We’ve witnessed all manner of Dallas kitchens at D Home. Endless dream kitchens, airy kitchens, moody all-black kitchens, and even kitchens that don’t necessarily look like kitchens (gathered here for your viewing pleasure). And yet, we’ve never seen one that looks like the kitchen of a Michelin-starred restaurant, with a $75,000 French blue lacquered Molteni island (the only one Texas, and possibly the only stove in the world to have its own Instagram account), Gaggenau ovens, and a Sub-Zero glass-door refrigerator.
Enter Mark and Cary Deuber, the husband-and-wife team behind Lemmon Avenue Plastic Surgery and staples on Bravo’s The Real Housewives of Dallas. While the duo was renovating their home on Strait Lane, they decided to add a chef’s kitchen to the list of to-dos, and worked with builder Susan Newell and German Kitchen Center to execute their dream. “The entire kitchen was designed to complement the hearth of the kitchen, which is an artisan stove used in top-tier restaurants and exquisitely crafted,” says Michala Hlavackova, senior designer at German Kitchen Center. “It was a unique experience for us to work so closely with the customer and his team to create super functional, professional kitchen, where every drawer and flow of the space is perfectly thought through.”
We spoke with Newell and Hlavackova to discuss the unique project, the “professional cooking” kitchen trend, and what they enjoyed most about working with the Dallas couple.
The space almost looks more like the back of a restaurant than a kitchen. How did that design choice come about?
“Mr. Deuber’s passion is cooking. He loves to host and enjoys to cook with premium, professional equipment, therefore the goal of this project was to create a professional kitchen in a residential setting,” says Hlavackova.
Do you know why Mark was set on having a Molteni?
“I think Mark had studied all possible cooking options, as he does with all things related to his home and business, and he decided to choose Molteni. I love that it’s the centerpiece for the kitchen,” says Newell.
How typical is it to see Dallasites install professional-grade kitchens in their homes?
“Generally speaking, more and more homeowners are getting into “professional cooking,” in-home entertainment, and hosting. It became a huge trend, so the kitchens we design nationwide—not only in the Dallas area—are more focused on functionality and logical work flow. They include special features and represent much more than just nice new cabinets,” says Hlavackova.
Can you speak to any other design choices in the kitchen?
“That was a choice of Mark and Cary’s. I fought it, but in the end lost the battle, and I must admit the glass front is the perfect choice for the kitchen. Mark had all the copper cookware in his possession for many years, but I did insist it be polished,” says Newell.
What did you enjoy about working with the Deubers?
“They knew exactly what they wanted, which makes our work always easier! And besides that, they are a very pleasant and positive couple,” says Hlavackova. To that, Newell adds, “Their total commitment to making the project the very best it could be. They never questioned my design decisions or my judgement. They were and continue to be a true pleasure to work with.”
