It would help us give some ideas if you could post a layout of the kitchen. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, but will allow us to visualize what you have to work with.

It sounds like you live in a great area! The view sounds wonderful!

It's really difficult to give advice without actually seeing the layout of the floorplan and the surrounding rooms. Could you possibly post one? You don't need anything fancy...just some graph paper, a pencil, and a digital camera or scanner. You can get the graph paper for free online. Search on "graph paper" and many sites offering free graph paper will be on the first search results page.

Be sure to label everything...widths of walls/windows/doorways and the distances b/w those walls/windows/doorways.

Check out the "Layout" post in the "Read Me" thread.

Welcome! Enjoy the ride!

Here is a link that might be useful: Read Me If You're New To GW Kitchens!

I'm sorry, I thought I had included the link, let me try again! Hope this works...

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen Pictures

Sorta stumped, actually. It feels like the table space should be where the ref is and the kitchen should be the rest of the room.

A few questions...
the great view would be out the ref wall (if there was a window?) and if not there, then where?
If you sit at the table, what's them windows?
Do you have to have a table in the kitchen? Or just seating for 2?
Which way do the ceiling joists run?

{{!gwi}}

I hate being stumped. This is one alternative drawn right on top of the existing layout. The only building thing )that I know of) is reversing the swing of the door leading to the deck.

bmorepanic-
Thanks so much for trying to brainstorm, this one has had us stumped for months now! Your plan would solve a lot of our problems, unfortunately in the dinette area the existing five windows are almost floor to ceiling (the sills are only 18" from the floor).

I agree, in our kitchen seating was given prominence by the builder, and the working area not so much...

Lets see if I can explain the view situation - the dinette area faces the front of the house and the view is in the back. The dining room has two walls of windows, and if you're seated at the kitchen table you have a direct view over the dining room table through them and also through the kitchen door which is full glass. The windows around the table look out over the front yard and the neighborhood. A window on the refrigerator wall would look directly at our next door neighbors' house and deck, which isn't that far away. We do like having a big table in the kitchen because we tend to relax there and it's my favorite spot in the house to sit. Also, my parents spend time here and the big table is nice to have then. (Oh, you asked which way the ceiling joists run - it's front to back...)

If we are stuck with the original two ideas which do you think would be the best? Thanks for the help!

For me, I'd go in front of the windows anyway,but I'd probably be happier with cart parking in the window area and would leave that end blank.

I'm kinda of sweeby's persuasion that dining rooms are meant to be used. If you aren't using the dining room and its got some of the best view, I'd try to figure that out first. If you can use the dining room, I'd see what it would take to open the wall to the dining room more to access the view.
If you want the view, the other obvious question is: Have you looked at trading the dining room and kitchen?

The problem w/your current kitchen/dinette arrangement is there is very little space for everything that has to go in the kitchen and for what goes on in the kitchen. The kitchen is the busiest room in the house and to shortchange it is doing it a disservice.

Your current setup with a range in the island with very little walk space in behind it (36") and only 9" of counter behind it (instead of 24") is that it will be dangerous, especially if you have children. There's also a narrow walkway in front of the range (37") near the sink where it will be busy.

You only have two access points to the kitchen, both are narrow and both are around the range...the most "dangerous" appliance in a kitchen. I would much rather have the sink in the island in this situation (well, really, in all situations...I really don't like cooktops/ranges in islands or on peninsulas...safety, functionality, aesthetics, and venting effectiveness.)

Oh, and when you're short on space, I would think twice about corner appliances or corner sinks b/c they take up a lot of wall and counter space. Just MHO!

bmorepanic - I don't want to give the impression that we don't use our dining room, because we actually use it a lot. Our house is where the extended family gathers for holidays and special occasions, and that usually means 14+ people for dinner. At other times the table is used for projects or jigsaw puzzles, anything that needs a large flat surface. It's so nice to have someplace where you can leave these things set up for extended periods. I was glad you mentioned opening up the space between the two rooms because we had been thinking the same thing but hadn't added it to our list yet. I'm doing that now.

buehl - that's an interesting idea - having the main sink on the island. Does the dishwasher have to be located directly next to the sink or would it be ok in it's present location? If we moved the sink then we could move the range to the same wall as the fridge. There would be 18" between the two appliances, and a whole run of counter space to the right of the range. Do you think this layout might work? It's something we hadn't thought of...(One problem I can see is that we'd lose a 36" wall and base cabinet and I don't know where I could make that storage space up)

Thank you both for your help!