They Gave Their Bland Brooklyn Kitchen a "Chef’s Table"–Inspired Upgrade

Solk Architecture turns a tiny galley into a home cook’s dream, complete with an herb garden, a custom island, and cabinetry galore.

Jun 10, 2024 - 20:17

They Gave Their Bland Brooklyn Kitchen a "Chef’s Table"–Inspired Upgrade

Solk Architecture turns a tiny galley into a home cook’s dream, complete with an herb garden, a custom island, and cabinetry galore.

Solk Architecture turned this tiny Brooklyn kitchen into a home cook’s dream, complete with an herb garden, a custom island, and cabinetry galore.

Our Focus series shines the spotlight on the details: the extraordinary materials, spaces, and ideas that take great projects to the next level.

Kyle Meeks and Inky Son are passionate about cooking and entertaining, so they always dreamed of renovating the cramped, cookie-cutter kitchen in their east Williamsburg apartment. Kyle bought the flat in 2012, Inky moved in a few years later, and the apartment has since become home for the busy professional couple and their dog, Banjo.

Although the apartment was built in 2007, Inky notes that the kitchen always felt a little underdone. "It was your typical NYC apartment layout," she says. "There was not enough storage, a microwave above the stove (our pet peeve), a small sink, and cheap finishes."

Kyle and Inky recruited Solk Architecture to fully renovate their cramped kitchen that was lacking in flow and efficiency. — Before: Kyle Meeks and Inky Son say that their original kitchen felt "chaotic" when hosting. It had a cramped layout and builder-grade materials.
Leah Kiren Solk

When Kyle and Inky decided it was time to overhaul their kitchen, they reached out to architect Leah Solk. "My inspiration was Inky’s cooking passion," says Solk. "I wanted guests to feel like they were having a Chef’s Table experience."

Fun fact: Inky, who is <span style="font-family: Theinhardt, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif;">SVP of Strategy and Chief of Staff for the NBA, is a passionate home cook and attended culinary school in 2019 to refine her home cooking skills. </span> — Inky, who is SVP of strategy and chief of staff for the NBA, is a passionate home cook who attended culinary school in 2019 to refine her skills.
Rachael Stollar

The renovation took a total of eleven months, including three months of construction time. Solk points out that the original layout was limited because of the orientation of the peninsula, which didn’t leave enough space for a true dining area.