Walnut Worktops

Norfolk Oak designs and manufactures the most beautiful solid Walnut worktops. Constructed using the finest furniture grade North American Black Walnut, with its dark, rich colour and stunning grain structure, it is vastly superior to European Walnut worktops.

Please read our About Our Walnut to learn why our American Black Walnut worktops are simply in a league of their own.

Walnut worktop styles compared: classic wide block, traditional plank and super stave

Super Stave Walnut Worktops

Full stave Walnut worktops with wide, long planks. Very much the Rolls-Royce of Walnut worktops! Super stave worktops have become something of a Norfolk Oak signature. Continuous, wide planks of timber running the whole length of your wooden worktop, really showing off the beautiful grain patterns of our furniture grade American Black Walnut.

Thicknesses available: 30mm & 40mm.

End grain walnut Worktops

Any good butcher will tell you the only real surface for chopping meat is an old-fashioned end grain butchers' block. We've simply refined those hugely practical attributes into some of the most fabulous defining details for a truly fabulous finish for a great kitchen. They make a great moveable chopping block or fixed work-surface.

Whether your requirements are based on aesthetics, budget or a combination of both, we have a Walnut worktop style to suit. We construct every worktop ourselves, made to order, to your exact sizes. Please feel free to use our price calculator for pricing on almost any sized Walnut worktop.

Rounded corner of a polished walnut worktop above cream painted drawers

We can make almost any size and shape Walnut worktop you need. You can enter your desired measurements in our quote calculator above for a custom quotation on almost any sized Walnut worktop in any of our worktop styles. If you would like to discuss specific worktop sizes or shape requirements, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Radius corner on a dark walnut worktop above cream painted drawers — Radius Corners

Machined drainage grooves running across an oak worktop beside the sink — Drainage Grooves

Close-up of edge profiles on wooden worktop samples in the showroom — Edging

worktop drop down mitre, drop down panel — Drop down mitre

As standard, our Walnut worktops will arrive square edged, sanded smooth and ready to oil, however we offer many bespoke customisations; such as sink and hob cut-outs, worktop edging and rounded corners.

Take a look at all the Bespoke Worktop Services we offer.

Green American walnut leaves backlit by sunlight in the tree canopy

AMERICAN BLACK WALNUT JUGLANS NIGRA

American Black Walnut, singularly the most highly prized of all furniture hardwoods, and with good reason. The elegance and definition of the grain is at once so delicate yet strong, it seems impossible for a timber of such beauty to be as hard and durable as it is.

American Black Walnut grows throughout the mid eastern United States, from Georgia in the south to Wisconsin in the north. The further south one goes, the more the Walnut takes a purple tint, with a slightly cruder, more wavy grain structure. The really amazing Walnut comes from the far north, particularly Wisconsin, Illinois and all the northern New England States like Vermont and New Hampshire. It’s the distinct seasons which make all the difference. Warm wet spring conditions for strong leaf production, lovely lazy long summers for growth, followed by extended autumn vistas famous around the world, finishing with staggeringly harsh winters for consolidation and tightness within the grain.

Stacked American walnut planks stickered for drying at the timber yard

THE FINEST RAW MATERIALS

Although we are lucky enough to be on the door step of the finest Appalachian Hardwood area in the whole country, particularly for Walnut, we still have to travel a bit for the ultimate in Walnut. Because of the sheer value of the timber, it is one of the few hardwoods which justifiably travel long distances in the USA. We are just finishing a batch of Walnut from Wisconsin, and are currently running a batch from Northern Vermont, high in the Appalachian Mountains. Because we dry our own Walnut, we quantify a batch as a kiln charge. This is the amount of timber required to fill a kiln, which is roughly three hundred thousand cubic feet; around 150 tons of Walnut or seven giant lorry loads.

Steam rising from the timber drying kiln at the Norfolk Oak yard

PERFECTLY PREPARED

We specify the age (90 to 130 years old), minimum butt - trunk - diameter (850mm), thickness of cut (52mm), average length (minimum 2743mm, maximum 6401mm) and general condition of the butt. We process all the planks from the butt, which is known as ‘mill run’. We then separate the planks to allow air to flow freely though, and leave the timber in ‘T sheds’ – open sides but with a roof to keep rain and sun off the top of the timber – for about 4 months to slowly dry ready to go in to the kilns for a further 3 months. Here the temperature builds slowly to about 50 degrees Celsius until the optimum drying rate is achieved. If anything we dry our Walnut a touch too slowly – in effect we baby it - but considering there is £ 250,000 worth of Walnut stuck in there, a few extra days drying is worth paying for. This is one of the major differences between us and even the best timber merchants, for whom speed takes precedence over the finer aspect of quality.

American black walnut sample showing rich dark swirling grain

A COMPARISON

It is worth understanding the differences between American Black Walnut and other Walnuts, real and imaginary. On the real front, there is European Walnut. A paler, softer wood, European Walnut is from much smaller trees which is why it is virtually unheard of in wide stave. Mostly from Turkey, it is fast growing, contains a lot of sap wood (the yellowish streaks) simply because of the narrowness of the butt, and is not generally used at all in furniture. On the imaginary front, there seem to be more and more types of “Walnut” discovered every year. At the moment, ‘African Walnut’ is the most common. Nothing to do with real Walnut, ‘African Walnut’ is in fact a coniferous tree with berries that look like Walnuts. The dark colour adds to the myth. Sadly, it is an unsustainable rainforest tree, and a victim of the slash and burn culture in Africa which has destroyed thousands of square miles of virgin rainforest. Please do not be taken in, you will be sorely disappointed.

Hand oiling an end-grain walnut worktop with a folded cloth

Installation Oiling
If you would like the reassurance of us pre-oiling your walnut worktops, we can do so with our installation oiling service. Your walnut worktops will then arrive ready for you to install as soon as you receive them. Read more about our Installation Oiling Service.

Nano Coating
Nano-coating is a 2 Part Process. The first application consists of 2 separate coatings, which are designed to react and bind with the timber. This treatment alone is not enough to protect timber but when combined with the second application, it protects the initial coat and forms a barrier against soap and alcohol etc. This second coating is water/scratch resistant, the daily wear and tear from sticky and wet glasses will prove the resilience of our nano coating.

If you have more specific requirements in mind or would like to know what to do to receive a complete quotation please contact us.

White Wash
A popular traditional wood finishing effect, whitewash worktops add a wonderfully rustic style to your kitchen. Depending on what finish you choose, our whitewash can be applied during pre-installation oiling or with our advanced nano-coating treatment.