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A Tartan Fields homeowner raises the bar with his elaborate pavilion design and surrounding lush landscape.
A lodge-like stone fireplace, granite countertops and a 48-inch infrared grill are enjoyed by the homeowner who carefully considered his style of entertaining during the design process. Photo by Todd Yarrington.
Tartan Fields homeowner Bruce Boise likes to entertain in a big way, so when he was considering the installation of an outdoor kitchen, he took a friend’s advice. “You should see how we do outdoor kitchens in Texas,” his friend challenged.
Inspired by the expansive outdoor kitchens Boise later found online, he geared up for his own backyard, located adjacent to Tartan Fields golf course in Dublin. The result is a large pavilion featuring a vaulted 20-foot ceiling lined with cedar rafters, a lodge-like stone fireplace, a 48-inch infrared grill and a granite-topped bar. At his latest cookout under the pavilion, Boise’s 50-some guests gathered for drinks around the bar, enjoyed beef and chicken shish kebabs served buffet style from the grill and found comfortable patio seating while taking in views of the yard’s park-like setting, complete with a tiered waterfall, dry creek and lush plants.
Parties like this are what Boise envisioned as he started planning his outdoor pavilion in 2009 with Jamee Parish of Dublin-based Richard Taylor Architects. In designing the pavilion, he challenged her to match the materials and architecture style of his three-year-old home. “I didn’t want it to look like an add-on,” says Boise. He inspired her with a picture of a similar, Texas-style structure, and requested that all of the party essentials be included—a bar, fireplace, seating area and extensive kitchen equipment.
“I didn’t want to make the mistake like some make with a deck thinking a 10-foot-by-10-foot size is fine, then finding only three people can eat on it,” says Boise. Instead, he and Parish mapped out all the functions, then settled on the structure’s size.
Parish says the large, free-standing structure still is somewhat of an anomaly in Central Ohio backyards, but clients are expressing an increasing interest in these detached structures whether they’re for outdoor kitchens or social fireplaces. “They like that it is a patio but still covered,” she says.
Because of its size and openness, this pavilion’s design was more involved than typical outdoor spaces. “I’ve told several people that the structure on this 20-foot-by-20-foot pavilion took as much design attention as a large custom home,” says Parish. She explains that its 9-foot cedar posts lock into 48-inch poured footers, while the structure’s perimeter support beams are fastened to 36-inch custom steel brackets—all so the wind won’t “blow the roof off.”
Next, Boise handed over the plans to Jason Phillips of Phillips Custom Builders and Blaine Blythe of Five-Star Landscape Group. Besides the pavilion’s substantial frame, Phillips says it was a challenge hiding the gas, electric and water lines in the open structure. To coordinate the pavilion with the home, his team repeated dormer windows, finished the cedar posts to resemble the hefty columns on the front of the house and duplicated the home’s fireplace design. For lighting, they chose a large lantern to hang from the peak of the ceiling and spot lights to illuminate the fireplace.
Underneath, Blythe laid a paver patio and built a bar trimmed with stone sides and granite counters—quality materials equal to those on and in the home. A trough sink in hammered copper provides a unique focal point and convenient self-serve wine station.
On the opposite side, a similarly styled cooking area was created with built-in appliances, including an ice machine, sink, side-by-side refrigerators, a 6,000 BTU burner (think steamed crab legs) and a premium 48-inch gas grill. Boise chose a Fire Magic Echelon grill with four infrared burners. He says the grill’s 48-inch large rotisserie rod can roast multiple chickens or even a 120-pound hog.
During the golf season, Boise says he gets several curious passersby from the ladies’ 12th tee. They’ll step into the yard for a closer look at the pavilion or waterfall. Off-season, Boise says he continues to use the pavilion. “I once had a four seasons room and [I] use this more,” he says. In January, when the ground is snow-covered, he builds fires in the fireplace and watches deer drink from his pond.
The added landscaping invites wildlife while providing a resort-style setting for entertaining. The landscape started with a dry creek bed to address flooding on the property, and included 23 tons of stone, with small wash stones for the middle of the creek and larger sandstones for edging. Sandstones also were used to form a two-level waterfall, with the lower falls designed to achieve a crashing sound as they spill into a five-foot-deep pool. Surrounding beds are filled with maple and river birch trees; boxwood, inkberry and hydrangea shrubs; and perennials such as hostas, dianthus and veronicas. Each summer, he adds tropical accents, including canna lilies, banana trees and potted palms.
Landscape lighting comes on once darkness encroaches. With lights placed in the pond, behind the waterfall and under the trees plus a crackling fire in the hearth and stars twinkling overhead—it’s difficult to beat the ambiance of a late summer evening in this Tartan Fields backyard.
Teresa Woodard is a freelance writer.
