So, it's nice to see your contractor noticed one of the issues! Aisles! Have you had a chance to read the Kitchen Design FAQ threads? They discuss good kitchen design principles, guidelines, etc. I'll link to them below. First I better ask, are you a function first or form (looks) first? Neither answer is right/wrong - it's what's right for you. Most of us here are function-first. It is easy to make a functional kitchen look nice; it's almost impossible to make a nice-looking by dysfunctional kitchen work well w/o tearing it out and starting over. If looks are more important to you than function, then read the rest just so you know the functional issues - that way there will be no surprises when you start to work in it after it's done. You will be making decisions with the knowledge of the consequences of your choices - both good and bad. So what other red flags do I see? Refrigerator and Island relative locations...Your island is what we call a "barrier island". It's a barrier b/w the refrigerator & Prep Zone and b/w the refrigerator & Cooking Zone/range. You will be running around that island so much that it will most likely get old fast! DW in the middle of the Prep Zone...Ideally, you want separation of your Prep and Cleanup Zones and you don't want a DW in the middle of the Prep Zone. Aisle widths...the minimum recommended aisle width for a one-person kitchen is 42" - that's only one person ever - no help with cooking, prepping, cleaning up and not allowing someone to cleanup or unload the DW while you're prepping. For two or more people, the minimum is 48". Then there's the traffic aisles behind the seats. Seating overhang...I don't know if this is an issue since there are no measurements. Aim for the minimum recommendation of 15" of clear knee/leg overhang. If you're a tall family, 18" is better. Here's a Zone Map and traffic b/w the refrigerator and Prep & Cooking Zones to illustrate: ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ To clarify about the Prep Zone...The only source of water in your Kitchen is the cleanup sink, so that means your Prep Zone is b/w the sink and the range. Water is a key component of the Prep Zone. For a functional Prep Zone, you need a water source and sufficient workspace (the bare minimum is 36" with 42" or more much, much better. If you want the island to be your primary Prep Zone, then you need to add a water source (e.g., a prep sink). Given the length of your sink wall, you don't need to. With a bit of re-configuration, you can fix some of the issues with the current space b/w the sink and range (DW in the way and not enough workspace) to make it a nice Prep Zone. Move the DW to the left of the sink Move the trash pullout to the right of the sink - for two bins, it needs to be 18" wide (one recycle bin & one trash bin). Move the range to the right far enough to give you 42" of counterspace b/w the sink and range. This does not solve the barrier island issue, it just fixes the Prep Zone. To fix all the issues, I would probably: Move the refrigerator to the upper right Then, put in an 18" cabinet next to it Next, the range Next, a 24" wide base cabinet Next, an 18" trash pullout Next, a 30" single-bowl sink (size depends on the actual length of your wall) Then, DW to the left of the sink Finally, a 36" corner susan or similar (not a blind corner cabinet, they're pretty useless!) If there's extra room, then put it b/w the DW and corner cabinet. If you want water in the island so you can use it as your primary Prep Zone, put it on the refrigerator end. That's all I have time for now, but it's probably a lot to digest anyway! Here are the links I promised: Kitchen Design FAQ Threads: FAQ -- Kitchen work zones, what are they? http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3638270/faq-kitchen-work-zones-what-are-they FAQ -- Aisle widths, walkways, seating overhangs, work and landing space, and others http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3638304/faq-aisle-widths-walkways-seating-overhangs-work-landing-space-etc FAQ -- How do I plan for storage? Types of Storage? What to Store Where? http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3638376/faq-how-do-i-plan-for-storage Looking for layout help? Memorize this first. http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2699918/looking-for-layout-help-memorize-this-first

Check out Ikeas terms and conditions for they’re kitchen cabinets when you assemble and install yourself - the cabinets themselves have a 25 year warranty.

I think to bad mouth Ikea because the whole world is in a mess at the moment is unfair. Everyone is having issues with supply of even simple things and I find when I work with Ikea that usually the boxes are available even if the doors might be a bit later . This in no way affects your install to the point of the layout . I would still ask your Ikea store for referrals . I also agree that these are a simple item to DIY they are made for that purpose and after the first bit of assembly learning curve are kind of fun to assemble so my clients tell me. IMO too many contractors are just not able to understand a different system and think they can improve the way it is done and they can’t .

@millworkman, actually, it was the late 1960s, when the whole conversion thing was attempted. I was in high school at the time. I have distinct memories of sitting in science class, when for weeks the teacher attempted to get us to understand and convert Fahrenheit into Centigrade, to no avail. The US population in general, revolted against abandoning imperial measurements. As to the OP’s posturing, the contract for installing the IKEA cabs is just that…for hanging them, not putting them together. As I stated in my first post, putting the cabs together while not difficult, is quite time consuming. Any contractor is going to charge extra for that. And to the contractor who said ”European” measurements make hanging the IKEA cabs difficult, poppycock. The same contractor who gutted and renovated my kitchen (with US semi-custom cabs), installed the IKEA cabs in my son’s apartment. Hanging the IKEA cabs, which my son put together by himself (over a weekend), took less time than it would’ve, had he been installing US made cabs. In fact, he remarked how easy it was.