Just Asking: The best place to live

Cheers to the homebodies among us

For months, we’ve been planning an issue focused on entertaining at home — something more casual than dinner parties but more special than just Margaritas by the pool.

We remembered our friends Annie and Jim Eckles, whose home has a three-story perch from which to see a few of the Paseo’s most monumental mansions at roof level. When the sun sets, there’s the glow of the hotel zone, miles of residential rooftops, and several broadcast towers twinkling at dusk. It inspired a breezy cocktail party, and by breezy, we mean lots of fresh air. Cathy and Steve Quinn joined them. Since well-ventilated spaces are in demand these days, we believe we found the perfect gathering spot for a small group of friends.

Plus, Cathy is an amazing cook and knows how to assemble amazing party trays with what’s available in town. See Page 19 for some of her ideas. Her husband Steve is a master mixologist, and we benefit from his cocktail knowledge, too. It was through her that we met Fernando Almazan, who she profiled for Yucatán Magazine online. She later hosted a wine tasting where she provided different tapas for each of about a dozen wines that we sipped. It was obvious by then that she would be an asset for our “entertaining” edition.

For another story, we met baker and designer Robert Willson, who worked closely with a US architect to construct one of the most memorable kitchens we’ve seen in Centro. It has already been photographed for other magazines, but in this case, that didn’t dissuade us from planning our own spread. Even more interesting to us was that fact that when we were house hunting 11 years ago, we toured the property. It was my first property crush, although it was a dark, dusty ruin. Despite what the real estate listing said, it took more than “fairy dust and love” to fix it up. Willson is part of our first-ever Kitchen Showcase, starting on Page 25. See how he ended up bringing in natural light to what would have been a windowless tomb. Something more clever than skylights. I swear next time I build a kitchen, I’m doing that!

As we reconsider the role of the home in our lives, workhorse kitchens are sure to be more desirable. Instagrammable kitchens will always be in, but impractical kitchens are out. Durable appliance and countertops, practical storage systems and sensible layouts — has anyone improved on the classic stove-sink-refrigerator triangle? — are given more consideration these days.

As we take to cooking for ourselves and others from our own kitchens, we devote this issue to the homebodies among us. We love being at home! 

Lee Steele Director, Yucatán at Home lee@roofcatmedia.com