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The New Living Room
Tips for Making the Kitchen
More Livable
More Livable
Today's kitchen is far more than a place to cook. It's a space where families and friends eat, converse, work, relax and entertain. Mathieu Sabbagh, director of cooking for Siemens Home Appliances, sees the kitchen evolving into the focal point of the home. "It needs to be both functional and aesthetically appealing," he says.
Sabbagh, who is instrumental in the design of Siemens products, is a fan of the communal kitchen. His home kitchen houses a 96-inch wooden table with benches on either side to accommodate as many friends as possible at the large casual dinner parties he loves to throw. Here, he shares a few tips for making the heart of the home a place you and yours can love:
- No man is an island, but in the kitchen, everyone likes to gather around one. The ideal livable kitchen has a center island of some sort, so that cooking and socializing converge. Pull up a few barstools or tall director's chairs, and let the chopping – and the conversation begin. A large table is a good alternative, and it multi-tasks as a home or office work surface.
- If they're good, you look good. Choose appliances that have clean lines, are easy to use and make you more successful (and relaxed) as a cook. Sabbagh is partial to the xTronic™ convection range from Siemens, which "has all the great features anyone could ever need in a 30-inch range ... and it's very easy to clean."
- See but don't hear. Look for appliances that are quiet. It's hard to carry on a conversation or listen to music over the din of a loud dishwasher. The Siemens hiDefinition™ Dishwasher has a soundCheck™ system for super-quiet performance.
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