I see that you want your cooktop to be the focal point, so I don't know if this will work...but what if you reversed the line up, on the long wall? Maybe have the clean up area closer to the dining room and the ovens by the pantry...isn't that the pantry, though that doorway?

This would put the prep sink across from the cooktop and close to the fridge, but allow people to grab a drink of water or set down a dish, without walking through your main cooking area.

Congrats on getting closer to your perfect layout :)

Thanks lavender. I had actually thought of that. The only issue is the sink will be "somewhat" hidden by the fridge in the current location. In addition, that doorway doesn't lead directly into the pantry but into a hallway and the pantry is directly across the hallway. It isn't the only way into the hallway so might still work.

I've also considered moving the ovens to the fridge run (to the left of the fridge).

comments?

At the end of the day, you have to do what works best for you and your family, even if it's not what everyone else might choose. You mentioned that you like the sink close to the cooktop, so why not? You have the island for the baking area and the fridge is in a great location, without walking through the main work area.

One thing I've learned on GW is that not everyone uses their kitchen the same way. There are generic functional layouts that are highly efficient and well liked, but may or may not work in your space, with your view, your cooking/baking choices and physical situation. Some people want wall ovens for baking...and some people can't easily lift a turkey, out of a low oven. Same thing with raised dishwashers or maybe dish drawers, on each side of the sink.

And, looks are important, too. If you want the focal point to be the cooktop, then putting the sink there is not going to be the same. Hope that helps :)

The refrigerator won't hide the sight of the sink for the most part. To figure out what can be seen from where - use a ruler or other straight edge. Align one side with the outermost corner of the shielding object and the other with the the shielded object.

The brown straight lines on the drawing are aligned with the sink area. The line towards the dining area starts at where the sink would becomes visible (at the cabinet beside it) and then aligns with the inner corner of the oven cabinet - which is the last obstruction that can shield it.

The line towards the living room entrance uses a corner of the ref as the last obstruction that can shield it and uses the last place the sink could be visible.

The arc between the two lines, or inside the wide v, is where the complete sink can be seen. Outside the lines is where the sink will be hidden.

I do not count a raised bar because it won't shield the view of the sink to any greater extent than it would be with with just a counter height island.

Also, check your doors on the dw and the ref to be sure they won't hit each other. Dw doors are around 28-30" tall for a tall tub dishwasher. The ref doors could be anything depending on the model you choose.

I'm just trying to explore all options before I turn in the "final" plan. This is actually set up like my current kitchen (which I also designed for our remodel, although I was more constrained in where I could put things). I just don't want to get so focused on having it all the same that I miss something that could be wonderful so if you have any comments I would still love to hear them!

I especially would love to hear about your island sinks and storage of dishes, etc.

bmore---Thanks for the input. You're right of course and if I had looked at the plans closer before typing I would've seen that.

Also, DW/fridge doors shouldn't be an issue. The walkway is 48 inches. We are using our current french door fridge with a pull=out drawer on the bottom. Thanks!

Any more layout input?

Okapokesfan, since you specifically asked about island sinks and dish storage I thought I should respond. My previous kitchen was a small U-shape space with cabinets above the sink and dishwasher area. To open it up more we eliminated that leg of the U and put the sink and dishwasher in the new island. Our island is only about 7 1/2 feet long and we do not have seating at it. But your island is certainly large enough to have both.

It seems like the majoriity of the GWers do not favor the cleanup sink in the island but I have to say I love my island sink set up. My sink faces a sitting area and my back yard. Directly behind my island is my cooktop wall. Except for a curved end cabinet I have all drawer bases there. The sink is slightly off set from the cooktop so that they are not directly opposite each other. The dishwasher is to the right of the sink? The aisle is 50 inches wide from the counter top edges. The dishwasher door and the cabinet drawers can both be fully open with out touching each other. I keep all of my everyday dishes, silverware, utensils and my pots and pans in the drawers. Unloading the dishwasher into the drawers is a breeze. I like it so much better than lifting dishes into overhead cabinets. I do put my glassware in an upper cabinet a few steps away. I do not have a separate prep sink but I find I have plenty of room to prep on each side of my cooktop and on the island. It is great to be able to pivot from sink to stove and visa verse. The aisle width and offset placement of the sink and cooktop also allows for one person to be at the sink and one at the cook top with out actually bumping butts. So there you have it from my perspective.
I posted this picture of my kitchen on a different thread yesterday but here it is again so you can see my set up in case you haven't seen it before.
{{!gwi}}

Thanks badgergal. This is the part I hate the worst about the process. Make a "permanent" decision that I'm afraid I will hate! (ie, putting the sink in the wrong place). I appreciate you input and pics, which are always helpful. Really cool kitchen!

badgergirl, do you store your dishes in the base cabinets across from the island or ones in the island?

I was also wondering where your dishes will be stored in this plan. I am with you and would hate a sink and dw in the island for all to see in the center of the room. Your sink won't be hidden this way, but sure won't demand attention either.

This also keeps your open dw door out of the way of the path from stove to fridge, which, for me, is a plus. I usually prefer a kitchen that has an island this size to have a prep sink, but I think this is a good set up for a kitchen that doesn't have one.

This reminds me somewhat of Malhgold's kitchen, in which she has her stove and cleanup sink set up similarly, but also included a good-sized prep sink in her island. To have cold storage handier to that prep area, she also included undercounter fridge drawers at that end of the kitchen.

I love uninterrupted prep space, too, but a well-placed, very useful sink can sometimes do nothing but add. In serving a buffet, for instance, you have a spot for icing seafood or bottles of beverages. When baking or cooking, it's easy to add water to recipes, rinse gooey hands, and fill/drain pots of water. Then you're not prepping or rinsing food over those dishes you let collect in the main sink! ;-D That's why I love my prep sink.

Here is a link that might be useful: Malhgold's kitchen is shown in this thread

rhome--I don't think I would mind having a small prep sink at the dining room side of the island. They don't take up much room so I would still have lots of uninterrupted counter space.

i drew up an alternate plan where I put the cooktop in the run where the fridge is, moved the fridge to kindof where the sink is, and moved the sink to where the cooktop is.

I am comparing the two and thinking about where I would store items and how it would function while doing everyday tasks (fixing bfast, cooking supper, making a sandwich, etc.)

One thing I've always wished was different in my kitchen is that the island's short side faces the stove, and I'd prefer the wider side for wider prep area. As you have it in the plan above, not only is that wide side nice for cooking prep, but also baking projects. And it seems to make more sense to have the oven and cooktop in the same general area of the kitchen, rather than having the oven on the other side of the cleanup zone.

I"ve thought about that. If I switch the cooktop, I would move the ovens to the bottom of the run they are in currently. Thanks for all your comments rhome. They are very helpful!

okpokesfan: I store my dishes in the base cabinet across/ behind my island. It works out great for me. I can stand in front of or next to the open dishwasher and easily put the clean dishes, cookware and silverware into the drawers. If my dishwasher door is open while loading it, there is still room for someone to walk through or to be working at the cooktop. If someone would be at thecooktop and the dishwasher door was open someone could also just as easily walk around the otherside of the island. While working in the kitchen we tend to put our pans and dishes right into the sink or dishwasher rather than stack them on the counter. I would do that no matter where my sink was located. I don't feel that having the main sink in the island necessarily makes it the center of unwanted attention. The arrangement I have works great for us. I love the flow and not getting "stuck" in the kitchen like I did in my previous small u-shaped space.