You have traffic issues in all three -- they seem to be worst in the first and last ones because all cooking crosses traffic zone -- and with hot cooking activity occurring right in the traffic zone in #3.

Is that a door to the deck at the bottom center of 2 and 3? Is there other access for family traffic to the deck? If not, I don't like that either. That second one at least gives you a separated working zone -- if the deck traffic isn't moving through here. The only cross over into what I am seeing as the more major traffic zone would be a fridge trip, and that is the least problematic for me -- you can make one or two trips to gather items you need and move quickly out.

I'm also having problems choosing a favorite, because of traffic problems with all. It looks like you might have a constant stream of people going through your work area when traveling to and from the family room? Where do all the doorways go from the table area? Is that your only dining, or just your kitchen table?

Foot traffic is a major issue in any kitchen.
I'd start by drawing in the doors and doorways that HAVE to be there, then draw lines from door to door, showing traffic patterns. If it's a really low-traffic pattern, you can bend the rules, but if it's a high-traffic pattern, keep them away from your work zones! Particularly by the cooktop.

Backinthesaddle, your dining room seems to have a direct access to the deck. Why then do you need one from your kitchen directly? You might want to convert that into a window and create a bar type counter outside which would make passing food between your grill and kitchen easier. A door sure causes traffic problems. To exit to the deck you can use the dining area door.

Of the three..

Traffic-wise, I prefer the first. Yes, the doorway is near the range, but it's directed away from the range b/c the "exit" past the peninsula is "north"...so traffic will cut diagonally up from southwest to north-northeast and actually move away from the range.

As for the sink, I think the traffic won't be quite far enough "north" to impact it too badly.

Is the scale 1 box = 2' x 2'? That's what it appears to me. That means you have about 5' b/w the peninsula and table. If there are people seated at both (at the same time), it will be a tight fit, but if you don't anticipate that happening often, it's probably OK and it's not a main thoroughfare...it actually dead-ends from the looks of it--even better!

Hopefully this will simplify things, or not, but here goesÂ

We are currently putting on an addition, which will take away some large windows in the eating area but lead to a new laundry room and computer area. That is the door(way) you see to the right in the first picture. The door(way) at the top (between the fridge and "pantry") leads to the formal dining room, which we rarely use.

There is a sliding door to the deck now through the family room but itÂs never quite worked out for grilling, since we have a baby gate between the FR and kitchen AND itÂs a long haul over carpet. We were considering changing the large windows in the eating area (at the bottom right) to deck access but that adds yet another door in that area. Deck access through the kitchen would make it easier for the cook and if we kept the sliding door in the family room, it would provide alternative access.

Buehl, the scale is approximate right now since we havenÂt yet bumped out the wall and gotten final measurements but the eating area will be at least 10Â 6" wide. That accommodates a table 3.5 feet deep with 2.5Â of seating on the far wall and a shared space of 4.5Â for stools and table chairs on the near side. It would be rare that we use both at the same time.

Backinthesaddle, sorry, I mistakenly thought that the bottom right window was actually a sliding door!

Anyways, here is my 2c since my house currently is very baby-proofed as well: this phase is not gonna last forever and therefore, for a short course of time if babyproofing changes the traffic patterns in the rooms, I would still consider the long term use of the space.

Yeah, we are nearing the end of baby gate days (5 long years!) but IÂd still have to walk through the family room to flip burgers. The pass through is a good idea though.

IÂd say the door is not as important as getting rid of that corner near the prep sink, or moving the window to give me a couple upper cabinets on that wall. The current one is pretty small and taking it away or moving it towards the table would really affect any natural light coming in to the kitchen.

With the second configuration, I could have a large window or door and still have decent cabinets near the range. The down side is that it puts traffic from the family room to the eating area directly behind someone at the sink. Right now, we have a row of cabinets there with the microwave on top and it does cause a bit of a problem sometimes but the doorway is smaller and further north. Maybe moving it down some would help.