How important would an outside kitchen be to you?

We fell in love with the idea of an outside kitchen the first time we saw one. When we looked to upgrade from our cramped 23 foot Tahoe light we decided an outside kitchen was a must for us.
Several salespeople tried to steer us away from them asking "how often would you use an outside kitchen anyway?" Being outside is a big part of camping for us and we plan on using our outside kitchen whenever possible.

We're curious, how many of you have outside kitchens?
If you do how often do you use it?

If you don't have one, is it something you would use?

If you're camper shopping are you considering an outside kitchen?

Please let us know your opinions,

Cliff and Mindy

We looked at some new Cyclones (and other models) the last few days while in Texas. Saw the outside kitchen idea, neat on appearance, but for us "personally" it's a waste of space, we'd rather have the storage. To us if we wanted to cook on gas, we go inside, if we want to wash hands, we go inside, if we want to cook outside we light the grill.............but we're charcoal and wood chip (apple, cherry, hickory) people not gas. It's a neat idea, and probably a big hit with alot, just not "our" cup of tea.

I try to cook outside as much as possible. However, The issues that I had with a built-it outdoor kitchen are frequently the sites in many campgrounds are not truly level so when by the time you level your RV, the kitchen could vary by a foot or more in height. The amount of head room under the access door was already pretty low. the amount of storage space and the added weight of a built-in outdoor kitchen is much more than the space required if you add a portable table/kitchen center, a grill and a cookstove of either propane or white gas. You can always add a gas connection for the stove, and/or grill. The arrangement of many of the kitchens seems to block other parts of the kitchen when in use or puts you in danger of reaching over the stove to access other parts such as a cabinet or refridgerator. A little bit of organization and planning can make placing your "portable" kitchen near one of the storage bunks would allow for some "cabinet" space to be used for storing basic ingredients or tools. It may be a bit less convenient to use the indoor kitchen for prep work and cleanup but the reduction of weight, flexibility and usability is a big improvement over the built-in exterior kitchens.

It is really a personal decision based upon your needs. For my wife and I we have two small children so we feel that the outside kitchen is pretty valuable to us. We don't have to wake the kids if they are napping when we want to cook or retrieve a beverage. The storage space that we have lost is minimal and there is plenty of other storage space throughout the camper. The only con is that the door "can" be low but really that isn't a big deal for us. Good Luck!

I go back and forth on this. When these first came out, I thought they were just another gimmick. But I can see the value to having one, particularly if it minimizes travel in and out of the trailer.

Having a fridge, outside, where beer...I mean, soda... can be stored is a great idea IMO. We usually keep adult beverages in a ice cooler just to minimize the number of times the trailer door gets opened, which always seems to let in a stray bug.

Some outdoor kitchens, like the one on Heartland's Big Country SL model, have a grill on a sliding tray (if I recall correctly). This is something I definitely would not use. I've seen many built-in grills, or those that are designed to work with the RV, and I haven't seen a good one yet. It would be hard for me to use one of those over my Weber Q220, which is awesome.

I would have absolutely no use for a built-in TV... that's just going to draw gnats and bugs at night, and won't be used during the day cause, well, we're out doing stuff!

So overall, I would not want an outdoor kitchen, especially considering it would take up some of the space at the rear of my RV, which is the best part of the floorplan. Two recliners, and a huge picture window. I won't give that up.

I think I would like it. I like the picture you posted it would be great to prep stuff outside so you would not have to keep going up and down. So any way injoy it!!

I kinda like the refrigerator in the back. That way when I want a beer I wont have to wake you. Just walk right up and help myself.
Seriously, if outdoor cooking is part of your camping experience it's the way to go. Everything at hand.
They are popular for a reason.

Peace
Dave

It's a neat concept but for us, as full-timers, it would probably be a waste. But on the other hand, our son, who has a young family that goes camping, would use it all the time!

We've seen them at shows and they're not for us. Other than cooking up some side dishes, the majority of the cooking is done by me on the Weber grill during the summer. Or somebody in the kitchen at the restaurants we haunt.

I've seen a lot of the outside kitchens. I cook outside all of the time. I would use one. I saw one that had a pull out table and a connection for a Weber Q type grill. A good prep area, a good table, refrigerator, a TV and a good grill who could ask for anything more. It was perfect.

I do have to agree with one of the comments. If you're a weekend camper you'd probably use it a lot more than a full timer. I am weekend camper for another 16 years so I would use it.

Thanks for all the opinions! We are weekend campers with young children. It'll be interesting to see how important it is to us when the kids get older and we get closer to being full timers.

Happy Camping!

Cliff and Mindy

cookie said:

I kinda like the refrigerator in the back. That way when I want a beer I wont have to wake you. Just walk right up and help myself.
Seriously, if outdoor cooking is part of your camping experience it's the way to go. Everything at hand.
They are popular for a reason.

Peace
Dave

Click to expand...

What kind of beer do you drink Dave? LOL

When we first saw the outside kitchens it really wasn't something that I thought I would want. However when we were looking for campers we saw the North Trail 32BuDS and fell in love, my husband fell in love with the outdoor kitchen. Now I am planning to keep beverages etc in it, but most important, I won't have to traipse through the camper at night to gather hotdogs,buns, ketchup etc for those late night wiener roasts. Everything will be right there. I can see that we will put it to great use.
We haven't used it yet, hoping our camper is delivered this week, and perhaps in another couple of week we will take it out, of course if the weather hold, I can certainly see my daughter and I having a little camp out in the yard!

We have had our 32BUDS for two years this month. We loved the floor plan as we have 9 grandchildren but we were not looking for an outside kitchen. It would be hard to not have one once you have it. The extra refrigerator is priceless and we do lots of cooking using the outside kitchen. I bought a propane cook stove and grill which store nicely under under the outside counter top. The extra storage is great for extra food. I've used the pull out counter to put the bar-b-q on and cooked during rain. Nice dry area.
We are lucky enough to have an RV pad next to our home. We open up the outside kitchen and turn it into the bar during outside parties. All in all we have used the outside kitchen more than we ever thought we would.

With the overhead door height fixed, One of the concerns I had with the 32BUDS and others with the outside kitchens is the variable height when setting up. Many of the campground do not have perfectly level sites and a longer coach like the 32 BUDS seems to me would have issues with the kitchen being too high to reach or worse yet, too low for me to stand under the kitchen door to actually be able to use if the back end is low.

Has anyone encountered this issue when using their outside kitchen? The other issue was the interior space for the bunk above the kitchen was extremely small. My thought on this is that the bunk ends up being used as storage and not as a bed.

I've only seen eight (I think) outside kitchens at campgrounds. All the sights were level, and so it wasn't an issue with them. The way mine is sitting in the driveway now, the kitchen is a bit in the air. It would work at this height for me at 6-1 but would be low for Mindy at 5-5. I could see it as a problem on unlevel sights. Have to wait and see.

Personally, I love the outdoor kitchen on the 32buds. It was one of the selling points for me. With five of us, it gets cramped inside. Not a lot of space in the inside kitchen. I'd much rather cook outside. I guess it comes down to personal preference but for me it's a no-brainer.

We didn't think we would want one either. However, like many others fell in love with 32buds and can't wait to use the outside kitchen!

Hi all, new to the forum and just purchased an Elk Ridge 29BHCK. We are very excited about the camp kitchen. We do most of our cooking on the grill but having the sink to clean up and the fridge to store food and drinks for the kids is SUPER. I am sure my wife will use the counter space too. What I am getting at.....those with kids will understand the wear and tear saved by keeping them out of the camper! They can get their drinks and make a lunch all outside. With kids, I think anyone would appreciate it. Without kids, I would probably rather have the storage although even with th kitchen, hardly an issue with this camper.

Ours has been a big hit so far!