Many St. Louis homeowners are enhancing their outdoor kitchens with stone countertops—they’re durable and they blend seamlessly with the natural beauty of the outdoors.
Stone countertops give you the feel of being in the wilderness without really being in the woods.
Stone can handle high heat wonderfully; the right granite countertops can also withstand heavy duty BBQ prep with proper care.
Arch City Granite & Marble, Inc. has more than a decade of experience helping customers install beautiful stone countertops.
Considerations for Stone Counters for Outdoor Kitchens
Here’s what you need to know if you want durable, lasting, beautiful stone counters for an outdoor kitchen at your house:
- St. Louis weather gets hot and humid in the summer and dips well below freezing in the winter—sometimes temperatures and weather conditions fluctuate wildly within hours. The stone countertops for your kitchen must be strong enough to handle the St. Louis climate.
- The stone you choose has to handle regular exposure to UV sunlight without fading or discoloring.
- Barbeque prep is serious business; your outdoor stone countertops need to be very durable.
- Some ornamental edges like Elite or Roman Elite make stone countertops vulnerable to chipping when exposed to climate extremes—use Standard Straight or Half Round edges for your outdoor stone countertops.
Some stone slabs are more suited to handling these temperature extremes and heavy duty BBQ prep than others.
We strongly recommend granite countertops in St. Louis as they are simply the most durable and climate-friendly natural stone for the job.
We do not recommend using quartz countertops for outdoor kitchens. Although they are made of about 90% natural quartz, these engineered stone slabs also contain resins that discolor under UV rays and exposure to St. Louis climate extremes.
If you choose granite countertops, there are some granite slabs that are better for outdoor usage than others.
We often recommend Coffee Brown, Tan Brown and Black Pearl granite for outdoor countertops because they are already very dense and durable without resin treatment.
Some of the more exotic colors are treated with resins that aren’t engineered for the rigors of outdoor barbeque kitchens.
Other Types of Stone for Outdoor Kitchens
In addition to granite, there are other types of stone that you might consider.
Some homeowners choose sandstone, soapstone or limestone—keep in mind that these are softer stones than granite and may require more maintenance if used outdoors.
Need Stone Countertops for Barbecue Kitchens?
We have several other colors of granite in our Arch City Granite & Marble showroom that also work well as stone counters for barbeque kitchens outside, so your best bet is to come in and look at all of your options and we can help you find the stone that’s right for your outdoor countertops.