Beyond the Water, Designing Outdoor Kitchens and Swim Up Bars That Match Your Luxury Home

A Pool Is Only Part of the Backyard Experience

For many homeowners, the goal is no longer just a place to swim, it is a private resort that rivals the amenities of a five star vacation destination. That means the pool itself is only one piece of a much larger outdoor living puzzle, one that includes seating, shade, food, drinks, and entertaining space all working together. At Arista Pool and Spa, we design the pool and the surrounding entertainment areas as a single cohesive plan, not as separate afterthought projects.

Bringing the Bar Poolside

A swim up bar transforms a pool from a place you visit into a place you never want to leave. Guests can relax in the water while ordering a drink, resting their arms on a submerged bar ledge, and socializing without ever stepping out onto the deck.

Sunken Bar Seating

Built in submerged stools allow swimmers to sit comfortably at bar height while remaining partially in the water, creating a natural gathering spot that keeps the party centered around the pool itself.

Integrated Storage and Service Access

A well designed swim up bar includes practical service access from the deck side, allowing whoever is hosting to serve drinks and food without having to get in the water themselves.

Outdoor Kitchens Built for Real Entertaining

An outdoor kitchen elevates a backyard from a place you swim to a place you host. Rather than running back and forth to an indoor kitchen, a fully equipped outdoor setup keeps the entire gathering in one space.

Beverage Refrigeration

A built in beverage fridge keeps drinks cold and accessible without anyone needing to leave the pool deck, which is a small detail that makes a large difference during long summer gatherings.

Stone Countertops and Prep Space

Durable, weather resistant stone countertops provide ample prep and serving space while tying visually into the same materials used elsewhere in the pool and patio design.

Pizza Ovens and Specialty Cooking Features

For homeowners who love to entertain, a built in pizza oven or specialty grill area adds a unique focal point that guests will remember long after the party ends.

Covered Pavilions for Shade and Style

A covered pavilion ties the kitchen, bar, and lounge areas together under one architectural feature, providing shade during the hottest parts of the day and a defined structure for string lighting, fans, and outdoor speakers.

Designing It All as One Master Plan

The key to a successful resort style backyard is treating the pool, kitchen, bar, and pavilion as a single integrated design rather than a collection of separate purchases. Our team plans sightlines, traffic flow, and utility placement across the entire outdoor space so that every element feels intentional and connected.

Why Gunite Makes This Level of Integration Possible

Because a gunite pool is formed on site rather than dropped in as a factory shell, its shape, ledges, and edges can be engineered to line up perfectly with an adjacent bar, kitchen, or pavilion. That flexibility is what allows a swim up bar ledge to sit at exactly the right height, or a spa spillover to align precisely with a covered seating area, details that a rigid fiberglass shell simply cannot accommodate.

Start Designing Your Private Resort

If you are ready to build more than just a pool, our design team can help you plan a complete outdoor living space centered around a durable, custom gunite pool. We offer free estimates on every project, and we invite you to visit our state of the art showroom to explore outdoor kitchen and bar features in person. Contact Arista Pool and Spa today to schedule your consultation.