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Case Study: Kafka Residence Kitchen

2 MIN READ

By Bruce D. Snider

April 8, 2013

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Viera Photographics

Walnut veneer clads the cabinets, walls, and ceiling, as well as… Read More Walnut veneer clads the cabinets, walls, and ceiling, as well as the custom light fixture that hangs over the island.

Viera Photographics

A band of glazing at counter height lights the work surface with… Read More A band of glazing at counter height lights the work surface without inviting scrutiny from passersby.

Viera Photographics

"Whatever you see from the living spaces we wanted to make look … Read More "Whatever you see from the living spaces we wanted to make look as little like a kitchen as possible," says architect Taal Safdie.

Viera Photographics

The La Jolla, Calif., project presents the lofty outlook of a cl… Read More The La Jolla, Calif., project presents the lofty outlook of a cliff dwelling.

Courtesy Safdie Rabines Architects

The project's floor plan.

2013 Kitchen and Bath Design Guide

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  Case Study: Arts and Crafts Kitchen

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  Case Study: Kafka Residence Kitchen

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  Case Study: Ludwig Residence Bath

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  Case Study: Kohout Residence Bath

  A modern master bath frames a prairie view.

Perched on the shoulder of a precipitous slope, the Kafka Residence presents the lofty outlook of a cliff dwelling.

“It’s a really wonderful site, with spectacular views of the ocean,” says architect Taal Safdie, who composed the building as a series of overlapping, flat-roofed forms that descend in stepwise fashion from the road. One enters at the uppermost level, where a rectangular plan is sliced diagonally by a wall of sliding glass panels. “It allows the indoor and outdoor spaces to become one,” Safdie says. Living, dining, and kitchen areas share a single, open space, merging fluidly with the elevated deck that caps the lower-level family room and bedrooms.

Kitchen functions hug the uphill side of the space, supported by an elongated L of wall-hung base cabinets with an open kick space. “We have the cabinets floating,” Safdie says, “so they don’t look like kitchen cabinets.” The kitchen workspace extends into a pantry that conceals the refrigerator and ovens, and whose storage capacity obviates the need for wall cabinets elsewhere. A 15-foot-long island provides casual seating and reinforces the room’s strongly horizontal orientation.

A band of glazing at counter height, capped with a shelf made of the same quartz composite as the countertops, lights the work surface without inviting scrutiny from passersby. “You can’t really look into the house from the street,” Safdie says. Another cantilevered shelf caps the cooktop’s marble backsplash, which matches the custom dining table. “There are very few materials,” says Safdie, who specified cabinets faced with the same walnut veneer that clads the room’s walls and ceiling (as well as the custom light fixture that hangs over the island). “Whatever you see from the living spaces we wanted to make look as little like a kitchen as possible,” she says.

Learn more about markets featured in this article: San Diego, CA.

About the Author

Bruce D. Snider

Bruce Snider is a former senior contributing editor of  Residential Architect, a frequent contributor to Remodeling.