What do high-end kitchens have?

What do high end kitchens have? All high-end kitchens share ten key traits or things that you’ll find (or vitally, not find) within them, but this doesn’t mean that high-end kitchens all contain the same appliances or brands, or share the same design and layout.

So, what do high-end kitchens have, and can you attain or emulate them to make your own kitchen into a top-of-the-range space? Read on to find out the ten key traits that all high-end kitchens share, and how to design a high-end kitchen to incorporate them.

1. Ergonomic design

The most important trait of any high-end kitchen and the one that everything else hinges on, is getting the design right. A high-end kitchen needs to be designed to fit the space it uses, accommodate for any challenges of the room or space, and suit the needs of its end users.

Ergonomic design is the key to a high-end kitchen; this means creating a kitchen layout, fixtures, and fittings that are intuitive to use, so that even someone who has just walked in will quickly become familiar with it and find thing in the places that they are needed, or that would seem to be the obvious places to look.

This also means having the right spacing, proximity, and dimensions between things in the kitchen; such as the heights of things relative to the kitchen’s users and other things in the kitchen, the distances between things, and much more.

2. Quality materials

You can’t create a high-end kitchen from sub-par materials; and the key to designing and building a high-end kitchen is to use the right, good quality materials, rather than simply defaulting to the most expensive options, which might not always be the best choice.

Whilst granite worktops are, in most people’s opinions, both the costliest option and the best one, this does not hold true for everything else. For instance, synthetic materials are sometimes a far better pick for certain things in the kitchen than natural alternatives, and choosing the best quality materials that are also up to the task, is integral to success.

3. Top-of-the-range appliances (but nothing unnecessary)

It probably goes without saying, but a high-end kitchen will have top-of-the-range appliances, made by quality or high-end brands. However, don’t assume that these will always be the costliest options; whilst top-of-the-range appliances do come at a premium, the most expensive or newest-to-market option is not always the best one.

A high-end kitchen will have all of the appliances and white goods needed but vitally, nothing superfluous. A couple or single person is unlikely to need a refrigerator large enough to stand up in; and few people could truly argue that they’ll get a lot of mileage out of an ice cream maker, donut maker, commercially-standard coffee machine, and popcorn maker.

Maybe a couple such appliances can be argued for in each instance, but you don’t need one of everything on the market just because it’s available.

4. Excellent quality cookware

Whilst I cannot argue with the old adage that “a good workman never blames their tools,” I would also argue that “you can’t cut a straight piece of cheese with a wobbly knife.”

Excellent quality cookware is the signature of a high-end kitchen, from your set of professional kitchen knives through to the right sort of pots and pans for the type of cooking you do, and the type of cooking facilities you’re working with. And so on.

5. Clever storage

Do you know what every kitchen needs? A bin. Do you know what every kitchen doesn’t need? That bin to be a focal point.

Clever storage means both making good use of the available space and putting things in sensible/logical places, such as keeping the bin somewhere that allows it to be accessible but not prominent, and ideally, somewhere cool and well-sealed.

6. Plenty of counter space

Even if you’re not a massive fan of cooking, ample counter space is really important for any functional high-end kitchen.

7. Minimal clutter

Minimal clutter is another signature of a high-end kitchen. Ample counter space should not be seen as a blank slate to be filled with unnecessary things; either appliances, or things that aren’t used frequently or consistently.

Even if your kitchen cost a lot of money and has a great design incorporating the best of everything, it is still not going to come off as high-end if it’s messy.

8. Cutting-edge hygiene

Hand-in-hand with “no unnecessary clutter” comes “no unnecessary dirt” in the “what do high end kitchens have” stakes. A high-end kitchen is a kitchen that is kept clean; and these days, high-end kitchens also integrate a number of cutting-edge hygiene features too, such as antimicrobial surface coatings.

9. Excellent ventilation

Everyone (even fancy people) like chips; do you know what nobody (also including fancy people) likes? The lingering smell of chip fat.

A high-end kitchen will promptly lose its credentials as such if it reeks of lingering cooking smells, and the same is true if it condensates like a Turkish sauna as soon as you put a pot of pasta on the hob.

Excellent ventilation is another really important, but also often overlooked, trait of high-end kitchens.

10. Premium quality window blinds

Window coverings take up a reasonable amount of the wall space of any room, which means that they have a significant impact on the room, its style, and how it is perceived.

Curtains really aren’t an option for kitchens functionally; they’re not waterproof, are apt to get grubby, and might even pose a fire hazard. They’re also a little dated, which is not a trait that we usually consider to be high-end.

Kitchen blinds need to be waterproof (in most cases), easy to clean, and up to the task at hand; which means that good quality made-to-measure window blinds are a must for any kitchen, and premium window blinds are essential to finish off a high-end kitchen.

Made-to-measure faux-wood blinds are an excellent choice for a high-end kitchen, as they’re waterproof, easy to clean, and very hardwearing. If your kitchen really is exceptionally well ventilated as per point number nine, to the extent that it experiences virtually no condensation even when dinner is in full swing and cooking smells don’t linger, real wood blinds might be an option too.

Premium waterproof roller blinds in a range of styles and designs, as well as today’s clean, minimalistic waterproof vertical blinds are a couple of additional options to consider, to provide a clean, fresh finish to a modern high-end kitchen as well.