Here is another picture

This post was edited by Omoge25 on Thu, May 29, 14 at 12:18

Any suggestions for what else to put in that empty space is welcome!

This post was edited by Omoge25 on Wed, May 28, 14 at 12:41

Beautiful kitchen. I agree that it seems dark. You need more lighting.
You have a large expanse of tile and it could certainly accommodate a dining set but I think it would look odd if it's in close proximity to your dining room.
Can you take a picture of the dining room and perhaps draw a layout of the areas?
I know you have an open concept, but maybe the answer would be a divider of some sort. That way you might be able to carve out a kitchen nook.

I think a small round glass top table that seats 4 is a great solution. You need something there. It's way too big a space to leave empty. My house is set up similar to yours (I think) with family room, then sliding door area and kitchen. We have a table in front of our sliders and prior to our remodel, we had a dining room which was as if it were to the right of your kitchen separated by a wall.

New pendants over the island would help with cheeriness and brightness and could be an inexpensive fix.

Ellendi, I am not home right now so I drew up a crude and not to scale layout of my home. My husband also thinks the 2 dinning rooms/sets would be too close together. Keep in mind also that the wall between in family room and dinning room, half of it is a half wall so again very open concept

ck squared, We are def. looking into upgrading our light fixtures. I was thinking round glass table top with cream leather chairs but the problem is that is what we currently have in our formal dinning room! except with a rectangular black glass table top :( So confused.

Well, I still think that would be perfect and a way to make sure the two sets coordinate - the glass being the cohesive factor. What else would you put there if not a table???

Maybe someone else has some ideas.

I think you could place a little table there! Our kitchen is similar in layout, maybe even size, and the area in YOUR kitchen is about where we have our table; it is the ONLY place in our no-dining-room house for a table ;-)

Other ideas:

Desk/office space
Island library (maybe two shelves back-to-back, or a shelf and some chairs)
Freestanding room divider unit
Seating only, maybe w/low coffee table

Me again. Lol! What does your husband say about the redundant family room/living room? If that's not an issue, why would having a small table in your eat-in kitchen be an issue?

That's my last argument for a table there. Good luck! :D

Based on the floor plan, it appears this area was meant to be an eat in kitchen. Because your kitchen area is so very attractive, I would select a round table and chairs that is very minimal in it's footprint on the floor. A round table with not too many details and 4 simple chairs.

Since you have already expressed a future desire for white quartz counters, I selected a white table and chairs, modestly priced from IKEA. $199 for the table, and all the chairs are less than $50 each. Maybe this will meet both your & your husband's wishes for this area.

Getting some lighting other than just bare bulbs will go a long way to improving the light level. Also included are fixtures from IKEA. None more than $29 a piece. Maybe a temporary solution until you and your husband find what you really want for light fixtures.

Thanks everyone for your ideas!

I thought of another island, perpendicular to the current one, but i am really not sure about that option.
I love the simplicity of that table beverly! I'm gonna have to go get it and try it out in the space!

ck_squared: Good point. lol. The 2 living rooms doesnt seem to bother him at all and they do flow well. initially i was worried it would look like a furniture store but its actually turned out well and we dont have many pieces so it not congested.

Who all lives in the home? If it's just you and hubs, then I would put something you like in there Omoge25. If there are kids then I would put something they would enjoy. It's a nice space for a table for eats, crafts, homework, etc. A picnic table in dark wood comes to mind for me.