936-676-6732Montgomery, The Woodlands, Conroe, Lake Conroe, Magnolia, Tomball & Spring, TX
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Cook where everyone gathers

Outdoor Kitchens & Grilling Stations

Weather-conscious outdoor kitchens designed around prep, cooking, storage, serving, shade, and the flow of the full backyard.

Covered outdoor living pavilion with stone fireplace, pizza oven, mounted TV, wicker seating, and a stainless-steel outdoor kitchen with grill under a wood-planked ceiling

An outdoor kitchen works best when it supports the party without isolating the cook. Reef Pools and Spas considers the grill, refrigeration, sink, storage, counter space, bar seating, shade, lighting, and path to the house as one working zone.

The kitchen should also belong visually to the pool and architecture. Materials, rooflines, columns, counters, and lighting can connect the cooking area to the larger outdoor environment while durable selections support the realities of Texas heat and weather.

  • A work triangle shaped around the way you actually cook
  • Better connection between cooking, dining, pool, and lounge areas
  • Material direction coordinated with the home and hardscape
  • Planned shade, task lighting, storage, and guest seating

What is included

What this service can cover.

  1. Cooking layout

    Grill, prep, refrigeration, sink, storage, and landing space organized for efficient use.

  2. Service and bar zone

    Counter heights, stools, circulation, and serving surfaces arranged for guests without crowding the cook.

  3. Shelter and lighting

    Shade, ventilation, task lighting, and evening ambiance considered with the structure.

  4. Material palette

    Counter, cabinet, masonry, ceiling, and flooring direction coordinated with the backyard.

Before you decide

What this actually turns on.

The parts of the job that are decided by the ground, the weather and the way things fail here — rather than by taste.

Humidity is the material test here

An outdoor kitchen on the Gulf Coast lives through months of high humidity, and that is what decides how it looks in year ten. Stainless steel is not one material — 304 resists corrosion far better than the 430 common in cheaper appliances and doors, and the difference shows up first as rust freckling around fasteners and hinges. The structure behind the finish matters as much: a carcass framed in galvanised steel with cement board behind the stone behaves very differently from wood in this climate. None of that is visible on the day it is installed, which is exactly why it belongs in the specification rather than in a conversation later.

Gas is a capacity question before it is a cooking question

A grill, a side burner, a griddle, and a nearby fire feature add up to a real BTU load, and a gas line has to be sized for the total and for the distance it travels. On a natural-gas lot that raises the meter and the existing service; on the acreage around Montgomery and Plantersville, where utility gas often does not reach, it means propane and therefore a tank that has to be sited, screened, and reachable by a delivery truck. Propane and natural gas are not interchangeable at the appliance either — the orifices differ — so the fuel is a decision made before the equipment is chosen, not after.

Smoke goes where the wind takes it

Where the grill sits relative to the prevailing breeze, the back door, and the seating decides whether cooking is part of the evening or a reason to move indoors. Under a solid roof or a tight pergola the same question becomes a clearance and ventilation one: a built-in grill under cover has manufacturer-specified clearances, often calls for a hood, and combustible framing above a grill is a code matter rather than a preference. It is far easier to rotate a kitchen on a plan than to relocate a plumbed and gassed island after the deck around it is finished.

A masonry island sits on the same clay everything else does

An outdoor kitchen is a heavy, rigid structure, and the ground under it moves with moisture like every other slab in this county. Whether the island is poured with the deck, on its own footing, or separated by a control joint is the decision that determines whether a hairline crack appears through the stone in a few years. Drainage matters for the same reason: water collecting at the base of a masonry structure keeps the ground beneath it wet while the rest of the yard dries, and that difference is precisely what expansive clay responds to.

Written from how Robert Welty builds here — more than 35 years of hands-on pool construction, and the person who walks the property before anything is drawn.

About Robert

Our process

How the project moves forward.

  1. 1Discuss cooking style and appliance priorities
  2. 2Locate the kitchen within the backyard plan
  3. 3Resolve utilities, shade, and circulation
  4. 4Finalize materials and equipment
  5. 5Coordinate installation and finish details
Covered outdoor kitchen and lounge with a stone fireplace, TV, and grill station beside a purple-lit pool waterfall feature at nightFreeform pool with raised spa cascading over a mosaic-tiled negative-edge wall flanked by twin fire bowls beside a stone outdoor kitchen and pergola with a rain-curtain water featureCovered outdoor living pavilion with stone fireplace, pizza oven, mounted TV, wicker seating, and a stainless-steel outdoor kitchen with grill under a wood-planked ceiling

What a customer said

Not our words.

5.0 from 8 Google reviews. One of them is below; the rest are on the profile. Transcribed from the profile on August 20, 2026. Read them on Google

We had an amazing experience with Robert from Reef Pools! From the very beginning, he was professional, knowledgeable, and truly cared about making sure everything was done right. He took the time to answer all of our questions, kept us informed throughout the process, and went above and beyond to make sure we were happy.

Building a pool can be stressful, but Robert made the entire experience so much easier. His attention to detail, honesty, and commitment to quality really stood out. You can tell he takes pride in his work, and it shows in the finished product.

If you're looking for someone who is dependable, hardworking, and genuinely cares about his customers, I can't recommend Robert with Reef Pools enough. We are beyond happy with our pool and are so thankful we had him leading our project. Thank you, Robert, for doing such an incredible job!

Jody DeanLocal GuideGreat price

Questions

Helpful answers before you begin.

Can an outdoor kitchen be included with a new pool?

Yes. Designing both together helps coordinate utilities, grade, decking, shade, seating, and circulation before construction begins.

What appliances can be considered?

Common choices include grills, side burners, refrigeration, ice makers, sinks, smokers, pizza ovens, storage, and waste pullouts. The final list should match how you cook and entertain.

Does an outdoor kitchen need a roof?

Not always, but shade and weather protection can make the space more comfortable and useful. The appropriate solution depends on placement, equipment, code, and the home’s architecture.

What happens to an outdoor kitchen during a freeze?

The appliances themselves generally cope; the water does not. Anything plumbed — a sink, an ice maker, a refrigerator with a water line — has supply running through an uninsulated exterior structure, and that is what splits on a night like February 2021. The protection is designed in rather than improvised: an accessible shutoff for the kitchen alone, a way to drain the line downstream of it, and knowing where both are before the forecast turns. Gas lines and burners are unaffected by cold. It is a short conversation at design time and an expensive one after a hard freeze.

Plan it together with

Seen in these builds

Read before you decide

Where Reef builds this

Outdoor Kitchens across Southeast Texas.

Ground conditions, permitting, and approvals change from town to town. Each page below covers what that means for a property in that market.

All 50 communities Reef builds in

The next conversation

Tell Robert what you
want to build.

Create a custom outdoor kitchen, grill station, bar, and covered cooking area for your Montgomery, Conroe, or Lake Conroe backyard.

Start a project or call 936-676-6732
Based in
Montgomery, TX
Serving within about 100 miles
Hours
Monday: 9am – 5pm
Tuesday – Friday: 8am – 5pm
Saturday: 9am – 4pm
Sunday: Closed
Direct
936-676-6732
reefpoolsandspas@gmail.com