Austin Outdoor Living Group — Local services in Cedar Park

We contracted with Austin Outdoor in early 2020 (just as the pandemic was hitting) to install a new outdoor kitchen and fireplace to an existing patio. The plan they came up with was great but execution was seriously flawed. During construction they had to rebuild a wall because they failed to match it to the existing wall they were marrying it up to, The result was an unsightly mortar “racing stripe’ that had to be torn out and rebuilt. The structure for the grill was put in the wrong place and it had to be ripped out and rebuilt as well. The appliances were scratched and never fixed. The stainless steel access doors under the grill has silicone smeared all over it that cannot be removed. The vent hood was severely scratched and the wood ceiling was cut out to install the vent shroud rather than cutting the shroud to stop at the wood. The electrical outlets were also improperly placed and the custom outdoor audio/video cabinet was built the wrong size and shelves are not adjustable causing us to have to modify the equipment to make it work. We picked custom granite which the contractors proceeded to butcher, cutting it into so many pieces that it rendered the slab unusable and required us to get new granite.

If that wasn’t enough the nightmare only continues today. Every time we grill you can smell the food in our house. Upon further investigation the chimney from the vent hood is allowing smoke to escape into the attic which then leaks into the house. The granite was installed poorly which caused stress points in the slab which caused it to snap. Finally, through the process of investigating the granite break I discovered they bundled the wiring for the electronic ignition for the grill and tied it up against the grill body which caused the wire connectors to melt. That fire hazard also happened to be inches away from the gas line!

This project has been a total disappointment. The safety issue created by lines being tied to a grill body is just inexcusable. The lack of quality workmanship is frustrating and expensive to fix but the the lack of care in executing the plan that could have burned down my house and/or harmed my family is negligent and reckless.

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Noelalee and her team just completed a major project at our house and I have so many great things to say about them. I have already recommended them to friends and neighbors. Ours was a significant project, involving tying into our current roof, building a 4 or 5 foot deep foundation that extended 30 or so feet from the house, with lighting, fans, etc.

1. Quality: the details are handled meticulously. Over the course of the project, my detail oriented husband (an engineer) and I only had a handful of minor corrections/changes that her team handled with skill.
2. Customer Service: in this day and age it is refreshing to work with a company that truly thinks the customer is always right and puts your satisfaction above all else. They were prompt any time I had a question and were genuinely kind people. They understood what it would take to transform our porch into what we envisioned and they executed the entire project down to the small details in a timely and professional fashion. I have never said I would miss a contractor after a project is over but Noelalee and her team are people I’d have over for dinner.
3. Craftsmanship: We gave them a drawing of what we wanted and they came back with a detailed mock-up and build out plan. I barely had to double check the details because they got it right the first time. They understood, without me having to ask, what materials and style we were seeking. They used quality materials and craftsmen. I was impressed when they came back to improve several times to the job site to improve something they didn’t think was up to their standards that I hadn't noticed.
4. Prompt and honest: they didn’t nickel and dime me and always showed up when they said they would. In short, they were great, 5...

I had never heard of Austin Outdoor Living Group and a friend told me to give them a call. We were looking to upgrade our little 4’ x 10’ back porch to a bigger screened in area with a grill, TV and refrigerator. Their Design guy, Dan came over and discussed our requirements and within a week came back with a plan that blew us away. It was perfect. He was able to take our words and turn it into a beautiful design. All in 3D, so we could really “feel” what the space was going to be like…. And it turned out even better when it was finished.

The AOLG folks, from Dan up to the owners, Ralph and Noelalee over communicated everything that was happening and when it would happen. Our project was pretty significant and took several weeks - and of course weather came into play. But we always knew the schedule and when workers were going to be on the property. All the guys that came out to work on the project were excellent.

They had a stone mason that was a pure artistic magician. He did some unbelievable things with flagstone, limestone, brick and our Aolean counter. The carpenter, roofing and paints guys were all top notch friendly folks that did a really great job, too.

With any project this size, some things were bound to come up, but we never had an issue that wasn’t resolved right away by either Dan or Ralph. And the end of the project, AOLG delivered exactly (actually more than) what we asked for.

I just signed a contract for my 4th project with them today. They are really good...