Backyard BBQ Boom
By Gretchen Macchiarella, Ventura County Star, Calif.
Jun. 11--The Robinson family spent the first three months of the year remodeling the backyard of their Oxnard home.
After stripping the yard down to dirt and a few mature trees, the area was transformed into a sanctuary for cooking, eating, relaxing, socializing and soaking in the hot tub. And there was some lawn set aside for roughhousing with the dog, Maxwell.
"I didn't intend to go this crazy on the backyard," Russ Robinson said.
The project seemed to grow as the family picked what was deemed must-have things. The outdoor kitchen needed a refrigerator, grill, burner, power and running water. The yard called for a small waterfall surrounded by grass and sitting areas. The cost was a bit more than $60,000.
They aren't the only ones upgrading the backyard. The grill business increased 44 percent from 1992 to 2005, with manufacturers shipping 15 million grills to retailers in 2005, according to the State of the Barbecue Industry Report by the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association.
Last year, 81 percent of households owned a grill and 22 percent owned more than one, according to the report. Nationally, people use grills 26 times per year and 44 percent fire a grill up more than one to two times during the peak outdoor season.
Of those surveyed for the report, 42 percent planned to get patio furniture and larger grills.
That's good news for companies such as Viking, Lynx, Weber and Fire Magic that offer grills with more than 5 square feet of cooking space and lines of built-in appliances, drawers, carts and beer taps. The industry is tapping into people's Cadillac desires -- bigger, shinier and primed for entertaining. The professional-style grills can hold a dozen steaks, rotate three whole chickens or sear Ahi tuna.
It all comes with the luxury price tag. Tolentino said barbecues start at $899 and can go as high as $10,000 for a 84-inch model. He estimates the store's average sale is $3,500 to $4,000 -- before installation. Larger additions such as a pizza oven or a fireplace are sold as an unfinished fire box and a chimney.
At Stuart's Barbecue & Fireplace Design Center in Oxnard, Stuart McDonald said he sold 22 pizza ovens last year. The shell of a pizza oven alone costs about $3,500, and he recommends people budget $10,000 for the entire project.
Not everyone is prepared for the cost of the installation, said Heidi Jacobsen of Joseph Jacobsen Landscapes in Thousand Oaks. A full outdoor kitchen requires power, gas, water and a sewer hook-up, then the construction can begin. Custom finishes such as rock or slate push the cost up. Most kitchens are installed as part of a larger landscaping project. More recently, the trend has been to build an entire living space that includes a fireplace with a dining or living room set-up, said Joseph Jacobsen. "The whole outdoor room experience is going to cost $100,000," he said. "It could be upwards of $200,000."
The Jacobsens use their own backyard to test products. They are putting in an outdoor fireplace now because that's what clients are requesting for their own homes. A flagstone patio is the first step. Magazines and books, tucked in among grills, burners and tongs at Stuart's Barbecue, show the evolution of a backyard to a complete oasis, stretching beyond the glint of stainless steal.
Many backyard designs are now covered by some sort of a roof, continuing the feel of a true room. McDonald said the next "big thing" comes around about every six months. Despite increasing prices, McDonald said he sees less sticker shock from people walking in the store. Families that want an outdoor kitchen or room have generally made the decision to spend a good chuck of money, and they want it to complement their home, he said.
McDonald sees a lot of reasons for the changing mentality. The cocooning that so many families did after the terrorist attacks of 2001 has continued in a lot of ways. There is more emphasis on entertaining at home and less on traveling. Increasing home values have made renovations appealing as an investment, and home equity lines of credit have provided ample funding. There is even a movement toward healthier eating that has supported the grilling industry, with flame broiling fish and fresh vegetables becoming more popular.
The Robinsons agree. "We don't take big trips," said Russ' wife, Kim. "We spend a lot of time at home." The high cost made sense to them. Glossy catalogs feature the latest products such as an infrared burner, which uses a ceramic honeycomb to produce a super-hot surface for searing meat or fish. Rugged blenders, refrigerators, burners, woks and full ovens are all available.
But there is one specific request in Ventura County, McDonald said. "The guys will walk in and say, 'This is nice,'" he said, gesturing to a Lynx gas grill, "'but what do you have in charcoal?'" The slow cooking process -- barbecue as opposed to grilling -- seems to have more of a foothold in the areas that are used to the Santa Maria style tri-tip, McDonald said. He offers a customized Santa Maria grill that can be built in. It allows large cuts of meat to be raised and lowered over low, consistent heat.
The Robinson's outdoor kitchen features something rather unusual, The Evo Grill, which is a round, solid grill about two feet in diameter. Similar to a Japanese hibachi grill, the top gets smoking hot and can be used for everything from pizza to salmon. "I use it more than the barbecue " Russ Robinson said.
On a weeknight, the Evo heats up quickly for a stir-fry. On weekend mornings, it can be used to make bacon and eggs. A surrounding counter serves as the dining room. Even with all the marble and stainless steel in the outdoor kitchen, the wood burning fireplace and sitting area has become a favorite for Kim Robinson. "In the morning, we come out here and have coffee or tea, and you can see the waterfall," she said. "It's just great." They followed their builder John Corona's advice by creating multiple uses and seating areas to break up the backyard and create conversation areas for large parties. Such high-end work is a major shift in the backyard industry that was previously dominated by seeded lawns and gray concrete patios. Landscape store owner Jacobsen said back in 1965 when he started, $5,000 was a big project. "People expect more, they want more," he said.
Some of the newest requests are hidden stereo speakers, multiple lighting levels and hot water or dishwashers, said John Corona, owner of Corona Landscape. The boom in backyard projects means people must wait for a lot of things. It might be two weeks before Corona has time to check out a backyard. After that, a major project can take three weeks or more. "It is like an addition to your home," said John's wife, Barbara.
