Inside Spike Mendelsohn's Home Kitchen

Should he ever build it, Spike Mendelsohn has elaborate plans for his dream kitchen.

"It's in Maui, overlooking the ocean," he says. "It has a huge marble island, gas appliances, a wood-burning oven, a plate warmer, huge sinks and refrigerators, a separate freezer, a great audio system, a full-service bar, a wine room … and a water slide."

Right now, however, he is perfectly content with the waterslide-less cooking space in his Washington, D.C., efficiency apartment: a galley kitchen with shallow cabinets, an electric range and no pantry.

For Mendelsohn, 31, the lack of space is one of his kitchen's greatest assets. "I like this kitchen because it's compact," he says. "The bigger the kitchen, the messier. And I don't want to have to run a mile to wash vegetables."

Another asset? It's elevated. Standing on a 4½-foot platform in the center of the room, the kitchen is reached by metal steps and faces the entire apartment. "When you're cooking, it's nice to face people and talk to them," he says. "It's like you're on a show."

Mendelsohn, who says "Spike" is a nickname from early childhood, moved to Washington after tiring of living in New York and wanting to be closer to his family. "My sister lived on … (Capitol) Hill, and we would always make fun of the fact that there weren't great places to eat there," he says. "We felt there was a void on the strip where we opened Good Stuff. We took a risk."

The timing was perfect, and the risk paid off. With his family, Mendelsohn opened the first Good Stuff Eatery on Capitol Hill the month after his first "Top Chef" season finale aired. Lines of customers and devotees of the show wrapped around the corner for months. The Obamas are frequent patrons.

"We didn't realize the effect the show would have," says Mendelsohn, who appeared on two "Top Chef" seasons but didn't win either time. "It's amazing what it's done for this business. 'Top Chef' was a crazy experience, but life after 'Top Chef' is even crazier."

In the midst of the craziness, Mendelsohn can often be found at home cooking and entertaining family and friends.

"This kitchen gets worked," he says. "I use it as a test kitchen. I love to have friends over. A lot of late-night sandwiches get made."

Mendelsohn doesn't own his apartment, but he admits to treating it as if he does. He's had custom window treatments installed and graffiti painted on a wall. He brought in a Coca-Cola refrigerator, has a copper pot rack waiting to be hung and may add a stainless-steel lip to the ledge above his countertop where he keeps his condiments.

But those are the extent of the changes he'll make to the kitchen, because Mendelsohn says he doesn't need much to make a great dish.

"I competed on those shows. I could cook with two sticks and a stone," he says. "This kitchen is a piece of cake."