If you think a kitchen is just a place to prepare a meal or do the dishes, think again. Whether in an upscale community such as Liberty Station or in one-of-a-kind architectural masterpieces in La Jolla, today’s kitchens feature new designs and state-of-the-art appliances that take them to a new level of sophistication and high performance.

Guys and Gadgets

Men are influencing many of those trends. Not surprisingly, a buzzword in the building industry is dual-gendered kitchens, says Steve McGill, vice president of Corky McMillin Cos., which is building new homes at Liberty Station in Point Loma on the site of the old Naval Training Center. Liberty Station home prices start in the low $600,000s.

“When we’re merchandising, we have to be mindful of (gender),” McGill says. “Kitchens are much more masculine than they used to be.”

The reason is, men spend more time emulating Emeril, the chef who became a household name through his show on the Food Network. “The man is getting involved in the kitchen because he and his wife have got people coming over and he’s going to show off his culinary talents,” McGill says. Men particularly love gadgets. “They like the big knobs, the high BTUs,” McGill says, which translate into upgrades to commercial-grade cooktops by Wolf or Viking.

Emeril aside, home buyers who upgrade from standard kitchen fare at the high-end Liberty Station communities — Admiralty Row and Beacon Point — generally gravitate toward stainless steel appliances, BTU ovens, granite slab countertops, wine coolers (also known as wine captains) and plate racks, in which the dishes are displayed vertically. White appliances and cabinets, however, still have their fan base, making up 40 percent of the kitchens at Liberty Station, McGill says.

Lighting also has become more elegant and efficient. “It used to be that the kitchen would be as bright as possible,” McGill says. Now home buyers have the option of purchasing pendant lights, which hang over the kitchen island, for example. “We’re just selling the heck of out of those,” he says.

Pendant lights allow the homeowner to create a mood in a small space, McGill explains, and that’s perfect for the island, which has become a center of entertaining.

Upgrade Mania

Home buyers at other new home communities, such as 4S Ranch in North County and Otay Ranch in the South Bay, take advantage of upgrades as well.

Pacific Coast Communities homes at Otay Ranch start in the high $400,000s. They come with a standard kitchen package that includes white tile countertops, oak cabinetry, white or black Whirlpool appliances, and vinyl floors.

Many of the home buyers, however, opt for ceramic tile flooring, as well as cherry or maple cabinets, stainless steel appliances, Corian or granite countertops, and stainless steel sinks, says lla LaBrucherie of the home builder’s Design Center.

If a home buyer upgrades everything in a Pacific Coast Communities kitchen, it can add as much as $25,000 to the price tag of a new home. “Generally, people just want an updated look,” LaBrucherie says.

Upgrades at Pacific Coast do have their limitations. For example, all appliance upgrades must remain within the Whirlpool product line.

Not so at Palomino by K. Hovnanian in 4S Ranch, a master-planned community in North County. “It’s pretty much limitless,” says Heather Merritt, a Palomino sales associate.

While KitchenAid and Whirlpool Gold are standard appliances, Palomino home buyers often move up to the big boys like Sub-Zero for refrigeration and Viking for cooking and refrigeration. Viking, for example, features dual-fuel ranges with electric ovens and gas cooktops boasting 15,000 BTUs.

The Sky’s the Limit

Of course, homeowners can go one step further, depending on their lifestyle and the size of their wallet. Margaret Dean, a designer at Design Studio West in La Jolla who specializes in new kitchens and kitchen makeovers, knows the latest trends.

“The built-in fridge is a must in a high-end kitchen,” she says.

Integrated into the cabinetry, built-in appliances give a kitchen a seamless look. “Aesthetically, it gives you continuity of space instead of your eye stopping and starting, stopping and starting, at each appliance,” Dean explains.

Also popular in high-end kitchens is an annex or butler’s pantry, which acts as a staging area between kitchen and dining room or living room while entertaining. The space can accommodate another dishwasher, for example, or another refrigerator, as well as additional storage for nice dishes, she says.

Other trends she sees are honed granite countertops (in which the shine has been removed) and chip-resistant, fire-glazed sinks. “You buy the best sink that you can because it’s the most used appliance in your home,” she says.

You can see a sample of Dean’s work during the fall Kitchen Tour, organized by the San Diego chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers. For information, go to www.asidsandiego.com

Artistic Expressions

While brushed steel appliances may reveal a predilection for commercial kitchens, the backsplash can truly show off personality.

“The backsplash has become a creative outlet,” says McGill of McMillin Cos.

Liberty Station home buyers have a variety of treatments to select from, such as glass and, of course, stainless steel tile, he says. Unlike a countertop, which is subject to spills and must be a level surface, a backsplash has fewer restraints and demands special attention. “It’s a bigger palette to work with,” he says.

Dean agrees. “The backsplash reflects the personality of the homeowner and the personality of the house,” she says. “It helps define the space. It has infinite possibilities.”

No longer is the kitchen merely a place for meal creation. With a few artistic touches and fun appliance upgrades, it is the gathering place for most household events. Recognizing this, home builders and designers are putting more effort into its appearance.