The main intent for the MANTOR OUTDOOR KITCHEN was to extend the outdoor living season for the client and his family.  The property backs up onto the Buffalo Bayou in Houston, Texas, yet the site is situated on a “knuckle” of the park that shapes the parcel so that the rear property line is smaller than the front.  Therefore the structure needed to serve the client’s programmatic needs, while dissolving into the landscape to maintain the visual connection to the bayou. 

To this end we chose an exposed steel approach together with a single plane roof, opening up to the view.  Though the ornament was kept to a minimum, the ipe wood underfoot, the mahogany built-in cabinetry and the rough cedar ceiling plane created a warm, livable interior.   This juxtaposition of steel structure, a soft interior, and an embrace of the land beyond created a clean yet human 21st century design.