inevitably end up in the kitchen has never been truer. "In the past, a kitchen was where you brought a caterer in, or had some type of help. Now, the preparing of the meal is part of the entertainment of the evening," says Andrew Riguzzi, a real estate agent for DCRealEstate.com. "Instead of being embarrassed about your kitchen, now your friends and family gather around while you prepare the meal, and it's interactive."

As lifestyles have become more casual, designers have responded with an evolution from tucked-away kitchens to open floor plans.

The mod kitchens at Harvard Lofts in Columbia Heights, a new 12-unit condo building where prices range from $315,000 to $875,000, feature stainless-steel Bosch appliances, sleek lacquer-front Porcelanosa cabinets and integrated gas ranges. Plus, the kitchens were set up to maximize storage space (opting for more drawers than cabinets for easier access) and flow seamlessly into the living spaces.

"People don't want to feel like they're being closed off from their family or guests by being in narrow, walled-in galley kitchens — especially in condos where living spaces may be smaller," says Robert Crawford, a real estate agent for Hounshell Real Estate. "The fewer the walls, the better."

In fact, Crawford says most condo buyers today not only prefer an open kitchen — they expect one. "If buyers see a unit with a closed-off kitchen, the first thing they ask is whether it's a load-bearing wall and if they can take it down," he says.

The advent of open kitchens has caused a ripple effect throughout the market. With appliances and kitchen gadgets on full display, fancy finishes have also joined the list of today's must-haves.

At ultra-chic Turnberry Tower in Arlington, condo buyers are tempted with unfinished designer-ready spaces that boast huge kitchens outfitted with luxe Snaidero Italian cabinetry, Miele appliances, Sub-Zero refrigerators, granite-topped islands and even double dishwashers in some units.

"The kitchen is such a focal point today," says Jim Cohen, vice president of sales for Turnberry, where prices range from the $600s to more than $4.5 million. "When people first walk into one of our apartments, the view is almost secondary. They turn right towards the kitchen."

With the spotlight on kitchens, Cohen says, luxury condos are trending toward kitchen cabinetry that looks more like beautiful custom furniture. That sleek aesthetic appealed to attorney Shauna Alonge, 53, who moved into her two-bedroom-plus-den condo at Turnberry last November. (And bucking current trends, Alonge was thrilled Turnberry offered traditional kitchens — with walls — in addition to open floor plans. "Cooking can be messy," she explains.)

But it's not just top-tier buildings that favor modern kitchens. Velocity a new mid-market building near Nationals Park in Southeast D.C. with studios starting in the low $300s, offers a trio of kitchen options that mix and match contemporary and traditional finishes. Units come bedecked with wood cabinets, metallic and granite backsplashes, built-in pantries and functional islands.

"Open kitchens are universally popular, not just with first-time buyers but with move-up buyers as well," notes Ann Scully, the marketing manager for Velocity and executive vice president of the Mayhood Company. "It's more of a family room-type atmosphere rather than being so formal. Almost all product is designed like that today."

For move-up buyers David Evans, a 53-year-old photographer/film producer, and Sam Shon, a 39-year-old video editor, a swanker kitchen was one of the best upgrades in their new place. The couple recently moved out of a small Thomas Circle condo and into a two-bedroom-plus-den condo at the Murano near U Street. In the process, they swapped a tiny kitchen (in what was once an elevator shaft) for a sweeping space in the Murano that opens to the living/dining area, complete with a two-tiered black granite-topped island, Sub-Zero fridge, under-counter lights and self-closing doors and drawers.

In fact, Evans and Shon are so excited about their new digs they've resolved to sharpen their long-dormant culinary skills at an area cooking school. "We weren't inspired by our other kitchen," Evans says.

» Recipe for a Sizzling Setup: Ingredients for a Gourmet Kitchen

Written by Express contributor Katie Knorovsky
Photo by Lawrence Luk for Express