Manhattan no longer has a monopoly on the New York City luxury real estate market. High-rise condominiums are going up in every borough, awaiting the individualized touches of urban homeowners. In New York, even high-end abodes can be short on space. General contractors in the tri-state area must be experts in building showcase, functional kitchens in whatever space is available.
The kitchen often has to serve double and triple duty as a workspace, a breakfast nook, and sometimes as the only dining area available. Historic brownstones and carriage houses offer kitchen remodelers an opportunity to spread out. With metropolitan home design aesthetics ranging from modern to traditional and over-the-top opulent, a home improvement contractor must be prepared to install kitchen islands topped with custom-poured concrete, butcher block, or polished onyx.
We have ranked the licensed contractors and design-build firms who bring to life New York’s most eye-catching kitchens in every style. The firms who draw the most accolades for their work and their customer service have risen to the top of the list, along with the contractors who have worked in hundreds of high-end homes.
If you are thinking about building a custom home, we recommend checking each builder’s license with the local licensing board, speaking to past clients, and using our bidding system to get competitive quotes from at least 3 contractors. Getting multiple bids is the best way to ensure you get a fair price and that bids include the complete scope of work.
14) 1625 DB
838 6th Avenue, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10001
1625 DB is a New York City general contractor with offices just north of Madison Square Park. Utilizing in-house designers and partnering with established New York City design firms like Rodriguez Studio Architecture and Archetype Design Studio, the firm carries out kitchen and bath renovations, new home construction, and home additions. 1625 DB typically handles project budgets in the tens-of-thousands, up to and surpassing $3M.
The three construction professionals behind 1625 DB combined their knowledge and experiences to create a fully transparent, streamlined contracting firm. After just one year in business, the firm has acquired a multitude of glowing reviews from satisfied clients.
In a standout renovation, 1625 DB outfitted a Brooklyn Heights kitchen with stunning, deep blue base cabinets in a shaker style and contrasting, flat-faced, white uppers. Brass hardware and fixtures elevate the design for a family kitchen in an upscale neighborhood. The new, six-figure kitchen abuts a breakfast nook with built-in banquette seating and hidden storage. It is a flawless modern update for a traditional, family home.
13) Prime Renovations
435 East 79th Street, Suite 3N, New York, NY 10075
Founded in 2004, Prime Renovations is a full-service general contractor with an office on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Under resident and Owner Jeff Streich, the construction company tackles home improvement projects with budgets ranging from $250k to $3M. The firm emphasizes the importance of realistic estimates at every scale — from smaller home improvement projects like kitchen and bath renovations to gut remodels of whole residential and commercial interiors. That way clients aren’t blindsided by ballooning kitchen remodeling costs once their renovation is underway.
Licensed and Better Business Bureau accredited, the Prime Renovations team was featured on the ABC daytime show The View. In the segment, they worked with celebrity contractor Carter Oosterhouse to build a dream home for a disabled veteran. In a smaller scale remodel, Prime Renovations outfitted a Midtown East apartment with a bright, contemporary, galley kitchen. White shaker cabinets with contemporary, stainless steel fixtures bounce natural light from a high-rise window, illuminating a gourmet gas range. The back painted glass subway tile backsplash adds gloss and depth.
12) Gaudioso Contracting
112 President Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231
Gaudioso Contracting remodels kitchens in brownstones and condominiums throughout New York City. In operation for over 20 years, the general contractor in Brooklyn is Better Business Bureau accredited with an A+ rating. With renovation projects featured in multiple issues of House magazine, the Red Hook contractor executes home improvement projects that get noticed far beyond Brooklyn. The team performs residential and commercial construction in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx, and in Suffolk and Nassau counties on Long Island.
Under the leadership of company President and Owner Anthony Gaudioso, Gaudioso Contracting remodels kitchens, bathrooms, basements, and more, finding no residential interior remodel too big or too small. A licensed contractor and member of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, Gaudioso Contracting project managers and tradespeople are comfortable working with a variety of electrical and plumbing systems, which reduces long-term maintenance needs and unexpected schedule changes.
One Gaudioso Contracting kitchen remodel exemplifies how a New York City galley kitchen can be as functional and beautiful as any other style. Sparkling stone countertops run along both sides of the renovation, framing blue, shaker cabinets with polished steel fixtures. The space comfortably accommodates a full-sized range and hood. Under cabinet and recessed ceiling lighting more than make up for a lack of natural light.
11) Klein Kitchen and Baths
227 East 57th Street, New York, NY 10022
Klein Kitchen and Bath has served New York, North Bergen, and West New York since 2009. More than a bath and kitchen remodeler, the firm offers smart home upgrades and full-home gut renovations. Their team is staffed with experienced designers, project managers, and tradespeople who work with clients from the initial consultation through room design and installation. For providing excellent customer service throughout, the design and construction company has received accreditation and an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.
Remodeling a kitchen begins with home design ideas. The expansive Klein Kitchen and Bath showrooms in Midtown East and on the Upper East Side offer curated collections of high-end appliances, fixtures, and natural stone and man-made countertops. Clients are able to peruse finishes and ideate on their perfect, new kitchen.
Klein Kitchen and Bath renovated an apartment steps away from Central Park. The kitchen received new, marble textured flooring; custom textured base cabinets; sleek, acrylic wall cabinets; and PentalQuartz countertops. The firm finished the backsplash with custom frosted glass.
10) Alure Home Improvements
1999 Hempstead Turnpike, East Meadow, NY 11554
Since opening in 1946, Alure Home Improvements has served thousands of clients throughout New York and New Jersey from their showroom and headquarters on Long Island. With more than 70 years in business, the firm isn’t short on accolades.
Alure Home Improvements has earned a Forbes Business Enterprise Award and multiple National Association of the Remodeling Industry Contractor of the Year awards, including one for best kitchen remodel between $60,000 and $100k in 2017. Professional Remodeler Magazine has named the firm Remodeler of the Year, and Qualified Remodeler ranked them among the top 10 remodel contractors in the country. Locally, the Long Island Press called Alure Home Improvements the Best of Long Island Remodelers.
Alure Home Improvements does more than build beautiful new kitchens with their state-of-the-art design imaging technology; they build kitchens that last. All of their remodels are guaranteed for a minimum of three years, a quality assurance that led Extreme Makeover: Home Edition to call on the firm’s services eight times. They are also a full-service remodeler specializing in kitchens, bathrooms, roofing, siding, windows, basements, sunrooms, dormers and new construction.
9) Lex Construction & Development, Inc
917-14 Lincoln Avenue, Holbrook, NY 11741
Established in 1977, Lex Construction & Development is a National Association of the Remodeling Industry member and certified professional. The firm, which completed more than 350 kitchen renovations last year, has won a Contractor of the Year Silver Award for Best Kitchen Remodel valued between $100k and $150k. The winning kitchen features a custom, angled island capped with a built-in wine rack; framed, shaker-style cabinets; and stonework wall finishes. The kitchen remodeler also installed double ovens, a gourmet range top, and a high-end, Waterstone wheel faucet in polished nickel.
Rick Schandel, the founder of Lex Construction & Development, has overseen thousands of home improvement projects. He manages the team from corporate offices in Nutley, New Jersey, and Holbrook, New York. The Environmental Protection Agency Lead-Safe certified renovator is licensed to perform residential and commercial renovations in Westchester, Long Beach, Connecticut, New Jersey, and all five boroughs of New York City. The firm has had Better Business Bureau accreditation for just under a decade and maintains an A+ rating.
8) New Age Global Builders
75-25 141st Place, Flushing, NY 11367
New Age Global Builders, a licensed general contractor in Flushing, Queens, has performed interior renovations throughout New York City since 2010. Owner Paul Singh has more than 30 years of experience in New York City construction. Beyond luxury kitchen and bath remodels, the firm also offers concrete, exterior stonework, and roofing for residential and commercial clients. In its history, the company has managed millions of dollars in construction projects throughout the five boroughs and on Long Island.
New Age Global Builders are experts in maximizing square-footage, often using the kitchen island to help define living spaces that don’t interrupt the flow of conversation and entertaining. In Manhattan penthouses where space is not an issue, the firm is equally well-equipped to install chef-quality ranges, kitchen lighting, and custom storage solutions, befitting of sky-high opulence. In all cases, the company pulls from its own stable of expert craftspeople to slash budgets and maintain quality control versus using subcontractors.
7) Manhattan Center for Kitchen and Bath
41 W. 25th Street, Ground Floor, New York, NY 10010
Manhattan Center for Kitchen and Bath, a National Kitchen and Bath Association member, is a New York City general contractor comprised of experienced kitchen and bath designers, as well as appliance and tile specialists. A Certified Kitchen and Bath Expert, the firm typically fields kitchen projects with renovation budgets between $15,000 and $175k. Over the last 35 years, the design and construction company has built a portfolio of successful u-shape, l-shape, and galley kitchen renovations — all of the layouts common to New York City condominiums and townhouses.
The Flatiron showroom features fully operable kitchens, so clients can get a hands-on feel for the latest American and European appliances and the most sophisticated kitchen finishes. With this in-house resource, the firm has earned multiple Contractor of the Year Silver awards for custom renovations from the National Association of the Remodeling Industry.
Besides installing kitchens, baths, wine cellars, custom wardrobes, and room additions, Manhattan Center for Kitchen and Bath also renovates luxurious and elegant complete home interiors. They are also able to combine apartments, a service as coveted in New York as additional square-footage.
6) Detail Renovations
615 Middle Neck Road, Great Neck, NY 11023
Detail Renovations primarily performs high-end kitchen remodels in neighborhoods like Manhattan’s Upper West Side and Park Slope in Brooklyn, leaving their mark on the most upscale zip codes in New York City. Distinction Magazine has featured the firm in their Kitchens & Bath Trends special issue. Licensed in Nassau County and Suffolk County, the firm also works on Long Island estates.
Founded in 2002, Detail Renovations is a general contractor in Great Neck that executes high-end, residential renovations throughout the New York metropolitan area. Owner and President David J. Dynega had worked with a family construction company for a decade before striking out on his own.
In one kitchen remodel, Detail Renovations created a bright and airy space for cooking and entertaining in a Bay Ridge, Brooklyn family home. The team updated the existing 1930s layout by removing the cabinets and reinstalling them in a new, modern milieu. A custom-cut farmhouse sink fits precisely into the revived, shaker millwork. Enlarged rear and side windows flood the room with natural light. The luxurious, reimagined kitchen also features Caesarstone countertops, a glass-door, a Sub-Zero refrigerator, and a Viking range.
5) New York Kitchen & Bath
8 West 25th Street, New York, NY 10010
Since 2002, the licensed contractors of New York Kitchen and Bath have renovated residential and commercial interiors in Manhattan and throughout the tri-state area. A member of the National Kitchen and Bath Association, the firm is Better Business Bureau accredited. At their showroom a block away from Madison Square Park, the company offers design consultations for clients with budgets that typically range from $30,000 to $200k. This step is the beginning of their streamlined approach to managing kitchen renovation from design through post-construction.
Project Manager Roy Blum and Designer Nick Kaess led the renovation of a contemporary kitchen in a Chelsea penthouse. The project required careful permitting, as well as coordination with all building rules. The firm installed high-end finishes and appliances, including a Grohe pot filler, Viking range top, Sub Zero refrigerator, Calacatta Nuvo Caesarstone countertops, and custom Ultracraft cabinetry. The new design maximizes every inch of the unit’s covetable kitchen space.
4) Paula McDonald Design Build
27 W 20th Street, 7th Floor, Suite 706, New York, NY 10011
Renovation design specialist Paula McDonald is known for elegant and understated interior remodels. Her firm, Paula McDonald Design Build, has a 15-year history of nailing that aesthetic in kitchen and full-home remodels in Manhattan and Brooklyn. The firm has garnered many accolades, including Chrysalis Awards for Best Kitchen Remodel in the region, Qualified Remodeler magazine Master Design awards, and design awards from Professional Remodeler and New York Cottages & Gardens. Luxe Interior and Design and Aspire Metro Magazine have both featured Paula McDonald Design Build projects, while Dering Hall frequently taps McDonald for expert insight on kitchen trends.
McDonald maintains affiliations with the National Kitchen and Bath Association, the American Institute of Architects, and the American Society of Interior Designers, touching all sides of the industry that form the Paula McDonald Design Build suite of services. The full-service general contractor in New York City offers design, architectural planning, sourcing, and building for renovations that typically cost between $250k and $2M.
3) West Village GC
454 W 50th Street #3R, New York, NY 10019
Founder and Chief Executive Officer James G. Mansfield established West Village GC in 2001. Mansfield, who started his career as an engineer aboard luxury Mega Yachts had an early introduction to the industry under the wing of his father, a prominent real estate developer in the UK. To date, the New York general contractor has completed over 400 construction projects in Manhattan, including commercial, high-end residential, and retail renovations. Their work has been featured in The Robb Report, Elle Décor, the New York Times, Dwell,.Kitchen & Bath Business Collective, and Curbed New York.
The firm collaborates with home design experts such as Fox Nahem, Jacobs Chang Architecture and David Scott Interiors to perform exceptional renovations and build custom homes. The highly organized and process driven team’s careful planning and strategizing have led the firm to a 100 percent on-time and on-completion rate over the past couple years. Among those successes is a completely custom kitchen for a chef’s TriBeCa loft remodel. The double-wide kitchen island seats three comfortably and affords space for meal preparation and entertaining. The new, luxe framework called for state-of-the-art appliances, so the firm installed a 48-inch Viking range and hood and a Sub-Zero refrigerator.
2) MyHome Design + Remodeling
353 W 48th Street, New York, NY 10036
Two years after completing military service in Israel and relocating to New York City, Yoel Piotraut co-founded MyHome Design + Remodeling. Nearly 20 years later, the licensed general contractor has been ranked among the Inc 500 company and is Better Business Bureau accredited with an A+ rating. The firm typically handles remodel projects valued from $10,000 to $500k throughout Manhattan, the Bronx, and the whole of New York City.
As managing partner, Piotraut leads the MyHome Design + Remodeling team with Chief Executive Officer Eran Chelcinski and Production Manager Peter Kral. Their team of designers and tradesmen connect with clients to not only execute impeccable home designs that have been noticed by The Today Show and Forbes magazine, but also to secure the proper permits to do so. Their fine home improvement work comes with a five-year warranty.
The MyHome Design + Remodeling showroom in Midtown Manhattan displays popular kitchen materials like natural and engineered stone, stainless steel, concrete, and glass, as well as eco-friendly options like copper and ceramic tile. It is the ideal resource for kitchen remodeling ideas.
1) Knockout Renovation
47 E 34th Street, New York, NY 10016
Since Keith Steier founded Knockout Renovation in 1992, the staff has developed expert knowledge of the design vernaculars common to New York luxury real estate. With projects featured in the New York Times and The New York Daily News, as well as on CBS-TV, Knockout Renovation is a celebrity firm in the local construction scene. Knockout Renovation projects have also been featured in Fine Homebuilding and on the Rachael Ray Show.
The Knockout Renovation team takes a concierge approach, working closely with clients from the planning through post-construction phases, including material selection. The team operates a showroom in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan, where prospective clients can peruse a selection of appliances and fixtures.
A member of the National Kitchen and Bath Association and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, Knockout Renovation has made the Remodeling magazine and Qualified Remodeler lists of the top renovation firms in the country. Their services include kitchen and bath renovations and private home remodeling in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
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Read our latest articles on the best residential contractors and home builders in and near New York City. If you don’t see your city below, just let us know – we are happy to create a tailored recommendation list just for you.
Residential general contractors in New York City
Bathroom remodeling contractors in New York City
Custom home builders in New York City
About Our Rankings
This list takes a range of ranking criteria into consideration, including but not limited to: work history, customer satisfaction, awards and recognition, geographic area of work, cost, building permits, and clientele. We spent over 40 hours researching local contractors before calculating the final ranking for this post. If there is additional information about your business that could affect these rankings, please fill out this form and we will take it into consideration
Get Bids For Your Build
If you are thinking about building a custom home, we recommend checking each builder’s license with the local licensing board, speaking to past clients, and using our bidding system to get competitive quotes from at least 3 contractors. Getting multiple bids is the best way to ensure you get a fair price and that bids include the complete scope of work.
