All that glitters

Sleek stainless steel provides a gleaming backdrop to a colorful collection of Murano glass in this high-tech apartment kitchen

A view of a kitchen by St Charles countertop, cuisine classique, interior design, kitchen, real estate, gray, black — A view of a kitchen by St Charles of New York.

A view of a kitchen by St Charles countertop, interior design, kitchen, real estate, room, gray

A view of a kitchen by St Charles flooring, interior design, kitchen, brown

A view of a kitchen by St Charles home appliance, kitchen, major appliance, refrigerator, brown

A view of a kitchen by St Charles cabinetry, countertop, interior design, kitchen, gray

A view of a kitchen by St Charles cabinetry, countertop, cuisine classique, home appliance, interior design, kitchen, room, white

A view of a kitchen by St Charles cabinetry, ceiling, countertop, cuisine classique, interior design, kitchen, under cabinet lighting, gray, brown

When homeowners in an historic Art Deco landmark building plan a classic kitchen, stainless steel is probably not the first material that comes to mind. But traditional ideas on what constitutes a classic look are changing.

Designer Robert Schwartz of St Charles of New York says in many cases, stainless steel is proving to be the versatile new neutral in a kitchen designer's palette.

It's a material he chose to work with for this new kitchen in an historic Art Deco building opposite Central Park

"The owners wanted a clean, linear, neutral look," Schwartz says. "They also wanted to showcase a colorful collection of Murano glass. Rather than choosing unusual wood grains and exotic stone, we decided a neutral, all stainless room would provide the classic backdrop they desired."

Gordan Rafajac of NY Landmark Construction, the company responsible for the refurbishment of the entire apartment, says the refit involved merging two existing apartments.

"This provided a total floor space of approximately 6300sq ft," he says. "The new kitchen needed to complement the new living area, in terms of both size and look, so additional space was obtained by utilizing a hallway and former laundry room."

Two separate galleys in the former space were opened up to provide a larger, more usable area. While the cooktop and sink are opposite each other in the main part of the room, the ovens, refrigerator and pantry are now in the former hallway. The kitchen was also opened up to the dining room to admit more light and provide a view.

Schwartz says the entire kitchen was fabricated from stainless steel.

"Stainless steel has the advantage of being the only sophisticated high-end material that can be fabricated as one seamless piece of architecture," he says. "But mixing metals takes finesse, as steel from different sources rarely matches."

Schwartz says the answer was to create custom panels for the dishwashers and refrigerator to match the custom cabinets. The countertop, backsplash and sink are welded together in one piece.

"Because these elements are on a different plane they blend harmoniously with the cabinetry."

Schwartz says adding glass doors to some of the stainless steel cabinets avoids a heavy metal look. The display cabinets also allow the Murano glass collection to take center stage against the otherwise neutral space.

The appliance hallway is further lightened by adding glass doors to the refrigerator and wine chiller.

Absolute Black granite was specified for countertops opposite the sink area. This provides a strong accent, yet doesn't detract from the dramatic effect of the stainless steel.

Limestone floor tiles help to seamlessly link the different areas and are in keeping with the classic look.

To provide the functionality expected of such a kitchen, there are double dishwashers and ovens, and extensive storage.