The cooking alcove in the posted kitchen...your DH is absolutely right...there's not much work or landing space around that range...it would drive me crazy! Refrigerator...I'm not sure what you're asking...in the layout I posted, the refrigerator is next to the french doors...yes, I like it there. It's much, much easier to get to it from the Breakfast Nook, which is probably the 2nd most common location of refrigerator use (1st is the kitchen). The 5' aisle b/w the Prep Zone & the refrigerator isn't really that far...mine is across a 6' aisle from the Prep & Cooking Zones and it seems pretty close to me. MW...You could put the MW b/w the refrigerator and cleanup sink, just either replace the dish hutch upper cabinet with a shelf under the upper cabinet to hold a MW or put a MW drawer in the base cabinet of the dish hutch. Hood...it's not a matter of how many burners are going at one time...it's a matter of how smoke, steam, grease, odors, fumes, etc. travel. As they rise from the cooking surface, they immediately begin to spread out..so by the time they reach the hood, they're already a few inches past the hood capture area. (It's also not a matter of the type of fuel your cooktop/range uses...it's how you cook that's the biggest determinant of how strong & wide the hood should be.) The recommendation is 6" wider than the cooking surface, 24" deep (27" in your case b/c of your deeper counter), and, IIRC, at least 600 cfms...more is better. The higher the cfms, the lower the setting you have to use for most cooking and the quieter your hood will be. Window...the window can stay in the same place & size...I just thought it would be nice to enlarge it a little. Cleanup sink location...it's not really any father from the Breakfast Nook and it's only a couple of steps farther from the LR. I think a couple of extra steps is worth it to get better workspace and better separation of the Cleanup Zone from the Prep & Cooking Zones. Your kitchen will function so much better with the contiguous counterspace in both the Prep Zone & Baking Center. Plus, the oven is often needed during meal prep...so keep it fairly close to our Prep Zone. If you're someone who starts things on the cooktop and finishes them in the oven, you will be much happier having the ovens on the same side as the cooktop b/c you won't have to cross a busy aisle w/hot food. Lastly, if that dutch door is your main entry, then it reinforces my feelings/thoughts about moving the Prep & Cooking Zones to the "bottom" wall...the zone that should be most protected from traffic is the Cooking Zone...with the Prep Zone a close second. If you have a lot of traffic coming in that door, I would not want a range or oven close to that door. As to groceries, it's not really any farther from the door to the refrigerator on the "top" wall than it is to the location you have it on the "bottom" wall, it might actually be closer b/c you'll be putting your refrigerator...

I'm not sure about putting a range under the window. That seems like a recipe for goop and splatter on the window, and also seems likely that, assuming you live in an area with winters, your window is liable to crack/shatter with the temperature extremes of hot from the range vs cold outside. I had that happen in my house when I first moved in, actually, and it didn't even have a range under it, just a sink! So, I'd imagine it being a high risk event with a serious heat source under a window. I think it'd be a lot easier to figure out a good layout with the right side of the diagram filled in. Can you repost a diagram showing what is over there? That way, folks can see traffic flow and imagine any options for that end of the area.

rantontoo: I plan to die in this condo - or at the very least age in place absent unforeseen circumstances. I could give a rat's patootie about resale value or what prospective buyers might like - or really anyone else. I care about functionality for my own needs and aesthetics for my own tastes and comfort. Contrary to real estate "wisdom" I am eliminating the tub/shower in the master bath and installing a large shower with a seat. It won't be the largest shower in the world but it's leagues more comfortable and suited to my lifestyle than the tub which requires me to step over and in I am taking out one of the sinks in the master bath and installing a true vanity with a chair/seat. If anyone absolutely needs the use of a sink while I am washing my face, there is a sink in the guest steps away. I've never actually quite understood what kind of prolonged ablutions require one to be directly in front of flowing water :-) I am contemplating not having the paltry upper cabinets start at 18" since I am short. My current uppers are lower than 18" - something I hadn't appreciated until I started researching kitchen design - which makes the second shelf wholly accessible and even the third shelf only requires tip toes for a lot of stuff. I am even wondering whether raising the counter in the bathroom is functional since at its current normal height I have to bend low to splash water on my face which invariably means everything gets splashed. I have no small children to consider so I don't know why height would be an issue.

I just noticed I've posted under two separate logins. Sorry about the confusion but you probably already figured that out! I've done a few more in the Ikea planner based on Clueless's ideas but with the 28" LG you like. Are you definitely doing Ikea? I don't think a full door fridge will work near that wall with its big doors unless it's scooted way over at the loss of counter prep space by the range. A french door counter depth would alleviate some of the location issues, but reduces counter space by 6". I'm assuming you won't have the budget to do the structural work since you are limiting yourself to 30K all inclusive. And it sounds like you have lots on the to do list. Glitter ceilings?!?! That would be #1 for me! Of course, more window space would be fantastic but may not be realistic. If it is doable, all the better. Good lighting and a space design that works for you can still make this tiny kitchen very functional. I've left cabinets off the sink wall but if you feel you need more storage you could do something like Bettyglo did. How do you feel about lack of symmetry and sinks not under the window. I did this with the 24"Domsjo with trash/recycle under. This wall can be configured with a 24" or 36"w fridge and/or bigger sink. That is, if you can give up symmetry for better work space. Don't know if you can live with the DW by the door, but gives you a 30" base. Here is a link if you want to play around.