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We all have friends who host with absolute ease. They produce an array of delicacies well before the visitors arrive and rather than appear frazzled and harassed, they easily chat and make the meals without missing a beat.

The key is in the arrangement of the kitchen. if you enjoy hosting parties, below are tips on how to design your kitchen and make it practical, unfussy and with an efficient workflow.

Open plan kitchen

Frequent entertainers need to think big. An open-plan kitchen is ideal as it provides ease of movement and access to and from the dining area, recommends Kamawe Nugi, managing partner of Associated Architects.

The kitchen should be spacious with non-slip floor tiles and wall tiles from the ceiling for easy cleaning. Windows should be large enough to allow in natural lighting during the day and florescent tubes at night, which give a daylight effect.

A party lovers cooking area should allow more than one person to cook at a time. this would ideally have a six-burner cooker usable from all the space around it. below the cooker, have extra large two single ovens rather than one oven. a warming drawer comes in handy to keep the cooked food warm. a kitchen ceiling hood extractor will extract fumes to prevent smoke filling the kitchen.

Preparation area should be long enough to accommodate sharing. Granito work tops are easy to maintain and durable. They should preferably be close to two double drainer stainless steel sinks for easy cleaning of food items. this enables one person to wash vegetables in one sink and still leave ample room for another person to clear up the dishes. a hot water tap at the sink is also necessary for washing greasy dishes or quick peeling of tomatoes.

In addition to non-slip floor tiles, there should be no steps between the kitchen and dining to prevent slipping and falling. Fire safety equipment including portable fire extinguishers and blankets should be provided.

A first Aid kit should be readily available in case of minor cuts and injuries and smoke detectors are also important.

Involve your guests in the cooking by having an outdoor cooking space with a barbeque stove for nyama choma. An outdoor lounging area adjacent to the kitchen would provide an alternative for the parents and grandparents who want to sit and chat as they catch up on good old days.

Good storage is vital to keep clutter away. a well-ventilated pantry is essential for storing smaller portions of foodstuff of cereals like rice, maize flour and wheat. High and low storage cabinets in the kitchen provide space for spices and seasoning, crockery and cutlery.

A sizeable kitchen yard is useful for receiving and sorting supplies to and from the kitchen as well as for storing empty bottle crates, charcoal and firewood, barbecue jiko and huge amounts of garbage accumulated in the party aftermath.

Rather than have two small single fridges, it is better to have a large refrigerator to set salads and desserts before hand as well as store leftovers. Door shelves will come in handy to chill wines and beverages.

An enclosed kitchen is useful to hide all the clutter preparation from your guests.

A large window opening out to a serving area can be used to serve the food without granting access into the kitchen. if it is not self-service, use wheeled trolleys to ease serving. a bar complete with bar stools can be used to demarcate the kitchen from the dining area and is a lure to let the party begin.

A perfect kitchen for party lovers

sanyo s micro-computerized rice cooker also acts as a warmer so even if your rice has finished cooking before you re ready to serve dinner it will stay warm without cooling. the rice cooker and warmer has a 3.5-cup capacity making it ideal for smaller portions or for individuals or couples. an extra-thick inner cooking pot is made of easy-clean titanium-coated nonstick and has a rounded bottom for maximum heat distribution. a 24-hour clock has a preset timer that allows you to set it and go. in addition this cooker allows for dol sot bi bim bap which is a quintessential korean rice dish; bi bim bap combines bits of beef and slivered vegetables. cooked rice is placed in the pot (dol sot) heated for several minutes and topped with the other ingredients. an exclusive sanyo feature.

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