A growing kitchen equipment specialist has claimed that al-fresco cooking is staging a rapid rise in popularity in the UK, despite weather that is not wholly conducive to grilling and roasting in the open. Fire Magic said that demand was high for its state-of-the-art outdoor kitchen design, which provides ambitious homeowners with gimmicks such as power burners and bar caddies along with the more typical appliances found in a kitchen. Despite a torrid summer of downpours and grey skies, the company claimed that its sales continued to grow at a 440 per cent year-on-year rate through 2007 suggesting the increasing appeal of having sinks, cookers and fridges to hand in the garden.Fire Magic director Craig Ormiston said Since we introduced the Fire Magic range to the UK market in 2005, we have experienced phenomenal growth in sales. These premium products allow customers, architects and specifiers to design fully equipped outdoor kitchens. There is no doubt that there has been a shift to outdoor living here in the UK.It was claimed that the outdoor kitchen would soon overtake swimming pools and hot tubs as the most desirable garden accessory.