Grill in fireplace at counter height in kitchen

[mattboes]

Hi, I’m a new member building a house. I’d like to place a grill in a fireplace at counter height in my indoor kitchen/living area. I’m inspired by what Alice Waters of Chez Panisse has in her home, and by pictures on the Grillworks website. I feel the Grillworks grill is more than I need and lean more to the Alice Waters approach of a simple cast iron grate or small Tuscan grill. Pictures attached or links below.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/dec/23/open-fire-cooking-chez-panisse-berkeley-california-alice-waters-a-cooks-kitchen

http://www.grillworksusa.com/grillerycooking (bottom photo)

But, I spoke to one seller of a Tuscan grill, and he really advised me against this idea. First, he said the fireplace and hearth need to be on the floor and that, if I really want to do it, I should install a cooking hood vent instead of a fireplace/chimney. I’m looking at the Earthcore Isokern fireplaces. Grillworks says they have installed their grills into these fireplaces. But, the Isokern installation manual says that you should not grill/cook in the fireplace, and that the grease that collects in the flue is a fire hazard. I’d prefer not to burn down my brand new house! I’ve been focusing on the deeper and wider Isokern fireplaces so that I can have two zones and room to just cook over embers.

If anyone has done this before or has some tips, opinions, experience, ideas on set up, chimney vs cooking hood vent, etc... I would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you,

Matt

[JakeT]

I've often dreamt of doing this. If I were to ever do it, I would definitely find a commercial architect and engineer to design it with the correct ventilation and so on. Maybe grillworks can point you in the right direction. I would also think building codes would mandate you to have it engineered or you may not even be able to get your plans approved for the home in it's entirety.

[TheQuietOne]

The only experience I have is eating at a place that cooks over a wood fire and they use a vent as was suggested by the Tuscan grill seller.

[Old Glory]

Maybe place a strong hood inside a faux chimney? But the advice to consult a commercial architect is probably the best and safest way to do this.

[Attjack]

That would be badass you should definitely make that happen.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

While these all look cool, unless you are going to be in your house forever, remember this isn't exactly a selling point and could become an issue with house inspections during a future sale. If it's your forever house, get an engineer to spec it, and go for it! I think they are awesome. But if you don't know if you will be in the house forever, I'd spend the money the Engineer is gonna ask for on an outdoor kitchen with a built in wood fired oven.

[Attjack]

He should put one in like the second pic and have rollup glass doors on the wall the man is facing going out to the patio. Boom. Indoor/outdoor kitchen. You only like once!

https://www.gdugaragedoors.com/bar-restaurant-doors/

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

Attjack I asked the wife which would affect resale more, and she thinks the oven in the kitchen would be a negative... the glass could be a positive! And I agree, unless we lived in a super cold state I'd rather have the rollup glass doors than a wood fired oven in the kitchen... but then again, if it was me and money wasn't an issue... I'd do both!

[holehogg]

Not offering any advice but the funny thing is here in South Africa a built in "braai" both indoors (usually in an entertainment area) and outdoors under a covered area near a pool are a common and big selling feature that adds value to your property.
I manufactured a few off these steel grills in the past some with chimneys / flue and others that are built to fit into brickwork with a brick chimney.
I have the drawings and cutting and bending list filed somewhere.
Take a look at https://megamaster.co.za/ and in the search box type in built in braai. Just one of the manufacturers here.

[jfmorris]

As cool as this seems, and it is VERY cool, I am not convinced it will add resale value to a house, unless you are talking a REALLY LARGE kitchen, where the wall space and area lost to the fireplace/grill don't impact other things such as available storage, counter top, and so on. In other words - this is something to have in a 5000+ square foot house with an 500 square foot or larger kitchen, not something in a more "standard" sized house...

I do ike the idea of a "see through" fireplace to an outdoor kitchen area, but then that becomes a security risk for breakins through the back porch area.

Both setups are pretty much full masonry brick ovens. I've got a full masonry fireplace, built around 1970, and the flue is very large, all the way to the top. While we've roasted the occasional hot dog or marshmallow, the concerns with cooking in the fireplace are grease management - where does it go - and as your builder noted - grease management as it goes up the flue. Trust me - you don't want grease build up like I get in the stack on my old offset in your flue, and then have too big a fire set the entire flue on fire!

To do this right, I think you need a full masonry setup, built by someone who knows what they are doing for a cooking setup - such as for the brick fired pizza ovens in commercial pizzarias or the brick pits in BBQ restaurants that burn wood and BBQ, like at my local Dreamland BBQ.

[JakeT]

Good info...it did occur to me that I’ve read of a lot of BBQ joints around the country that have had their pits burn to the ground due to grease fires. Granted, many more pounds of meat/grease will go through a commercial setup than a residential but still...the risk remains.

That said, if money were no object, I’d certainly go for it in a "forever home"...we all seem to be outliers here in The Pit with our cooking/BBQing tendencies.

[jfmorris]

Jake T yes - I think we are all outliers. Most folks I know do not have more than one grill of any sort in their back yard, much less the numbers most here on the Pit have! I had 8 at one point, got down to 4, now will be back to 5 unless my son really takes that offset off my hands.

I think the commercial BBQ restaurants pressure wash the inside of the pits and degrease them several times per year.

[Bkhuna]

If I ever won the big one, I would certainly build a house with a restaurant grade kitchen big enough to have all the goodies, including a floor drain.

[Richard Chrz]

Brick floor and a floor drain for sure.

[Donw]

These are not typical fireplaces but built for a purpose. It will require a Type 1 exhaust hood inside the masonry equipped with grease filters, and a exhaust fan at the end of the ductwork. To get more help find a local fire equipment company who is licensed for kitchen hood systems. Search for a brand name such as "Ansul", or your state fire marshal may have a list online of companies licensed for these systems. They will know who the hood fabricators are in your area, which engineers have experience in designing exhaust systems, and also those who clean kitchen hoods. Your local codes may require a suppression system which they can also provide. All the brick is just really for show.

[Donw]

I am adding this link, which is for a wood fired pizza oven, which will give you a general idea of the venting needed. I know you will be residential but your insurance company and building officials will have a say in what codes you must meet to please them. https://earthstoneovens.com/wp-conte...mercial-12.pdf

[Donw]

For one of their residential models: https://earthstoneovens.com/wp-conte...TIONS-2018.pdf The listing for this type is for pizza and bread only. If cooking something with potential grease laden vapors then the grease filters would normally be required.

[barelfly]

I don’t have a clue about resell value, but I will say, if you are putting this type of grill in your kitchen, my guess is the rest of the house is going to be done up as well. Saying that, your house is going to attract a specific type of buyer (if you even ever plan to sell) and this type of kitchen fireplace will add to the house, almost as a statement and conversation piece. That’s my opinion.

I could be completely off on this as well though haha. But, I like the idea and would love to see the finished kitchen! So make sure you become a member so we can all follow the build!

have fun designing and seeing it all come to life!

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

Depends on the market, but think of it like a swimming pool. Some people want one and some don't so you limit your pool of interested buyers willing to pay the price you are asking. I think it would be awesome to have one like Matt originally posted

[barelfly]

I think a pool is different. Up keep and such. Yes, not everyone wants a pool.

But a house like this, you don’t have to use that indoor kitchen fire place oven. It can literally just sit there and be a "painting on the wall" and for some buyers, that’s what they would want it for. as long as it was up to code and didn’t create an issue in a sale.

[jfmorris]

Revisiting this topic - the more I think about it the cooler it is! I say go for it, after of course, investigating the flue requirements. I like that architectural series at Grillworks!

[Starsky]

I can't help but wonder what an insurance company would think about installing something like this in a residential home. I know it's sort of like a fireplace but they make think differently

[Richard Chrz]

Those would be awesome, either one. My preference would be the top one.