Outdoor Living

Custom-built outdoor spaces designed to extend how you live and entertain at home.

The Backyard Should Be as Livable as the Inside of Your Home

A pool is the centerpiece of a great backyard, but it's the outdoor living space around it that determines how much time you actually spend out there. At A Cut Above Construction, Pools & Landscape Inc., we specialize in creating exceptional outdoor environments, from fully equipped outdoor kitchens and custom fire features to patio and decking, sophisticated lighting, and professional landscaping that ties the whole space together.

As the only true turnkey pool and outdoor living contractor in Southwest Riverside County, A Cut Above designs and builds every element of your backyard in-house. The outdoor kitchen, fire pit, decking, lighting, and landscaping are all planned together as one cohesive project rather than assembled in pieces by separate vendors. The result is a backyard that looks and feels intentional from every angle.


Chris Young and the A Cut Above team have been building outdoor living spaces alongside custom pools and renovations across Menifee, Murrieta, Temecula, Winchester, and surrounding communities since 1988. The same craftsmanship standards and personal oversight that go into every pool go into every outdoor living build.

Our Outdoor Living Features

Outdoor Kitchens 

Create a culinary oasis with a fully equipped outdoor kitchen designed for entertaining guests or enjoying meals alfresco. A Cut Above helps you plan every detail, placement, design, materials, features, and seating arrangements, so your outdoor cooking space is perfectly tailored to how you actually use it.

Fire Features 

Extend your outdoor season with custom fireplaces, fire pits, and fire bowls that provide warmth and ambiance during cooler evenings. Fire features are designed to integrate naturally with the pool area and surrounding landscape rather than sitting as an afterthought.

Patio and Decking 

Enhance the usability and aesthetic of your backyard with custom-designed patio and decking solutions that blend seamlessly with your landscape and pool environment. We handle both new construction and resurfacing of existing decking as part of renovation projects.

Outdoor Lighting 

Illuminate your outdoor space with sophisticated LED lighting options that enhance safety and create a captivating nighttime atmosphere, extending the usability of your backyard well beyond sunset.

Landscaping

A finished backyard needs more than a pool and a patio. A Cut Above provides complete backyard landscape design and installation, gardens, pathways, hardscapes, water features, and plantings, that frame your pool and outdoor living areas and complete the overall environment. As a turnkey contractor, we handle landscaping in-house so the plants, materials, and layout are coordinated with everything else being built rather than figured out after the fact.

Construction Materials

A close-up of a small, brown-and-white butterfly with patterned wings resting on a purple flower.
A bright, colorful stylized illustration of the planet Saturn surrounded by its rings against a dark space background.
A bright, colorful stylized illustration of the planet Saturn surrounded by its rings against a dark space background.
A close-up of a small, brown-and-white butterfly with patterned wings resting on a purple flower.
A bright, colorful stylized illustration of the planet Saturn surrounded by its rings against a dark space background.
A close-up of a small, brown-and-white butterfly with patterned wings resting on a purple flower.
A bright, colorful stylized illustration of the planet Saturn surrounded by its rings against a dark space background.
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Kitchen Options and Add-Ons

A close-up of a small, brown-and-white butterfly with patterned wings resting on a purple flower.
A bright, colorful stylized illustration of the planet Saturn surrounded by its rings against a dark space background.
A bright, colorful stylized illustration of the planet Saturn surrounded by its rings against a dark space background.
A close-up of a small, brown-and-white butterfly with patterned wings resting on a purple flower.
A bright, colorful stylized illustration of the planet Saturn surrounded by its rings against a dark space background.

Why Choose A Cut Above for Outdoor Living

Expertise and Innovation
Over 35 years of experience building complete backyard environments in Southwest Riverside County means we've solved every site challenge and design scenario you're likely to bring us.


Quality Craftsmanship
We use only the highest quality materials and proven construction techniques, the same standard applied to every pool we build extends to every outdoor living and landscaping project.


Customer Satisfaction
Your satisfaction is our priority. We provide personalized service and consistent communication throughout your project so the finished backyard matches what you had in mind from day one.


One Contractor, Everything
Pool, outdoor kitchen, fire pit, patio, lighting, and landscaping, all built by one team under one contract. No coordinating between vendors, no conflicting timelines, no accountability gaps.

See Our Outdoor Living Work

An outdoor stone fireplace and matching retaining wall on a concrete patio in front of a white fence.
A backyard with a green artificial turf lawn, a gravel border with young palm trees, a wooden fence, and patio furniture.

Popular Questions About Outdoor Living

  • Can you install a fire pit on my deck as part of a pool project?

    Yes. We integrate fire pits and fire features into new pool builds and existing backyard projects, designed to meet all safety clearances and local requirements.

  • Can I add a BBQ island or patio cover at the same time as my pool build?

    Yes. Including outdoor kitchen and patio cover elements in your initial pool project is the most efficient approach and ensures everything is coordinated from the start. We can also add these as a standalone project to an existing backyard.

  • What materials do you use for outdoor kitchen construction?

    We build outdoor kitchens using stone, concrete, ledger stone, tile, flagstone, quartzite, and artificial rock. Material selection is guided by your design preferences and the overall aesthetic of your backyard.

  • What kitchen appliances and features can be included?

    We incorporate built-in grills, ovens, pizza ovens, refrigerators, and ice makers. The layout and feature set are planned around how you entertain and cook.

  • Do you handle landscaping as part of outdoor living projects?

    Yes. A Cut Above provides full backyard landscape design and installation in-house, gardens, pathways, hardscapes, and water features, coordinated with your pool and outdoor living build rather than referred out to a separate vendor.

  • How long does an outdoor living build take?

    Timeline depends on scope. Smaller additions like a fire feature or modest patio work can take two to four weeks. A full outdoor kitchen, patio, and landscape build typically runs four to eight weeks depending on complexity and permitting.

  • Do you offer financing for outdoor living projects?

     Yes. We work with Lyon Financial, HFS Financial, and Viking Capital to offer flexible financing options for outdoor living and full backyard transformation projects.

SERVICE AREA

Proudly serving homeowners across Southwest Riverside County for over 30 years.

  • Menifee, CA
  • Murrieta, CA
  • Temecula, CA
  • Winchester, CA
  • Lake Elsinore, CA
  • Wildomar, CA
  • Canyon Lake, CA
  • French Valley, CA
  • ...And Surrounding Communities


Get Started

The right outdoor living space turns your backyard into the most-used room in the house. Whether you're building from scratch alongside a new pool or upgrading an existing backyard, A Cut Above serves homeowners across Menifee, Murrieta, Temecula, and surrounding Southwest Riverside County communities with the craftsmanship and experience to get it done right. Call us at (951) 244‑7754 or click below to request your free estimate.

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