Kid in a Candy Store

Sam the Cooking Guy unwraps his sweet new kitchen

Sam Zien has the most recognizable kitchen in San Diego. Just about every time he chops, stirs or curses in it—which he's been known to do on occasion—someone is watching. So when Sam, a.k.a. The Cooking Guy, embarked on a remodel of his famous red kitchen in Carmel Valley, he thought he would be "the last guy to get screwed."

But screwed he did get. And quite publicly. His 20-year-old tract-home kitchen is where he films the Emmy Award–winning Sam the Cooking Guy. When demolition began, there was nowhere else for him and the show's crew to go. No fancy studio. No mock kitchen in a garage like they have on other TV cooking shows. Just a corner of Sam's home office that could accommodate an electric burner and a coffeemaker. The meager setup was heartbreaking, but he continued to cook and film—including a video blog of the remodel.

In January, the walls came down. By March, Sam found himself still without a kitchen—and, to his surprise, without a contractor. What he did have were unpaid vendors; appliances he had paid for that were never ordered; and his money gone with a contractor who had filed for bankruptcy and fled.

"Not because I'm brighter than anyone else, but simply because of what I do, I didn't think it could happen to me," Sam says. "I figured I have a fairly famous kitchen, so the guy that would do the job on it would do it the right way."

Chalk it up to a lesson learned. In true Sam fashion, he made the best of the dilemma, found a new contractor, had drywall in April and a spankin' new kitchen for all the world to see in July. His first episode in the remodeled space focused on food for celebrations. How's that for making lemonade out of lemons?

"The new kitchen wasn't designed for TV," Sam says. "We knew that at the end of the day, we'd still have to live here. Plus, we'll sell it eventually, and no one wants to buy a house with a studio in it."

"While it certainly doesn’t feel like a studio, the new kitchen does have a made-for-Hollywood appeal. Cabinets that were once a maple stain are now of striking zebrawood. Disco Inferno, an eye-catching glass tile from Oceanside Glass, lines the backsplash and walls.

"We were so overwhelmed when we went into the tile store," says Kelly (Mrs. Cooking Guy). "We stayed only 10 minutes, just long enough for me to do a quick loop around. When I saw the tile, I knew that was it. I knew the red glass would look great with the zebrawood. Plus, I love disco music!"

Turns out Kelly's eye for design and instinctual decision-making led to some of the best features in the kitchen.

Sam says matter-of-factly, "Here’s what I was responsible for: the wood countertop and the faucet over the sink. Kelly picked out everything else. She is one of those amazingly creative people, and she knows instantly what she wants."

After relocating the refrigerator and oven, Sam and the team at Charco Construction, his trusted new contractor, debated what to do with the empty wall space. Kelly immediately suggested turning it into a pantry. It wouldn't be very deep, but that was exactly her point.

"When we were getting ready for the remodel, we found products that were never used in the very back of the pantry," she says. "So now the pantry is only one product deep."

The "skinny pantry" may be shallow, but it runs the length and width of what could have been an empty, boring wall. Frosted glass doors from Sliding Door Company conceal the contents— from a tall olive-oil can to a collection of martini shakers to bottles of the black bean–garlic sauce Sam uses all the time—while allowing their shapes to come through.

While the pantry is a highlight in the new space, the island is Sam’s stage. He calls it his "giant-ass wooden counter," and it's one he's wanted for a long time. "I’m that Vancouver-born-and-raised kid who loves Chinese food," he says. "I loved going to Chinese restaurants and ordering duck and watching them pull it off a hook on the ceiling and chop it on a giant piece of wood that's probably been there 30 to 40 years. So I always wanted wood to prep on."

Today, Sam is like a child in a toy store, happy to have his new wooden toy to play with. He rubs his hands along the grain while explaining that the thick block of Southeast Asian teak was handrubbed, hand-stained and hand-hammered. Designed with severe angles that draw the focus into the kitchen, the island is irregular and unexpected— a perfect complement to the cook.

Updated Dacor appliances also fit the space well, including a range with six burners and a center griddle that’s used at least twice a day. Two convection ovens, a wall oven, a convection microwave and a new dishwasher round out the equipment.

The new kitchen is devoid of the former quirks—like the utility drawer that would collapse every time it was opened, the yellowish watermark from a leaky pipe and the missing built-in cutting board. But it does have one familiar attribute: red walls.

"We hadn't planned on going with red," Sam says. "But as I taught cooking classes and made appearances, I would mention the remodel, and people would always say, 'Your kitchen is going to be red, right?' I was surprised they had such a strong association with the red in the old kitchen."

Fortunately for his fans, red was a good fit for the modern design with a retro '60s feel. And fortunately for Sam, the remodel is a thing of the past. He can once again get back to chopping, stirring—and sometimes cursing—in his very own kitchen.

 

 

SIDE BAR

Sam's Hoisin Beef Skewers

"Hoisin is sort of like Asian barbecue sauce. It can be purchased from a regular grocery store," Sam says. "These can be made in five minutes and cooked in about five. That’s pretty darn good. Plus, you get to eat them off those cool little sticks. Put the steak in the freezer for about 15 minutes before slicing—it will make cutting it easier."

1/2 cup hoisin sauce (find it in the Asian aisle of the supermarket)
Juice from 2 limes
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 pound steak (I think a New York steak works well) Bamboo skewers
Chili sauce, to taste
Green onions, thinly sliced, for garnish
Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Mix well the hoisin, lime juice and garlic. Set aside.

Trim steak across grain into slices about ¼-inch thick. Thread steak onto skewers. Drizzle some of the sauce on the skewered meat, reserving some sauce for dipping.

Heat grill pan or barbecue grill really well. The skewers won’t take long to cook—grill for no more than two to three minutes a side. Sprinkle with green onions and sesame seeds. Mix a little chili sauce into the reserved dipping sauce, and serve on the side.

Makes about two dozen skewers.