The Kitchen: The Heart Of Jonathan and Zooey’s Home

To create the island in Jonathan and Zooey’s kitchen, they had to go big—really big.

Island Living

The kitchen is the heart of Park House, and with a big family like ours, it was important for us to have lots of storage. In fact, we needed more space, period, because a strange hallway was cutting into the original kitchen area. Just a hallway full of laundry—a laundry hallway!

Anyway, once we got rid of that, we put a laundry drawer right in the kitchen for our cloth napkins and dishtowels. That drawer is part of our new kitchen island, which might be the biggest one I’ve ever designed. It has storage on all sides, and plenty of prep space so the family can cook together.

In the overall design of the kitchen, we went with a traditional look, including a custom range hood that reflects our Old Hollywood style, and cabinet doors with the gothic arch style that’s reflected in the aesthetic throughout the home. We took that look over to our tea station, as well, where we did a gothic arch with a brass mesh.

Appliances

But of course there’s no kitchen with appliances, and having the right tools for the job is crucial. We went with Viking appliances, including a big microwave drawer right there in that big kitchen island. We also added a Marvel produce drawer to keep our homegrown veggies fresh and right at hand, so we’re more likely to reach for a piece of fruit as a healthy snack.

One special note on our kitchen work: Zooey’s parents were renovating their home many years ago, and Zooey kept the antique range that came out of it. After it sat for years in storage, we brought it out and I had it completely restored. Now it’s energy efficient, with new paint and a re-chromed top. We placed it in our guest house, which makes it a fun story to share for whoever is staying with us.

Want to see even more of The Park House? Check out our Inside The Design: The Park House series on YouTube right now!