Will there be any seating under the overhang (e.g., a sofa placed under it)? Counter seating? Might be an idea, btw, since it's a rec/computer room and the kids could eat snacks there. With that much overhang behind the sink, I think a single level will be fine and will actually be more functional in the long run as well as easier for everyone to reach food or other things on the counter, regardless of their heights. As to how high to make the opening...since you're going to make it much wider, I think opening it up to the ceiling will give you more of an open feeling in the kitchen as well as connect with the children in the other room better. B/c of the wider opening, it should be to-scale. If you're concerned about the view from the back door, then when you "gentrify" the door area, consider a frosted glass or wood partition (depending on room style) b/w the door & comp/rec room that will hide the sink from immediate sight. I like your idea!

OK, that's two votes for too skinny of a wall, I'm going to work on changing the balance of the pass thru - I'll layout having two pantry cabinets with the pass thru in the middle and see how that feels. Marcolo, I think its a challenge for every kitchen - where does your dishware and glassware go? I plan on keeping the glasses closest to the fridge in the upper cabinet. Grab a glass and get some OJ type of operation. And the dishwasher is somewhat close to it as well for off loading glasses. As far as the dishes, I plan to keep them in the lower drawers in the island. I'm pretty sure most of my prep will be closer to the range which will be plenty of room for someone to grab a dish while I'm prepping. And close enough to the range for times when I want to grab a dish to plate a seared entree or whatnot. I'm also the only cook/baker, and I do all the prep, which makes it easier for me. So there isn't many others in the kitchen with me other than tasting and keeping me company aside from an occasional dinner party when friends help out. One day that might change when I have kids that love to cook and bake. Good luck with your planning! What stage are you at?

We have the same setup in our bungalow and did not do a pass-through for basically the reasons you cite (and also, our range is on this wall and I was lukewarm about having a pass-through over the range). Our friends were renovating a kitchen that also has that layout at the same time, and did do a pass-through (also over the range). Theirs is just a cutout---like a window with no glass with a little ledge---rather than being a usable counter or breakfast bar, as some people do. Pros: They can see through to the dining room and their kids play in there so there's a line of sight; at parties, they pass things through to the dining room and set up a table there, and guests could be in the dining room while the host was in the kitchen without being separated. Cons: Can't really put furniture on this wall (they have a built-in sideboard on a different wall, but in our setup that wall is basically the only option for a sideboard since our built-in was removed years ago); we would have had to take off the original wainscoting in the DR, which I really didn't want to do; cooking smells from the kitchen travel into the rest of the house. I also had a lot of qualms about disturbing the flow of the house with the pass-through; our house was designed so that you can stand at the front window and look through a series of doorways all the way through to the backyard. Without having the pass-through it's hard to say if we made a bad decision not to do it, but I've seen so many in similar houses that look awkward and forced into the layout that I was afraid of messing around with it too much. With a four-foot doorway, you're also ahead of the game; we just have a 36" swinging door that starts 6" from the wall, so it's a much smaller connection. (I very much wanted to do the 4' door, but my husband felt strongly that we needed to have a door we could close, and the options for the wider space were too costly for our budget.) Good luck with the decision!

nkkp-No idea about the title being marketable and insurable, but will make sure to ask. Not something I'm familiar with. I do plan on doing a title search and get title insurance. My parents are giving me a mortgage so not sure if that would make any difference about the title being marketable and insurable??? I appreciate you giving me a heads up about this though. sailorman, thanks for your input. A hutch type piece may be a good addition on that one wall. You mentioned putting up a fan in place of the exhaust that's there - but what about the rest of that area? I have a piece in my current house but I don't think it would go, but I'm sure I could find something. Trust me, if we make an offer on this house and get it, I'm going to be thinking good and hard about everything - it will probably be an obsession from the moment I put in the offer!!! plllog - thanks for the laugh, I too went oye! So it's not an actual pass-through - is it actually a peninsula? Personally, I like just a regular stove with the back panel - not this flat looking thing. Not sure about those posts being structural or not, someone would have to tell me. I've seen pictures of other kitchens that have those posts while others have nothing on that end, so really not sure. I'll definitely look in to Circuspeanuts post - sounds interesting. I like funky, but I think I'll probably just stick with something a bit more subdued - my mind says funky but my age would say otherwise. I think the countertops aren't in bad condition, they're just white, plain and blah! Will double check tomorrow when I go again. I thought, if I did keep the cabinets, a tan colored countertop (granite or similar) would be nice - would lighten up not only the cabinets, but the darker floor as well. Thanks for all your ideas! desertsteph, there will be a table on the other side of that "peninsula" as it will be the only place to put a table to eat. Since it's just the two of us, we'll keep it to a small table that we can expand when company comes, but this is the only "dining area" we have in this house - not sure why it was built like this (lets not mention the staircase that's in the living room going up to the attic!) I need all the cabinet space I can get. My current home has a LOT and while I want to downsize, I don't think I can downsize that much. Def. cabinets in the laundry room - can't remember how big that area is, but hoping it can be both a mudd room and a laundry room. I'm hoping they'll accept my offer if I should decide to go ahead with it - they may laugh me right out of the office though. lilyfreak, can you post pics when you're done, please??? rjr220-I too thought about possibly putting the fridge where the pantry would be, but honestly, I forgot how wide that area is and if there's a door there, or a solid wall and if there's even room to stand in front of that space and be able to open a fridge door while standing in front of it, but will look tomorrow and measure as well. I think that wall that juts out may be the garage - my age and mind aren't letting me remember - when looking at so many homes, your mind goes to pure mush! I like the idea you gave of putting the stove where the fridge was - will look at options tomorrow. Well, I'm going to see the house again tomorrow morning and then will (hopefully) make a decision on which way to go. My offer may be so low that I don't get it and all this will be for naught, but better I go in with some type of ideas than none at all. I plan on taking more pictures and measurements as well. Will definitely post an update along with more pictures when I get back and can get some computer time. What's the opinion on building a pantry along the wall where the countertop is - nothing as deep as a cabinet, maybe around 12-14" deep - I have a huge one at home that I keep my food and cookbooks in (not that I cook, mind you) Any ideas for the area where the dining table would be. That area actually leads out to the backyard, so it would also serve as a walkway, so I really can't have anything more than a table I think. The view when you walk in the front door goes through the living room straight to this eating area - the pic below shows the french doors that go to the backyard from that eating area - the doorway you see way in the background is the front door, so it's a straight beeline from the front door to these double doors right through that eating area. I don't recall the size of this area, maybe 10x11, but again, will double check tomorrow. The other side of the eating area, across from the peninsula is what we consider the den - the owners, for some reason put a big opening in the wall - makes no sense to me, and I'd definitely close it up. The 2nd pic below is this patio/sunroom that needs major help, but those are the doors from the eating area that leads out to this, again, some major help is needed in this area!!!! If anyone comes across any ideas on the web, or has/had a kitchen like this they are renovating, would LOVE to see pictures. Will be updating soon. I'm a firm believer, if it's meant to be, it's meant to be - should I not get this house there will be something else. THANKS ALL!!!!!