Theater kitchens

Nowadays, kitchens are more theatrical than ever. Their utility goes beyond a beautiful design to include the role of actual footfall driver. Daniel During, principal and managing director of Dubai-based Thomas Klein International, a design, consulting an

What to show and when

Show kitchens have been a part of restaurants’ interior design for the last 25 years. The trend originated in big cities, such as New York, where chefs prepared meals in full view of the diners, mainly due to space constraints. Nowadays, show kitchens support diners’ desire for transparency and visibility. They show there is nothing to hide, inviting diners to see the ‘magic’ behind the menu. From show kitchens behind the glass, to fully exposed kitchens behind just a counter, to island counters integrated in the dining space, to cooking carts and street carts, the versatility of integrating kitchens into the design is huge and paramount in setting the ambiance of the interiors. Show kitchens add ‘show’ and ‘drama’ to the overall dining experience, as diners’ senses are constantly exposed to everything around them. They also encourage diners to engage with the movements and production sounds of the kitchen permeating the dining space.

Interaction is key

The most important thing to consider when deciding if your restaurant should feature a show kitchen is to select the level of interaction you want to achieve between the kitchen’s functions and diners. This interaction involves factors such as lighting, permeability of smells and sounds, and smoke and heat generation, in addition to the interaction between chefs and diners.

Mind the light and the noise

Lighting has a major role to play in kitchen design. It’s important to ensure the lighting doesn’t negatively affect the restaurant’s ambience. For instance, in fine dining restaurants, lighting is brighter in the production area to allow cooking, and dimmer in the dining area to create ambience and intimacy. This is not the case in casual and fast dining places, where lighting levels are similar throughout. The use of partial screens to reduce light from the kitchen or warmer lights in the kitchen are good options to consider, as is strategically positioning kitchen lights on food in the preparation area, rather than flooding the entire kitchen and dining space. Noise coming from the kitchen can add positively to the dining experience if the sounds are at the same level. However, just as screens can help to reduce bright light, shelves installed between the kitchen and the dining area will assist in buffing sounds.

Smell control

While the smell of freshly baked bread can contribute to the full dining experience in certain concepts, you do not want your diners to leave smelling of garlic, frying or more generally, of what they have eaten. Fortunately, smells, smoke and heat generation are easy to manage by hiring a good mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) consultant.

“An open kitchen is no longer just a hole in the wall where you can see someone working,” said

William Eaton, chairman of the board of Cini-little International, the world’s largest foodservice design consultancy.