Events

Zoomer Radio Interview

The pandemic has us spending much more time in the kitchen which is now the centre of most homes. It wasn’t always like that. Author and architect John Ota toured and cooked in some of the most iconic historical kitchens in search of the perfect one. Libby Znaimer talked to him about his book simply called “The Kitchen”.

Podcast – Marion Kane

John Ota and his wife don’t like their kitchen in downtown Toronto. His search for the perfect kitchen took him across North America to 13 famous kitchens including Julia Child’s, the Pilgrims’, Elvis Presley’s and Louis Armstrong’s, among others. He describes them in his brilliant book “The Kitchen: A Journey Through History in Search of the Perfect Design.”.

TV Interview

The Morning Show on Global TV! 

Finding the Perfect Kitchen – Author John Ota talks about his new book ‘The Kitchen,’ which took him through the homes of Julia Child, Elvis Presley, and Thomas Jefferson in search of the perfect kitchen.

Innis College – interview

Join Innis College alumnus John Ota as he journeys across great historic North American kitchens exploring the design, origin and evolution of the most loved room in the house.
Hosted by Innis Alumni, this event originally aired live to Innis College community attendees on June 26, 2020 at 7:00pm on Zoom with the support of Innis Town Hall.

magazine articles – Healthy Aging

Here’s your chance to tour some of the great kitchens of the United States without leaving home:

On May 27, 2020 at 12PM Central Time, the Chicago Architecture Center invites the public to attend “CAC Live: The Kitchen Book Talk” featuring historic preservationist and book author, John Ota.

May 27, 2020

by Paulina Budzioch | Tour Historic Kitchens From Home Through “The Kitchen Book Talk”

magazine articles – Architecture + Design

To garner ideas for his own kitchen reno, one writer road-tripped to the homes of Louis Armstrong, Julia Child, Elvis Presley, Georgia O’Keeffe, and more—and then wrote a book about the journey

July 27, 2020

by John Ota | One Man’s Cross-Country Quest for Kitchen Inspiration

Newspaper articles – Vancouver Sun

What would it have been like to cook in a pilgrim kitchen? It’s a question Vancouver author John Ota can, in all honesty, now answer.

“A kitchen of an open fire, dirt floor and smoke everywhere — it was miserable cooking,” Ota says.

“Life in the kitchen and gathering food was so difficult. You had to haul logs in to make a fire, cook over an open fire, and hunt game to eat. It was enormous work, every day, from sunrise to sundown.”

May 27, 2020

by Aleesha Harris | TThe Kitchen offers a glimpse into the cooking spaces of Julia Child, Elvis Presley, and more