Winner – TIDA International Kitchen of the Year – TIDA New Zealand Kitchen of the Year

​​​​​​​Sitting squarely in the centre of the upper storey of a seaside retreat designed by Studio2 Architects, this kitchen has been designed as a stylish and efficient hub around which family activities revolve.The hub of the home. It’s a phrase so often used about kitchen design these days that it’s become almost a cliché. Yet sometimes it’s a description that so perfectly fits a kitchen that it’s hard to avoid it.

And the kitchen seen here, in a family retreat designed by Paul Clarke of Studio2 Architects, is one of those instances.

For a start, when family and friends arrive at the home, stairs take them from the front door to the upper storey open plan living area where the kitchen sits squarely in the centre.

The gabled architecture of this space is designed to make the most of views in two directions, while also providing as much privacy as possible from neighbours. And in a nod to the owners’ involvement in the timber and furniture industry, the ceiling walls and flooring are all timber.

Set against this warm backdrop, the kitchen stands out with its white cabinetry and engineered stone countertops.

The four-metre long island provides a casual gathering point as well as ample food preparation space. Sitting on a base of American Oak, its top waterfalls at one end, while at the other end it cantilevers like a bar towards the outdoor living area.

But this is not the only design feature that links indoors and outdoors. The kitchen itself connects to an integrated outdoor cooking zone including built-in barbecue. Large sliding glass panels between the two zones give the flexibility to have them separated or combined.

Architect Paul Clarke describes the set up as an oasis where family and friends gather. A true hub of the home.