In 1994, Zachary Smith took a crowbar to the interior of his small North Beach house and completely demoed the place himself, all the way down to the original walls, which were horizontal planks nailed to studs and covered with cloth. The house dates back to 1906 -- one of the thousands of hastily-built shacks that sprang up all over San Francisco after the earthquake. When he was done with the demo, Zachary sat down and drew up the plans for his new, minimal, Japanese-influenced interior.
Visiting his house today, it's hard to believe that he undertook this massive project almost 15 years ago. The kitchen, in particular, is very expressive. Like Zachary, it's creative, quirky, and way ahead of its time...and yet there is something very down to earth happening here, too. This is a kitchen that is truly used and loved and appreciated everyday.
The walls are clad in etched galvanized sheet metal and some of the original horizontal planking. The countertop is a beautiful smooth pool table slate but the surface was left unfinished, so it needs to be protected from acids like lemon juice. The stovetop is GE, the oven is Thermador and the dishwasher Bosch but the refrigerator stands out as unique: a super-efficient, handmade Sun Frost, custom wrapped in stainless steel.
After several years away in Boston and Italy, Zachary and his wife, Marsha Platt, returned to their North Beach neighborhood with their two young daughters, Corona and Milena. When Zachary first remodeled his house, he didn't necessarily have a family of four in mind. But, it turns out, they all fit rather well and the kitchen serves its classic role as the primary place for everyone to gather.
Here's our kitchen tour questionnaire -- with the whole family pitching in with answers!
What’s your favorite tool or implement?
Zachary: My Bunmei cleaver.
Corona: The Squeez-inart!
Marsha: The media center for looking up recipes.
Everyone: The Nespresso aeroccino milk frother.
Best cooking advice or tip you’ve received?
Zachary: Don’t be afraid of spices...and if you love to eat, then you have to love to cook.
Marsha: Edward Espe Brown’s quote about when you cut the vegetables, just cut the vegetables. Nothing extra.
What is the biggest challenge in your kitchen?
M: Not enough storage and the fact that we can’t have more then 3 or 4 people at a time over to dinner.
Cooking style?
Marsha: The classic Chez Panisse mantra: good ingredients cooked simply.
Zachary: Make it up as you go along with whatever’s around, mad scientist-style. In Italy I learned how simple good food can be. I was also influenced growing up by my Japanophile father and later the Mexican, Thai and Italian food in San Francisco.
Biggest indulgence?
Triple cream cheese and the Nespresso set up.
The most whimsical thing in your kitchen?
The blue sink.
What’s always in your pantry?
Z: Rice, olive oil, tofu. I used to cook a lot with sherry but lately I’ve replaced it with balsamic vinegar. It’s got the same sweetness but with more intense flavors.
Favorite Ingredient:
Everyone: Gomasio, a Japanese toasted sesame and salt combo that we sprinkle on everything.
Favorite markets?
Z: Trader Joe’s. And Whole Foods because of the Wall of Broccoli. I feel very fulfilled by the Wall of Broccoli.
Desert Island Cookbook?
M: I would print out or clip all my favorite recipes and put them in a binder.
Your culinary childhood?
Z: My Mom served a lot of balanced, healthy meals. Then my Dad was hit with Japan Fever and we ate a lot of Japanese food, or our attempts at Japanese food. My Mom also took up the whole hippie vegetarian food thing, which consisted of a lot of badly cooked brown rice.
M: Meat, veg and starch combo--very classic. I grew up in LA, so I was exposed to Mexican food pretty early on. But our favorite place to eat was an old diner on Peco called The Apple Pan. It’s the restaurant where if everybody ate there, there would be world peace.
Interesting fact about Zachary: When he lived in Boston, Zachary built a traditional Japanese tea house in his back yard. He designed and constructed the entire thing by himself, mostly using traditional Japanese hand tools. (Well, he had some help in the end from Marsha.) It took him two years to complete, then the family sat down for one cup of tea before they left to move to Italy. Says Zachary: "I haven't seen it since. I think it's a bicycle shed now." Details and some of Zachary's poems are here.
Related: Kitchen Tour: A Lovely 'Before' from Rena and Derek
The owners don't look very happy or zen....
view Elissa at Poor Man's Feast's profile
The Apple Pan is on Pico, not Peco.
view pdxbiker's profile
I want to know more about the table and bench! It looks like it slides out to make space for a bed. Can it be true? A bed in the kitchen?
view squidlette's profile
I love the windows!! Big windows in the kitchen are so great. I like the galvanized metal more than I thought I would. How neat that it continues down the hall and is used as a magnetic board.
view mbs's profile
I love the design elements, but the cluttered countertops make me wince. The first thing taught in culinary school is mis en place (everything in it's place). Serious cooks live and die by it. A little more harmony and a lot less junk would make the kitchen more professional and Japanese in style.
view crayon's profile
I'm loving the big windows as well as the Japanese influenced designs, however that space under the beautiful sink that should be concealed is disabling me from seeing the whole serenity of the place.
view jkea's profile
In response to the above comments, I've never been in a Japanses kitchen that wasn't cluttered (but the owners know where everything is). J-kitchens tend to be tiny with limited storage.
Also, it's nice to see photos where a space looks natural rather than staged (the dishrack full of clean equipment).
view mellon's profile
Wow. This is one of the nicest kitchens I've seen! I love it. Don't know how Japanese-inspired it is... but whatever. I love every detail, color, and attitude of the space. People and fridge contents look real... not posing, which I like. I'm gonna bookmark it :>
view toki4004's profile
I think people are confusing real japanese living style with zen-minimalist designer style. real japanese kitchens are tiny and cluttered, feature rather large rice cookers, rarely have an oven, and usually have these ugly water heaters on the wall. Check out Tokyo: a Certain Style for a better idea of real-life japanese living.
I also LOVE gomashio! I brought a supply back when I went to Japan last summer.
view ange_lune's profile
The table/bench looks like such a cozy place to eat or have a cup of tea! I will be over around 10-ish tomorrow morning for scrambled eggs with gomasio . . .
@ Elissa: Funny, I've always thought big camera-ready grins weren't very zen.
view Tiny Banquet's profile
LOVING the short long table and bench and chairs arrangement... No high chairs needed for the young ones. Cozy on one side, formal/fast/flexible on t'other. Enthralling.
The storage area underneath, if you permit my curiosity, is used for what?
view Splomo's profile
More curiosity here, this time about the floor. There does not appear to be a step down to the cooking/entry/bathroom level.
My (very) basic understanding that in a traditional Japanese home those areas are positioned at a lower level and thought of as "outside," hence the use of waterproof slip-on shoes, as you have lined up under the dishwasher. I think I see a bare foot under the table in shot #24, however, and maybe Mama Marsha in the kitchen area in #26. Do you observe the shoe protocol loosely or strictly? Is it mostly practical, or aesthetic?
Sorry if these questions are way TMI (inquiry). You have a comfortable-looking, inspiring kitchen and a beautiful family. Thanks for sharing photos of your home.
view Splomo's profile
Hey, I just want to say that it's wonderful our little kitchen has kicked off such a lively discussion. Thanks to Dana for taking the time to photograph it and write it up. It was lovely having her come over, drink tea and hang out.
There were a couple of questions that I thought it might be fun to try and answer.
First of all, the sitting platform. The house has a few other features like this, which were inspired by a combination of boat furniture and Zendo design. The table does indeed pull out to provide more room for diners and loungers and also to allow people who aren't comfortable sitting cross-legged or seiza to dangle their legs. People have slept on it as well and it's pretty comfortable. The storage space underneath is used for extra dishes, infrequently-used serving items and linen.
Splomo asked an interesting question about shoe-protocol and the "inside-outside" nature of the kitchen and bathroom. We were keenly aware of this when we were working out the design. In a lot of traditional houses - not just in Japan - the "wet areas" are out back, either under a shed roof or really outside in a courtyard. In fact, given the way it's put together, it's likely that the original version of this house was the same. We wanted to honor this and so, as you can see in some pictures, there's a dividing line and the wet part of the kitchen is floored in green concrete which continues on into the bathroom. (There's a soaking tub built into the bathroom slab as well but that's another story.) The mossy green of the floor, the big windows and the heather and sky-blue stucco in the bathroom are all meant to refer to outside spaces. At the same time, the kitchen is the heart and central gathering place of our house. It didn't make sense to ask people to put on slippers - thereby shielding themselves from their environment - when entering. Our shoe protocol is as follows: leave your shoes inside the front door, barefoot inside the house, slippers on when you're going out back or onto the roof where there's an in-law shack.
Finally, regarding "mis-en-place", I'd say that, like everything else, it goes in waves. Since the kitchen is really our living room as well, it gets cluttered. The girls bring stuff in and leave it on the counters. We are constantly making tea or coffee or something else and only partially cleaning up. The table always has a project or two on it in addition to food and drink. It's a very dynamic place. But... there's a tremendous pleasure and utility in squaring everything away. We tend to do this before we cook big meals and at the end of the day. Still, it's safe to say that our kitchen looks the way it does in pictures most of the time (sigh).
Nothing whatsoever is hidden.
view stupahead's profile
I love it.
view fade on violet's profile
Thank you for answering our questions! I totally get the shoe system you describe, and am glad to be relieved of the notion of a shoes-on shoes-off two-step from sink to stove, etc. Your regard for the humans (shielding themselves from the environment, a pleasant and thought-provoking reversal of, "shoes off! icky!") says your home welcomes guests and serves your needs. Right ON.
view Splomo's profile
Love it but there is alot of clutter on those countertops - nj countertops
view replacementcounters.com's profile
Well in question answer session the biggest problem was , storage problem i noticed. See this "Not enough storage and the fact that we can’t have more then 3 or 4 people at a time over to dinner."
well in my opinion Kitchen design should be unique and much wide where one can easily place many kitchen accessories, dinner sets , glass and much more.
This is how we can get it via some good budget hosting plan for kitchen along with proper colocation hosting and voip services. t's likely that the original version of this house was the same. We wanted to honor this and so, as you can see in some pictures, there's a dividing line and the wet part of the kitchen is floored in green concrete which continues on into the bathroom. (There's a soaking tub built into the bathroom slab as well but that's another story.) The mossy green of the floor, the big windows and the heather and sky-blue stucco in the bathroom are all meant to refer to outside spaces. At the same time, the kitchen is the heart and central gathering place of our house. It didn't make sense to ask people to put on slippers.
view Garry winnick's profile