8 Stylish Outdoor Kitchens With Bar-Style Seating
These entertaining-friendly setups offer inspiring ideas for outdoor kitchens in a range of styles and sizes
Bar seating blurs the line between sitting and standing height, giving outdoor kitchens a casual feel and providing the guests who always hang out around the grill with a place to roost. If you’re considering including bar-style seating in your outdoor kitchen, take a look at these inspiring outdoor kitchen designs that all invite you to pull up a seat.
When we talk about “bar-style” outdoor seating, we’re including seats of various heights that involve pulling a chair or stool up to a counter. This includes counter-height seating (chairs measure 24 to 27 inches from seat to ground) and true bar-height seating (chairs measure 28 to 32 inches from seat to ground).
When we talk about “bar-style” outdoor seating, we’re including seats of various heights that involve pulling a chair or stool up to a counter. This includes counter-height seating (chairs measure 24 to 27 inches from seat to ground) and true bar-height seating (chairs measure 28 to 32 inches from seat to ground).
Designer tip: Choose durable materials for outdoor furnishings. While she designed this space for mild Southern California weather and an almost entirely covered patio, Sorensen advises her clients to consider inclement weather when deciding what types of bar chairs to purchase and to choose materials that can withstand outdoor exposure.
Here, Sorensen selected French-style bar chairs and bar stools with seats and backs in a durable synthetic rattan black-and-white chevron weave.
Here, Sorensen selected French-style bar chairs and bar stools with seats and backs in a durable synthetic rattan black-and-white chevron weave.
2. Artisan Touch in Tucson
Landscape designer Elizabeth Przygoda-Montgomery, founder of BOXHILL, urges clients to think beyond typical finishings and furniture when it comes to their outdoor spaces.
For a garden in the Catalina mountains above Tucson, Arizona, the designer had a local artisan make a set of counter-height chairs from wrought iron to match the client’s antique wrought-iron gate. The seats sit below a countertop made from Terrazzo concrete.
Przygoda-Montgomery used the backsplash as another opportunity to showcase local artistry, bringing in hand-painted tiles in cobalt blue and capping the wall with a locally carved stone.
Landscape designer Elizabeth Przygoda-Montgomery, founder of BOXHILL, urges clients to think beyond typical finishings and furniture when it comes to their outdoor spaces.
For a garden in the Catalina mountains above Tucson, Arizona, the designer had a local artisan make a set of counter-height chairs from wrought iron to match the client’s antique wrought-iron gate. The seats sit below a countertop made from Terrazzo concrete.
Przygoda-Montgomery used the backsplash as another opportunity to showcase local artistry, bringing in hand-painted tiles in cobalt blue and capping the wall with a locally carved stone.
Designer tip: Select your counter height carefully. When choosing a counter height that will feature seating, Przygoda-Montgomery recommends considering how the counter seating space fits in as part of the larger outdoor kitchen.
She prefers counter-height seating over taller bar-height seats. “Counter seating is more comfortable and easier than bar-height seating,” she says. “Plus, counter height makes every surface one height, so you aren’t cooking at one height and eating and serving from another height, if you were doing bar height.”
She prefers counter-height seating over taller bar-height seats. “Counter seating is more comfortable and easier than bar-height seating,” she says. “Plus, counter height makes every surface one height, so you aren’t cooking at one height and eating and serving from another height, if you were doing bar height.”
3. Cherry Red in Chicago
Landscape architect Michael Norpell designed this striking outdoor kitchen in Chicago’s Highland Park neighborhood with a clever layout designed to bridge the height difference between counter height and bar height. Seen from the stool side (as in this photo), the island is bar height, at 42 inches, and pairs with the gleaming red bar-height stools.
Landscape architect Michael Norpell designed this striking outdoor kitchen in Chicago’s Highland Park neighborhood with a clever layout designed to bridge the height difference between counter height and bar height. Seen from the stool side (as in this photo), the island is bar height, at 42 inches, and pairs with the gleaming red bar-height stools.
Norpell added a step up on the back side of the island, bringing the floor up to create a 36-inch-tall outdoor kitchen. This created a more standard counter-height range from 35 to 37 inches, generally considered to be the best height for a work surface. The result is a combination of bar-height seating and counter-height work surfaces without a split-level kitchen island.
4. Swivel Seating in Northern California
In this compact outdoor kitchen design by Laura Martin Bovard of LMB Interiors, bar-style seats can be rotated outward when in use or tucked away to keep the floor space clear.
In this compact outdoor kitchen design by Laura Martin Bovard of LMB Interiors, bar-style seats can be rotated outward when in use or tucked away to keep the floor space clear.
Bovard hunted down the former factory seats (from Big Daddy’s Antiques) and had them mounted to the outdoor kitchen island to comfortably slot below the custom concrete countertop. The kitchen also features a built-in grill and smoker, as well as an outdoor sink.
5. Cool Blues in Iowa
This freestanding outdoor kitchen in Des Moines, Iowa, designed by Holly DeGoey of DeGoey Designs, makes for a party-ready seasonal outdoor hangout. Colorful blue bar chairs pull up to a bar-height counter that’s perfect for sipping drinks. An outdoor rug on the kitchen side of the island pulls the blue tones down to ground level while leafy hanging plants help round out the scene.
This freestanding outdoor kitchen in Des Moines, Iowa, designed by Holly DeGoey of DeGoey Designs, makes for a party-ready seasonal outdoor hangout. Colorful blue bar chairs pull up to a bar-height counter that’s perfect for sipping drinks. An outdoor rug on the kitchen side of the island pulls the blue tones down to ground level while leafy hanging plants help round out the scene.
6. Under the Pergola in Virginia
This outdoor entertaining area designed by Outdoor Dreams features plenty of indoor comforts, including a ceiling fan to stir the air, a TV for game days, shade from a pergola overhead and comfortable countertop seating for guests to relax.
This outdoor entertaining area designed by Outdoor Dreams features plenty of indoor comforts, including a ceiling fan to stir the air, a TV for game days, shade from a pergola overhead and comfortable countertop seating for guests to relax.
The design includes a split-level countertop and bar top — where the chairs are pulled up to — allowing food prep to be kept separate from drinks and nibbles.
7. Muted Tones in Orange County
This modern farmhouse-style outdoor kitchen designed by Molly Wood Garden Design and built by Christiano Homes includes a welcoming L-shaped countertop with counter-height seating for four. The design team used soft tones of gray wood, pale flooring and brushed concrete to create a muted color scheme that makes the greens of the garden stand out in comparison. Can you spot the clever way the designer hid the outdoor TV behind a sliding barn-style panel?
This modern farmhouse-style outdoor kitchen designed by Molly Wood Garden Design and built by Christiano Homes includes a welcoming L-shaped countertop with counter-height seating for four. The design team used soft tones of gray wood, pale flooring and brushed concrete to create a muted color scheme that makes the greens of the garden stand out in comparison. Can you spot the clever way the designer hid the outdoor TV behind a sliding barn-style panel?
8. Swings in Tampa
Get a little playful with your interpretation of bar seats, as was done here for this Treasure Island-themed poolside watering hole by ZaZoo’d interior design. The designer used thick, rustic ropes and chunky hardware to anchor the swings to the overhang created by the home’s second story.
Get a little playful with your interpretation of bar seats, as was done here for this Treasure Island-themed poolside watering hole by ZaZoo’d interior design. The designer used thick, rustic ropes and chunky hardware to anchor the swings to the overhang created by the home’s second story.
Bar Stool Height Guide
1. Counter stool height: Chair measures 24 to 27 inches from seat to ground. This size chair typically pairs with 35- to 37-inch-tall counter heights. Counter-height chairs are the easiest to get in and out of for anyone with impaired mobility.
2. Bar stool height: Chair measures 28 to 32 inches from seat to ground. Pair a bar-height chair with 41- to 43-inch-tall counters.
3. Extra-tall bar stool height: Sometimes referred to as “spectator height,” these extra-tall chairs measure 33 to 36 inches from seat to ground. This size chair typically pairs with 44- to 47-inch-tall counters.
More on Houzz
Bar Stool Height Guide
10 Party-Ready Specialty Outdoor Kitchen Features
Browse thousands of patio photos
Hire a landscape contractor
Shop for your outdoor spaces
1. Counter stool height: Chair measures 24 to 27 inches from seat to ground. This size chair typically pairs with 35- to 37-inch-tall counter heights. Counter-height chairs are the easiest to get in and out of for anyone with impaired mobility.
2. Bar stool height: Chair measures 28 to 32 inches from seat to ground. Pair a bar-height chair with 41- to 43-inch-tall counters.
3. Extra-tall bar stool height: Sometimes referred to as “spectator height,” these extra-tall chairs measure 33 to 36 inches from seat to ground. This size chair typically pairs with 44- to 47-inch-tall counters.
More on Houzz
Bar Stool Height Guide
10 Party-Ready Specialty Outdoor Kitchen Features
Browse thousands of patio photos
Hire a landscape contractor
Shop for your outdoor spaces
In the backyard of Los Angeles-based interior designer Jill Sorensen, the lines between indoor and outdoor spaces blur under a vast covered patio.
The designer included two bar-style seating counters in this party-friendly space: The first is by the outdoor kitchen and the second connects to a pass-through window next to the kitchen inside the house. The set of stools drawn up to the concrete slab countertop take advantage of the best view from the property.
The second set of chairs sits outside the pass-through window leading to the kitchen inside the house. “They’re perfect for serving drinks,” Sorensen says.