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We started by laying a foundation of half-height Robinson Block™ that will set the size of the kitchen. Next, we build up the frame of the kitchen leaving voids for storage, the grill insert, burner insert and propane tank. These voids are then reinforced with steel beams for added support. Eventually, our outdoor kitchen begins to take shape.

Once we have finished building the infrastructure and smoothing out the seams with mortar, we can begin applying Old Brick Originals™ to the exterior. Before we could begin placing the bricks, we created a mixture of one bag Type N mortar and 1/4 bag Portland cement. This mixture will be used to hold the brick veneers in place while we are building the wall.

You may notice a little bit of sway in the bricks. Sway is a slight up and down movement of the mortar line between bricks. This allows for a more rustic, slightly flawed look. Typically, some sway is used when using Old Brick Originals, as they are made to achieve an older, weathered look. If using a straight-edge Robinson Brick Company Thinbrick™, you may consider building your wall using spacers between bricks to line them up perfectly.

Once we have finished applying our Thinbrick, we put mortar between the bricks and allow it to setup overnight. We then put a grill insert and matching cabinet into their respective slots. We got ours from Vermont Castings, but there are a number of vendors out there to choose from. There is a propane tank on the back side of our island that allows us easy access without taking away from the appearance.

With the inserts in place, we top our kitchen with black granite tiles, leaving a space to add a gas burner in the future. Our kitchen is now ready! The last step is to break it in - we enjoyed a Friday afternoon barbeque.

Our special thanks goes out to Ed LeBeau for building the kitchen.