I love having our mw on the lower shelf of an upper cabinet. The cabinet is extra deep to accomodate a standard mw. I figure this leaves my options open in the future--I won't have to be limited to a certain size, i.e one 12 or 13 in deep (plus technology is always changing so I'm hoping I'll be able to swap it out for something different if desired.) I think I've also seen upper cabinets that are of standard depth but have an extra deep lower shelf for the mw. If you are still considering a mw in a lower cubby, I strongly suggest setting one up on a low table or chair and try living with it for a while. We had a mw on a low table (not as low as an undercounter mw would be) in our old kitchen and dh and I both absolutely hated it. We found it difficult to use the buttons and to see into it to get food out or to clean the inside surfaces. Mw drawers are an option, but again, it seems like future choices get majorly limited by having very exact specifications. I think a mw in your breakfast area would work well. If you heat leftovers in the mw, it will be handy to have the fridge and mw close to each other. You might want to consider storing some mw safe dishes near the mw. The drawers under our mw stores our supply of pyrex mw dishes with lids (for fridge storage.) I knew when we were in our old kitchen that getting a prep sink was of highest priority. There were often log jams at the one (double bowl) sink. It was difficult for 2 of us to prep veggies at the same time and that always seemed to be the task I needed the most help with. It's something for you to consider. If you haven't felt the need for a prep sink up until now, maybe you don't need it. But if your kids might be spending more time helping in the kitchen in future years, it's something to consider. I also like having sinks at 2 spots in the kitchen because it helps clean up go faster when there are others helping. One person can hand wash large pots, plastic and wooden ware at the large sink while the other loads dishes into the dw at the small sink. The shelves above the mw are adjustable--another thing that adds versatility to future need. I am no layout expert, I only know what has worked for my particular situation. There are 2 things that we thought about during planning that I'm really happy about. 1. Placing the fridge so that it was close to the table while still being handy to the prep zone. I find it makes getting meals on and off the table much easier. Others can freely access the fridge without getting in the way of the cook. 2. Making clean up more efficient by placing the dw at the small sink. I mentioned this above--the main sink is used for all the hand washing of large pots, etc. and the small sink is used for processing dishes for the dw. Our large sink is in the prep/cook area and the smaller sink is placed so that it is convenient to the table and fridge (and others can use it without going into the cook/prep zone.)

We're putting ours at the "extra" sink, which is actually the bar/beverage/coffee/morning food/snacks/garden/helper-prep sink near the fridge. It's closest to the dining room, hall and back door than to the range. We'll store all glassware above the bar sink, not the clean-up sink. The range is nearer the clean-up sink, and I don't want anyone walking in the cook/clean area when doing dishes or cooking, so we're keeping all other activities at the perimeter.

You probably don't want to hear this, but I'd prefer the fridge where it is shown, and the prep sink on the island corner between it and the stove. (Will you really have that odd bumpout on the island?) If you move the fridge where you explained, it will be farther from the stove and you'll have to cross through the 'cleanup zone' to access it from baking or cooking areas...Kind of fouls up the ability to separate your tasks and to keep people from running over each other. When it's possible, it's nice to have the fridge and pantry in the same area. I save my main sink for dirty dishes and use my prep sink for all washing of veggies and fruit, dealing with raw chicken, etc. My prep sink is on the corner of the island nearest fridge and stove, so I can prep on the island next to the sink and turn to the stove to cook the prepped food. My island is near the ovens, also, so it serves to wash gooey hands or add water to recipes for baking projects, too. A prep sink would be helpful in a kitchen this size, so more people can work comfortably at once. I think, though, that even working alone, I'd want a separate sink, because I so love not having to wash veggies over or near collected dirty dishes. But if you move the fridge, it does make it tough to locate it optimally.

In my house, the kitchen island is not just used for cooking and eating. I have lived in this kitchen and with island for years. So I know how we use it. Because how the house is laid out, there is only 1 logical layout that makes any esthetic or functional sense. So we did not vary from that layout. Like others have said, I pivot 180degree to use the sink when I am working at the island. We use the island more like a center table in the kitchen, rather than the cooking/cleaning surface. My kitchen is about 15x15 ft. No a huge kitchen but not a small kitchen either. We use it to do homework, read the paper, wrap presents, lay out buffets, eat quick meals, pile groceries and more. I had to make a columns of FOR prep sink or AGAINST prep sink on the island. The only time the prep sink made sense was when we had 2 people quite busy in the kitchen while cooking. We only cook and clean about 2 hours total per day in the kitchen. We have someone sitting at the island nearly all day when we are home. If you have a house where the kids sit at the table next to the sink to do homework, visit etc, then the island predominantly functions as a part of the kitchen, then the cooking function trumps the design. In my kitchen, that was not the case; my kids do not sit at the table that is next to the kitchen. They prefer to sit at the island.... Majority of the time we are using the island, the prep sink actually detracted from how we use the kitchen island. I decided to go with the majority function of the house/kitchen/island; no prep sink. I don't regret it. This is a very personal intentional decision on my part. There are moments now and then when 2 sinks would have been nice. But there are more moments where the prep sink on the island would have been PITA.