Service · Outdoor Kitchens · Masonry · Firepits
Outdoor kitchens, masonry, and firepits — built to outlast Chicagoland winters.
Buckingham Rustic Royal Chateau veneer, drainage detailed for freeze-thaw, and the masonry that earned Kings the 2022 ILCA Silver Award.
Overview
The award-winning line
Outdoor Kitchens, Masonry, and Firepits is the highest-capex line and the most permanent — the masonry hearth a homeowner will live with for thirty years.
The Outdoor Chef's Dream Kitchen project — featured on the ILCA Silver 2022 award roster — is the most recent peer-reviewed look at how Kings builds in this line. See the full case study →
What's included
What's included
- · Outdoor kitchens — counters, built-in grills, side burners, refrigeration, ventilation hood
- · Masonry hearths and veneer walls — stone-faced or full-stone construction
- · Firepits — wood-burning, gas, or hybrid, in stone or masonry surrounds
- · Pizza ovens and built-in smokers integrated into the masonry plan
- · Adjacent dining and prep terraces — paver or stone, level and drained for use
[confirm-with-sean — Buckingham Rustic Royal Chateau as default-stone vs frequently-named option; standard built-in appliance dimensions (Lynx / Twin Eagles / Wolf class)]
Our approach
How we think about masonry
-
Buckingham Rustic Royal Chateau veneer
Our default stone for hearths and veneer walls — chosen for color, weathering, and freeze-thaw performance in Chicagoland zone 5b/6a. Alternates get specified by name when the design calls for them.
-
Drainage detailed at the footing
Water exits the assembly rather than freezing inside the wall. Weep paths at the footing, flashing behind the veneer, low-absorption stone selected to begin with — drainage is a design decision before it is a build decision.
-
Appliance-replaceable masonry
Masonry designed around standard built-in appliance dimensions and accessible fuel/electrical runs — so the grill, side burner, or refrigerator can be replaced without tearing out the stone. The masonry is permanent; the appliance is serviceable.
How we work
Four steps, no surprises
- Step 01
Consultation
Free, on-site. We walk the yard, talk through how the kitchen and hearth will get used (cooking cadence, party size, fuel preference), and identify drainage and orientation constraints before design starts.
- Step 02
Design
Paid design phase. Master plan including stone spec, appliance layout, fuel and electrical runs, drainage detail, and the seating / dining surfaces around the cooking footprint.
- Step 03
Build
Our masons set the stone. Same firm carries the design through to the finished hearth — no third-party masonry sub on install day.
- Step 04
Maintain
Optional ongoing care, April through November — keeps the surrounding planting, terraces, and lighting maturing the way the design intended.
Begin a conversation
Plan a hearth that outlasts the appliance.
Free, on-site walk. We talk through cooking cadence, party size, fuel preference, and identify drainage and orientation constraints before design starts.
Request a free consultationCommon questions
Kitchens, Masonry & Firepits FAQ
Outdoor stone hearths in Chicagoland crack apart in five winters. We have seen it.
The failure mode is almost always water — water gets behind the veneer, freezes, and pries the stone off. Our masonry detail drains the wall: weep paths at the footing, flashing behind the veneer, and a stone (Buckingham Rustic Royal Chateau) selected for low water absorption to begin with. Drainage is a design decision before it is a build decision.
We will live with this hearth for thirty years. Picking the wrong stone is forever.
Right. The stone choice is named at the design stage so it can be reviewed, sample-walked, and signed off before any masonry is set. Default is Buckingham Rustic Royal Chateau veneer; alternates get specified by name when the design calls for them.
The grill will be obsolete before the masonry pays off.
The masonry is designed around standard built-in appliance dimensions and accessible fuel/electrical runs — so the grill, side burner, or refrigerator can be replaced without tearing out the stone. The masonry is permanent; the appliance is serviceable.
How do we know this firm actually builds at award level?
The Outdoor Chef's Dream Kitchen project — pictured on this page and detailed at /projects/outdoor-chefs-dream-kitchen — received the 2022 ILCA Silver Award from the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association. Peer-reviewed recognition for the masonry, appliance integration, and design execution on that specific project.
Recognition
ILCA Silver · 2022ILCA Silver Award · 2022
The Illinois Landscape Contractors Association awarded our Outdoor Chef's Dream Kitchen project the Silver designation — peer-reviewed recognition for craftsmanship, masonry, and design integration on the line you're reading about.
See the awarded project →Begin a conversation
Plan a hearth that outlasts the appliance.
Free, on-site consultation across DuPage, Cook, and Will Counties. Stone, drainage, and appliance layout named at the design stage — sample-walked, signed off, then built.