The Butler's Pantry



White House Butler's Pantry

 The traditional role of the butler has evolved from the care, storage and serving of wine and other bottled beverages ("butler" is a derivative of both the French bouteleur [cup bearer] and bouteille [bottle]) to a senior member of a household staff charged with various aspects of household management, especially as they pertain to entertaining. The butler's pantry served as a space to store valuable serving implements including silver, china, stemware and linens.

For many of us, the notion of a butler is inextricably linked with various fictional incarnations (Mr. Belvedere, Benson, Alfred, Jeeves, numerous period dramas, etc.). Let's face it - few of us are called upon to host heads of state (on a regular basis, at least). So, can the idea of a butler's pantry be relevant to a modern home? Absolutely!

A traditional butler's pantry in its most basic form may appear much like a built-in china cabinet. Instead of being on display in the dining room, however, it might be tucked away around a corner, conveniently accessible to both the kitchen and dining areas, without interfering with the function of those spaces.

In this modern interpretation, the homeowner reclaimed surplus garage space adjacent to the kitchen. We designed and built custom floor-to-ceiling cabinets and added a cherry countertop detail to visually tie into the main kitchen area. A full suite of appliances allows the space to function as a secondary kitchen for entertaining and large family get-togethers.

This larger butler's pantry was constructed for a client that did quite a bit of formal entertaining. It provided functional space for both the household staff and catering needs.

Pull-out shelves and drawers allowed plenty of storage space and easy access to silver, china, crystal and linens.

Locks on each drawer and cabinet provided extra security for valuable items.

(Witty British manservant not included.)