First it was two ovens, then two dishwashers, we knew it wouldn’t be long before a high-end home genius somewhere said, why not two kitchens? From Long Island to LA, the two-kitchen trend—called a Bakers’ or Caterer’s Kitchen—is creeping into high-dollar homes to contain cooking chaos. For as little as $15,000, homeowners can add additional “closed” kitchen space to their “open kitchen.” Some are pantry-sized with minimal appliances, like the secondary draft kitchen in one North Dallas home created to vent while cooking Indian cuisine. Others are larger than the main kitchen itself, decked out with granite slabs, custom cabinetry, and top-of-the-line appliances.
“The main kitchen has become co-mingled with the family room,” says Tatum Brown Custom Home’s Mark Danuser. Kitchens today are equipped with televisions, fireplaces, stools, and sofas. The room is sometimes overcrowded and it’s almost impossible to, well, cook in. Tatum Brown has built three Dallas custom homes with what Danuser calls “hybrid kitchens”—second kitchens that do double duty as craft room or caterer’s kitchen. His high-end buyers love them.
