Kitchen Cousins

The Kitchen Cousins leave no stone unturned as they tackle an old, beat up brownstone kitchen with no counter space and limited storage. Homeowners Shari and Carlito are tired of their impractical space and call in the cousins to see what they can do with it. Anthony and John immediately see the potential, but before anything can happen its got to be taken down to the studs. Then they build it back up, blending the old original brick walls and yellow pine floors with the new as they create a space with beautiful, modern Italian cabinets and a stainless steel island.

Meet the Orlandos, an Italian-American family living in a small condo. The main issue they're facing with their kitchen is one of safety: with three small children they have real concerns over an oven that opens all the way to the floor. Witih a baby about to start crawling, they needed to address that problem right away. The other issue is function, as the one-size-fits-all kitchen that the builders installed just isn't working for them. The Cousins realize that one way to open up the space is to remove the cheap granite countertop and substitute it with a one piece stainless steel one. But when the new countertop can't fit in the elevator, it almost derails the renovation. The next challenge is creating enough storage space. The Cousins plan to solve this problem with custom made Italian cabinets that reach the full height of the ceiling. Then to tie the living room to the kitchen, Anthony undertakes a special project.

Kitchen Cousins Anthony Carrino and John Colaneri tackle a suburban kitchen that's desperately in need of a renovation. The appliances are older than the cousins themselves, the doorway from the dining room into the kitchen is tiny and storage is non-existent. One pet peeve of the homeowner? The limited storage means his spices are stored all over the kitchen, which is hard when he's making dinner. And with no air conditioning, this space is unbearably hot! Anthony and John start by tearing down the wall between the kitchen and dining room, creating a much bigger, lighter space. They rip up the multiple layers of floors, putting in beautiful hardwoods and build a custom spice rack out of reclaimed wood. They also refurbish a beloved a chopping block island, making it much more functional for the homeowners.

The Kitchen Cousins, Anthony and John, meet Nalini, a single woman living in Jersey City home she grew up in. As soon as the cousins walk in, they realize that the main obstacle to being able to design a functional kitchen is a huge built-in that's been there since she was a child. Nalini is against getting rid of this old family heirloom, so the cousins decide to come up with two different designs for the kitchen: one of them will preserve the piece of furniture, while the other will create more countertop space but get rid of the built-in. On the design meeting day, Anthony and John are hoping that she will choose the more functional one that allows them to remove the built in. Will she go for it? The cousins also run into trouble with the original subway tile. Their initial plan was to salvage it, but when there's an unexpected problem, they have to think fast to come up with a solution.

Anthony and John meet Liz and Anthony Pino, a young family living in Hoboken, NJ. Anthony Pino is a successful local chef who aspires to have a more modern and functional kitchen at home, while Liz is all about having a space that looks like it's from the pages of a magazine. When the cousins suggest a plan of action, the homeowners don't seem to agree: they have a specific idea of what their dream kitchen should look like and they're not willing to compromise. Liz wants an all white kitchen, complete with a honed marble countertop, no matter the upkeep involved, and her husband wants to make her happy. Anthony and John have no choice but to follow their client's wishes. After warning them about possible staining and scratching, John and his Aunt Francine help Anthony and Liz choose a beautiful Carrara marble countertop. The cousins decide to come up with a creative solution that will help keep the marble countertop stain free for as long as possible.

Iliana Martinez lives in a beautiful home in New Jersey. She has redone the whole house, except for the unsightly kitchen. To convince her husband that they need to renovate it, she's taken matters into her own hands by knocking down parts of the walls to see what's behind them and allowing the cabinets to fall apart. Anthony and John must sieze the reigns of this project and give the Martinez family their dream space. Problem is, Iliana has already ordered state-of-the-art appliances and streamlined cabinets, so the cousins must work with what they have. Their design plan is big and bold, but the homeowner is up for it so it's onto demo they go! Once that's complete, Anthony and John get to installing the floor and cabinets and that's when the trouble begins. First, the customized oven cabinet is 4 inches too wide, then the lights are too big, and the countertop is missing a cutout for one of Iliana's appliances. The cousins have to work into the night to fix these problems.