When chef and restaurateur Jennifer Maune first came across a sprawling estate in Little Rock on social media, she saw potential beyond a private residence: a place to unite family life, culinary work and community events. Now living there with her husband and six children, Maune is taking a deliberate, room-by-room approach to adapt the 14,100-square-foot property for everyday living and hospitality.
A social-media discovery turned family compound
Maune—who earned national attention as a MasterChef finalist—found the house while browsing wedding venue photos and remained interested until it reached the market. The family moved in last spring, attracted not only to the scale of the home but to on-site features that support her work: vegetable gardens, a barn and a chicken coop that extend the kitchen’s reach into the landscape.
Rather than rushing a complete overhaul, Maune paused to learn how her family would actually use the rooms before committing to major changes. That measured strategy has guided a phased renovation: targeted updates where daily life demands it, preservation where the architecture already works.
Making the Great Hall work harder
The home’s large central space functions as what Maune and her family call the Great Hall. Sun-drenched and flexible, it shifts from quiet sitting room to cleared-floor event space depending on the occasion—family dinners, charity fundraisers and hospitality events for her Restaurant Fleur and The Garden Table Foundation.
Natural light is a defining element. Maune says the family gravitates to the room during sunset, when the infinity pool reflects the sky and softens the atmosphere—turning a daily routine into a scenic backdrop for gatherings.
Touches of the house’s past remain, including a pair of original vintage French cabinets and a glossy Baldwin piano that anchor one end of the hall. Maune favors a layered, neutral palette and a mix of contemporary and classic furnishings to keep the space inviting rather than formal.
Where the family focused first: kitchen and dining
As a working chef with a large household, Maune prioritized the kitchen and formal dining room for early investment. Instead of gutting the kitchen, she preserved signature architectural elements—most notably an arched stone alcove that frames the original range—and refreshed finishes to brighten the room.
To lighten the heavy stonework, she hired a specialist to resurface the flagstone in warmer tones, balancing respect for the home’s Old World character with a cleaner, more modern look. The range itself remains a centerpiece: built for serious cooking and well-suited to both family meals and professional events.
Bedrooms and scale: drama balanced with calm
Throughout the six bedrooms, the goal has been comfort and cohesion rather than showmanship. Maune describes the intent as creating rooms that feel calm and elevated while still matching the scale of the spaces.
Her own suite leans into drama: soaring 12-foot ceilings, a sculptural custom bedframe and large-scale drapery and lighting that play with proportion. A secondary suite takes a quieter approach but takes advantage of natural light, with the bed placed in a bay window to capture views from multiple angles.
- Outdoor amenities: Infinity pool with stone arches opening to the deck.
- Food-producing features: Culinary gardens, barn, and a chicken coop for fresh produce and eggs.
- Unique dining spaces: A stone-clad wine cellar with vaulted ceilings plus an outdoor dining area framed by arches.
- Architectural highlights: Arched stone range alcove, vintage French cabinetry and original Viking range.
A hidden cellar and multiple dining options
Among the home’s less obvious assets is a wine cellar reached by a hidden door beneath the main staircase. With cool, vaulted passageways, the space offers both atmosphere and practical storage for Maune’s entertaining needs, from intimate family meals to small client tastings.
Outside, a shaded dining terrace sits directly off the kitchen and is framed by stone arches that echo the home’s interior masonry—an arrangement that ties outdoor entertaining to the property’s historic feel while remaining highly functional.
Design that preserves while personalizing
Across the renovation, Maune has aimed to honor original details while making deliberate aesthetic choices that reflect the family’s tastes. She draws on small European finds, travel mementos and design books to create a collected look that feels lived-in rather than staged.
Her approach illustrates a current trend among homeowners who balance restoration with selective modernization—especially when a house’s architectural “bones” already offer character worth keeping. For readers planning renovations, Maune’s project underscores two practical ideas: prioritize the spaces you use most, and let original features guide new decisions rather than masking them entirely.
“The focus has been on making the house feel like ours while keeping what made it special,” Maune says, describing a process that remains ongoing as they continue to refine rooms and finishes.
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