Lexington, KY - After "lucking" into their spacious Beaumont lot two and a half years ago, one of the first home improvement steps Rick and Tonya Parsons took was to create an outdoor dining and entertainment haven. With the final stages of the project - a masonary-built stone and brick gas fireplace - recently completed, this outdoor living space, located adjacent to the home's basement and beneath an overhang, stands to be the most popular gathering spot in the couple's roomy 4,000 sq. ft. home.
"We entertain quite a bit. We have family over and kind of do that 'Sopranos' dinner on Sundays," Rick said. "We're both involved with the UK Alumni Association, so we have some functions with that. With the backyard and the green space that we have, we decided we wanted something nice where we could sit outside and eat and hang out."
When it's just the two of them, the couple typically dines on the screened-in, bug-proof upper patio, located above the outdoor kitchen; however, an outdoor table located on the downstairs, open-air patio can seat at least 10. Rick estimates that when the weather is forgiving, the couple cooks outside at least once a week.
Installed by local, family-owned Denger's Hearth and Home, the couples' outdoor kitchen is equipped with a five-burner gas grill, a refrigerator, sink and the ever-faithful "Big Green Egg," a ceramic-lined, charcoal-based smoking grill that is based on an ancient Japanese clay cooker known as a "kamado." (The couple's hot tub, which sits adjacent to the outdoor kitchen area, provides an added bonus for entertaining, particularly on cooler evenings.)
Brian Denger of Denger's Hearth and Home is particularly proud of this job, he said, because his crew was able to work in all of the features the Parsonses wanted despite some serious limitations within the space (created by the wall of the house and a brick retaining wall next to the patio that provide little space between).
"We were able to get in everything he was looking for within this tight space," Denger said. That included incorporating the "Big Green Egg," which the couple already possessed, alongside the larger gas grill, which Rick said he mainly uses when cooking burgers, hot dogs, chicken - anything for large groups. When cooking for just himself and Tonya, Rick typically uses "the Egg," which Denger likens to a rocket ship because of its shape and vent placement, and Rick says is great for ribs, pork tenderloin, briskets and steaks.
"When you grill steaks on it, you can get it up to about 800 degrees," Denger said, adding that opposed to most smokers, the ceramic cooker only takes one small piece of wood to lend the desired smoky flavor to what's cooking. The cooker also prevails at locking in the juices from the meat, meaning there's a really good chance the steak will still taste great even if overcooked. "It's so tight, with the ceramic, that it will actually put the charcoal out when you close it, so you can reuse your charcoal," Denger added. "It's a very interesting type of cooking."
Though he couldn't quite pinpoint why, Rick said that food cooked outside "just tastes better." Tonya, who describes her own degree of kitchen expertise as being more "casserole-oriented" ("I'm a lasagna type of girl."), appreciates the ambience of the outside setting.
"It makes an outdoor event more harmonious, because everyone's in one area - you're not separated by rooms," she said. Additionally, the couple has been fortunate enough to attract hummingbirds, woodpeckers, cardinals and even the occasional falcon and blue herring in their deep, sloping backyard.
Now that they've perfected the first stage of their outdoor living area, the Parsonses are looking into plans for the rest of the yard. Perhaps next in line is a cornhole set-up, Rick said.
"I've got plans for a pool," Tonya injected.