12 Wooden Kitchen Ideas That Prove the Material’s Versatility

Jun 19, 2023

By Karin Jaeger

Wood is among the planet’s most versatile materials, and nothing proves that quite like a wooden kitchen. No longer confined to rustic styles in meal prep areas, designers are now using the material in many different aesthetics, from sleek Scandinavian designs to charming retro looks. Below, AD surveys 12 unique wooden kitchen ideas from top designers, showing just how many ways you can mix it up with the material.

The kitchen has served as the inspiration for a modular line from Garde Hvalsøe named Lykke, after the designer and client.

A central wooden island in designer Thomas Lykke’s kitchen provides an anchoring element between two large double doors. Additionally, the unit provides more functional storage space.

“We build kitchens for people who like to cook and appreciate wood,” Martin Mühlböck says.

The custom kitchen by Austrian firm Mühlböck includes three modular wall cabinets with reversible doors, a massive island, and even its own table. The white washing on the floors and walls offers an industrial touch.

The Danish company Vipp has long been known for its trash bins, tea kettles, lights, and even kitchens all in steel, making the choice of dark, oak veneer here a surprise.

In this kitchen, wood explores its darker, elegant side. V2 by Vipp combines a European, dark oak wood for the fronts and fine-pored, light Jura limestone with fossil inclusions for the countertop.

A light oak parquet helps to dissolve the boundaries between the kitchen, dining, and living areas.

When the owners of this pied-à-terre apartment designed by Ester Bruzkus Architecten are in Berlin, they like to host guests, and this open-plan kitchen serves as the center of a home dedicated to entertaining. The designer opted for a light oak cabinets and shelving, which pair nicely with the terrazzo countertops.

By placing the wood panels at different angles, the designers of the Intarsio kitchen from Cesar Cucine created an eye-catching pattern while “playing in a new language.”

By Morgan Goldberg

By Sara Barragán del Rey

By Ludovica Stevan

The Italian design studio García Cumini designed a kitchen system for Cesar that plays with contrasts: The linear form has wooden fronts with their grains arranged to create iridescent, graphic patterns.

Ash wood gets a luxurious makeover thanks to an anthracite-colored varnish in this kitchen designed by Holzrausch.

“We chose ash because the grain can be brought out beautifully with a varnish,” says Sven Petzold, co-chief executive officer of Holzrausch, about this dark kitchen, which provides structure to the room.

The Bossa kitchen from Leicht, with its expansive surfaces of wood, is also available in walnut.

With its oak veneers, the Bossa kitchen from Leicht looks light and airy, making it a perfect match for Scandinavian-inspired interiors.

The absence of handles and visible joints adds to the pure and simple elegance of the Layer kitchen, a celebration of Danish craftsmanship.

By Morgan Goldberg

By Sara Barragán del Rey

By Ludovica Stevan

The vertical grain of the plain oak fronts is meant to evoke the height of a forest while also bringing a natural sense of calm to this kitchen by Garde Hvalsøe. The softness of the light oak contrasts with the harsh concrete, creating a visually striking product.

The Bond Street kitchen is one of four Haberdasher designs from DeVOL, all built around display cases with many drawers.

The island is the centerpiece of DeVOL’s “Bond Street Haberdashery” kitchen. By adding in textural interest through the leather armchair and floor runner, the room pulls off rustic chic in a way that channels a high-end antique store.

The white-oak Konvent Kitchen by Der Raum is a study in monastic austerity.

By Morgan Goldberg

By Sara Barragán del Rey

By Ludovica Stevan

The Konvent Kitchen from Berlin-based studio Der Raum reflects several trends that are currently going strong in the high-end kitchen segment: a lavish use of high-quality, natural materials; a minimalist, timeless design language; and beautifully crafted appliances.

Designer Constanze Ladner, whose studio is based in Mainz, Germany, wanted to create a kitchen that responds to its location alongside a garden.

To bring nature indoors, designer Constanze Ladner created the wall paneling, cabinets, and parquet flooring in this kitchen from light oak wood. The wood creates a frame for the island, which is made from a statement apple-green onyx. The wood is almost “like an embrace,” according to Constanze. The seating area with a round table at the other side of the room also adds to the cozy feeling.

Oak cabinets atop brass legs are happy to play supporting roles to the tiled island in the center of this kitchen.

In New York’s hip East Village, the team at GRT Architects, based in Brooklyn, used oak wood and burgundy tiles to create a chic kitchen built on contrasts between colors and materials.