Outdoor Kitchens…good? bad?

[bluegill1]

Outdoor kitchens, Ok, we all know this has been the craze lately. I initially thought it was a bad idea….bugs, spiders, cleanliness(crumbs etc…ants…)
I see there are some really nice (large) ones, they have a nice size fridge, a very large canopy that you can walk under and is a shelter.
For those that have/ had them, what and how do you use them. What are any concerns you've noticed, what are the good the bad and the ugly about them.
In short, would you get it again?
If you don't have one, do you with you did?
your thoughts….

[andrewat]

Outdoor kitchen?

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!

Love it. Won't buy another camper without one.

[Kim Gass]

Cant answer for you but we have camped with a tent and outdoor kitchen ( as there wasn't any other type) for fifty years. Blackflies can be an annoyance and skeeters too but we have bug jackets and quite a few small camp stoves.
We have a bug tent by Nemo that pitches nicely over a picnic table.
With all that from a tenting background if a unit had an outdoor kitchen I would never pay for it.. I'd tell the rep it isn't for me an asset.

[Nitehawk]

For us personally out door kitchen is useless, we boondock from time to time and the fridge usually doesn't work unless you have electric. And the added weight and cost is just not worth it seeing as most of us bring along a propane stove or BBQ so that we can be more portable.

Sent from my SM-T350 using Tapatalk

[Midnightmoon]

Originally Posted by andrewat

Outdoor kitchen?

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!

Love it. Won't buy another camper without one.

X2! I absolutely love the outdoor kitchen in our new trailer. In fact, I think we may have cooked inside only once since we purchased this one. No grease inside, no smoke, no smells. I've cooked everything from bacon to corn on the cob out there.

As far as the fridge goes, it is awesome to be able to grab a beverage without having to go in the trailer. When we are out sitting under the awning, I usually set up my chair so I don't even have to stand up for my next one.

[bondo303]

The best option on our camper. I don't even think I cooked inside on the stove and used the oven once. I do it all outside. My kitchen is smaller than some that I have seen. It is still completely covered by the awning. 2 burner stove, hot and cold water that drains into the grey tank and a small refrigerator, the small cube like you see in a college dorm. I have seen some that you take the sink out and dump it as it does not have a drain. The trade off is that you lose storage.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

[travelingjw]

Love our outdoor kitchen. Use it mostly in the morning for breakfast as I can cook while my wife gets ready etc. I have also used it for foods that have lingering smells, such as fish. The two negatives for me, no prep area and the pullout is not quite level so if you use oil, it pools to the low end of pot or pan. This is on my priority list to modify so it will be level. Our 23MRB came with a portable table that can be useful, but too low for me to work on.

[bearcat77]

It's great. The outdoor fridge holds all the kid drinks so we don't have to go to the inside fridge every 20 minutes when someone decides they are thirsty. And the sink is great for washing hands, baseballs, frisbees, etc that seem to constantly find their way into the poison ivy. The cooking surface is not as nice as inside, but allows you to still be social while preparing dinner, so it's worth it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[54GFL]

What most everyone else said. YES!! We love ours and wouldn’t get another without it. I think anyone who would say it’s not a must have...probably has never had one...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[wags999]

Having worked in campgrounds for the last 5 years...very few actually use the outdoor kitchens. Grills yes...but rarely see them even opened up.. a nice novelty but you need to decide if you the person that will use one. Same with outdoor TV's...rarely used as they bother everyone else around you and most tend to enjoy the outdoors for the outdoors.


Were all different so you need to decide if you would use any feature..

[Rustic Eagle]

Within a week of taking delivery of my 2018 Jay Flight last month I removed the outdoor kitchen and turned it into useful storage space.

Bob

[54GFL]

Originally Posted by wags999

Having worked in campgrounds for the last 5 years...very few actually use the outdoor kitchens. Grills yes...but rarely see them even opened up.. a nice novelty but you need to decide if you the person that will use one. Same with outdoor TV's...rarely used as they bother everyone else around you and most tend to enjoy the outdoors for the outdoors.


Were all different so you need to decide if you would use any feature..

I wonder what part of the country you are in. Maybe it is regional. I am in the southeast (Florida specifically, but we camp throughout the Southeast). I can tell you that everyone down here uses an outdoor kitchen that has them. Not as a storage space, or novelty, but a homebase for being outside. Again, I think everybody’s needs are different, but if you are someone who likes being outside, having quick access to beverages and food, and would prefer to have a fully functional kitchen outside, I would say go for it!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[repacs0103]

I bet the "yes" crowd, like me, tend to be younger campers with families vs. retired couples. We use our outdoor kitchen daily- we rarely cook inside during the warm months. We also use the heck out of our outside tv. In my case I don't care that the kitchen takes up potential storage space because my 5th wheel has more storage than I could ever use anyway.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[NewBlackDak]

Hate 'em. They're too small to be useful for us(family of 7), and they are usually cutting out a desperately needed bunk. I have a 3 burner camp chef with grill and grittle that gets the job done much better than that crappy little "kitchen" could ever do. The fridge becomes useless when we're boondocking which about half our camping.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Jason]

I love our outdoor kitchen. For one it keeps water and drinks cold outside in the fridge so we don't have to go in the camper to grab items all the time. I love the fact that cooking some items like bacon it won't leave the smell in the camper since I am cooking outside. Overall for us, we love it

[clubhouse]

Originally Posted by repacs0103

I bet the "yes" crowd, like me, tend to be younger campers with families vs. retired couples. We use our outdoor kitchen daily- we rarely cook inside during the warm months. We also use the heck out of our outside tv. In my case I don't care that the kitchen takes up potential storage space because my 5th wheel has more storage than I could ever use anyway.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Don't know where you draw the line between old and young, but I'm closer to college age than retirement age, 2 of 3 kids are still single digit age, and wouldn't pay $5 for an outdoor kitchen.

We cook exclusively outside and rarely have hookups. Without hookups the fridge is useless. The baby burner can barely boil water compared to my Camp stove.

One of the primary reasons we bought our current trailer used is the QBH model had a period when the outdoor kitchen was mandatory not optional. We valued the 4th bunk and additional outdoor storage far more than the so called outdoor kitchen.

There are other reasons too, for instance we still Camp a lot in the Sierra Nevada mountains, bear country, and don't want an outdoor kitchen attracting bears to my camper next to where the kids sleep.

A close camping buddy with a new Forrest River Vibe TT just gutted their outdoor kitchen after 1 year with Zero use.

It all comes down to where you camp and how you camp if an outdoor kitchen has value.

[klpoppe]

To me it is a loss of storage space. My camper did not come with an outdoor kitchen. I set up a table for my camp stove, a second portable table and a portable Weber gas grill with a folding stand. I set up next to the camper under the awning as my "outdoor kitchen". I have a lot more work area for cooking and still have all the extra storage area in the rear compartment.

[Adanick2]

We bought one with an outdoor kitchen to use and it has not disappointed at all. The convenience of having drinks and campfire food out there is so nice and when the kids get there fingers full of marshmallow goo they can wash them off right at the sink.

[shrpshtr]

I'm not a fan of them either. Not because I don't like the idea, more because they are sufficiently equipped for my style of cooking. As previously mentioned, the burners typically don't produce enough heat to efficiently boil water, prep and cooking surfaces are usually relatively small, and the fridge gets only moderately cool.


Having said that, I do almost ALL of our cooking outside also. And like others, I use a grill (w/full size griddle), a single gas burner, a 5' prep table, and a Yeti 50.


I like the grill HOT and the beer COLD so I can cook a FEAST!


shrp

[NCMFFD]

We opted for storage instead the outdoor kitchen with our TT. However we do use a NuWave Induction Cooktop and a portable Weber Q Gas Grill for our outside cooking needs. Beverages on ice in a Coleman cooler keep the drinks cold and handy.

Best of Luck to you with your decision.