Walking down the steps to a refrigerator protruding into the room will be hard to tolerate. (They always look so much smaller in the drawings.) You might consider putting the fridge on the wall where the sink is. Put the sink on the wall that the fridge is currently on. Maybe just take the counter down that wall, put in a lazy susan to round the corner, then place the fridge there, with the doors facing you as you walk down the steps. Instead of boxing in the kitchenette, you might consider leaving it all open and placing a "counter height table" and chairs to form a bar area where the current bar closes in the room.

I know you were saying that you wanted the sink centered, and your aisle behind is plenty big, but I heard several kitchen designers say that the cooktop and sink when back to back should be slightly staggered in case someone was using the sink while someone else was at the cooktop. My kitchen/family room have a similar layout, only our kitchen is 15x22, I think yours is deeper. As it is it seems like we have a ton of space between where the kitchen ends and the family room begins. My island is 4.5 x 9 and we tried to make it look like a piece of furniture so that it wouldn't look like someone dropped a "box." I think by using an alternate finish we may have achieved that look (hopefully). Our sink (30" farmhouse) is off-center and looking into the family room like yours. We do not have a second sink (one was in the plans but when we started the kitchen install and I saw where it was going to be I nixed it). The one sink is fine as we also have water on the fridge for the kids. I also like the off-center because it leaves a lot of space to one side and a good amount of space for drying dishes on the other. I have an overhang on two sides to make seating for 6, and my island seats 4 across the back very comfortably at 9'. Hope this helps some!

I'm sorry I missed this thread. I can assemble an upper cabinet in less than 10 minutes and a base usually in about 30. I use drawer bases, so the glides take a bit longer. I strongly suggest you check out the videos at The Cabinet Joint.com. I'm also willing to help. I love these cabinets. I'd personally would only order the finished/flush ends on the exposed ones. You also might want to shop Conestoga prices, too, because I've found definite differences for the same cabinets.

I know some folks will not like the stove and sink directly across from each other, but I do not mind Yeah, this is often touted as a no-no on this board, but I think the question is, are you planning a ONE-butt kitchen or something larger? My husband and I are solidly united in this: we both like to cook, but we are both highly annoyed by other people in the kitchen while we're doing it. I know some folks will think it is not necessary to have a eat-in kitchen table when there's an island and adjoining dining room, but I want to keep that and know we will get a lot of use out of it Eh, here's the question: do you really need the kitchen table AND island seating AND an adjacent dining room (and I bet you have outdoor dining that doesn't show on this plan as well). The question isn't, Is an eat-in kitchen table worthwhile? The question is, Which of these options is best for my family? And it's pretty certain that ALL OF THE ABOVE is overkill. I could also move the microwave over to the pantry or replace the wine fridge tower (although hubby is excited about that - probably doesn't need to be that large) .. but I do like microwave hidden in island in theory If you're thinking about hiding the microwave, you can probably get by with a small model. I know I can -- we really don't use ours much. You have no prep space next to the sink. You're not going to prep on the dishwasher side and 30" on the other side isn't enough. Do the 24" dishwasher on the end, the sink, the trash and then microwave and you'll have better prep space. Agree -- good eye. Also you will have to turn 180 anytime you need to load the fridge with groceries or take something out. Note that a 36" refrigerator won't fit in a 36" space -- you need a couple inches of "wiggle room"; if you're doing a surround, that'll take a few more inches. The point: if you build a 36" space, you're going to get a 32' or 33" refrigerator, and the difference in size is significant. Go look at refrigerators before you commit to this spot. Consider, too, that while French door refrigerators are all the rage right now, a right-hinged door will work better in this space. A right-hinged door will open "towards your work area", and you won't have to reach things around one of the doors. side as most kitchen tables are 42" wide. My kitchen table is 42" octagonal, and it's perfect for a family of four. It's enough space to comfortably include serving dishes, if desired. It's a nice size for playing a board game. There’s too much going on in the island and the area to the right of stove is underutilized. I’d put the microwave there. Agree with the premise; question the conclusion. Note that microwaves all hinge on the left, so a microwave to the right of the stove would "open wrong" -- not the end of the world, but also not ideal. Personally, I'd like to see the microwave hidden in the 24" pantry to the left of the refrigerator. It'd be "in the right spot" for warming leftovers. And, what’s the appliance garage for? If for toaster or coffee that requires milk or butter from fridge, that could move that to the other side, too. Yes, the concept of "away space" is popular when thinking of rooms ... but I think it's applicable to kitchens too. I'd skip the appliance garage /go with an open counter "away space" next to the refrigerator. This space could house the toaster, coffee maker, cookie jar, bowl of fruit ... you know, the "always outs" that clutter your counters. Either you assign them a spot, or they're always in the way. The microwave could go in this area ... perhaps in a shelf above the counter. I say put them by the refrigerator because this spot is "set apart" from the main working area already. I really think symmetry is overrated when it comes to this stuff. I do NOT like the 2 pendants that are not centered with the island. I could live with some things not being centered, but pendants ABSOLUTELY have to be centered - they're super-visible. Other thoughts: - Ideally your dishwasher - refrigerator - glassware storage would be close together. This is just convenient for the person taking a glass out /filling it AND for the person putting away clean dishes. - Similarly, where do you see your silverware drawer? Again, this needs to be handy to the dishwasher AND to your most-used dining spot. Plates and bowls aren't hard to carry a couple steps, but glassware and silverware need to be "placed right". - Much of your prep work happens at /near the sink ... and you have no handy drawers for your knives, cutting boards, measuring cups and other gadgets. This is a good reason to get the microwave out of the island. - This is a big kitchen, and you're looking at all your storage in $$$ cabinets /under stone countertops. If you were to lose some cabinetry /replace it with a plain pantry, you'd save a great deal of money. - The sink is the single most-used thing in your kitchen, and 33" isn't small ... but it's on the small side for a kitchen this size. I'd argue for taking it up to 36", which doesn't seem like a huge difference ... but is. The sink is not a place to skimp. - You want to store cooking oils (and vinegars seem to go with them) near the stove -- do you see an obvious spot for them? A chef's drawer would be ideal. - You said you're planning a spice drawer -- where is it going? I keep my spices in an upper cabinet /on a turntable, and I consider that ideal. - What's going in the tiny upper cabinets? - Do you have a spot for a fire extinguisher? If not, pick one right now! That's a must.