Here's a quick rearrangement of the island, to get the DW out of the prep space. (The dishes will be close to the dining room, so that a helper can set the table while you are prepping and cooking.) I would also put the MW on a shelf beside the fridge, rather than over the range.

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GW discussions--all drawer bases

Aside from the overhead microwave, it's not a bad plan. It's functional. I'd find another place for micro - possibly a drawer micro just to the left of fridge. With a sink in the island, I'd actually want it a bit wider, say 48" or more if possible. I assume the columns will be at the ends of the island to help support the overhang. I would change all the lower cabinets to drawers (with the possible exception of under sink). You could put a double back-to-back trash/recycle pullout to the left of sink. The drawers to the right of the DW would be great for dish storage.

Are you able to change out the microwave for a hood? Do you want double ovens? Do you have anything special to store?

Even though it would put the fridge and dishes farther from the dining room, you could also leave the DW as is, and flip the range/fridge wall, to make the fridge more convenient to loading groceries (coming from the garage?), closer to the pantry, and more convenient to the other living areas--master suite, great room, and upstairs bedrooms (or do the stairs go to a basement?)

The fact that both ends are open on your galley kitchen is a huge plus IMO - you can put that micro to the right of Mamagoose's latest plan and someone nuking some ice cream (yes, I do like mine a little softened...) can do it without crossing into either the cooking, prep or clean up zones!)

I don't think it's that bad - just some subtle rearranging! And you will have a very functional and simple kitchen! Oh - and one thing - since you don't have corners or "real" constraints - you should able to have standard sized cabinets and not have to do anything crazy custom or have a bunch of filler panels, etc. I have something similar and it's nice to just have to deal with the boxes in standard sizes. You can then more easily customize the interior fitments without breaking the bank!

Aren't the 40" drawers too big?

As others have said this isn't a bad plan at all. With a few tweaks it can be quite functional and terrific.

1. Do as mama suggested and switch the DW to the other side to get it out of the prep zone area.

2. Switch all your lower cabinets to drawers. Much more functional and you can get so much more in them so that upper cabinets are not even really needed.

3. Put a real hood over the stove. Not the microwave. That is the worst place for a MW.

4. I'm a huge fan of a drawer microwave. I would put it in the cabinet next to the fridge. It's also great for the kids to use to heat up their own snacks, etc. When my kids were young, they used to make their own scrambled eggs in the MW.

Part of your issues here, beyond tweaking functionality, involve aesthetics. Make sure that your cabinet rails form a continuous line across the uppers. Split the tall single door cabinets into a short upper and lower. The island needs details 360, and it needs an integrated plan to support the iverhang that works with the cabinet layout. It's not enough to say that you will add columns. Those have to be engineered into the design in a functional way that also satisfies the aesthetics.

Who did this design? A cabinet maker? Double check his abilities and what exactly he is promising you. Site constructed and finished cabinets don't give you the quality and durability that most people envision when they think "custom". I'm leery of whomever designed this with a 40" drawer! Not to mention the other not so detail oriented details.

Why is the refrigerator not being put in a cabinet? The way it is now, it just sits under one but has no sides. You need someone far more expert than the person who did this.

Can i talk you out of the column supports for the island, or at least keep them to one at each end? Various corbels and columns just lurk under islands waiting to bump, scrape, and bruise. How about a nice flat, hidden bar support? Does the job and saves the knees.

I may have missed something, but how are you getting a 42" wide island with an 18" overhang? Typically the island is: 1.5" -2" counter overhang + 24" base cabinet depth + 0,5" panel + 15" counter seating overhang for a total of 41"-41.5".

Remember to calculate 1.5-2" for counter overhang; is it possible that was excluded from your plans and you're just calculating a 24" base cabinet and an 18" overhang and the other overhang was forgotten?

You didn't say your wants and needs, but I made some assumptions based on your original plans and the kids. This is what I would do.

Here is the rationale: Fridge close to pantry and garage for easy unloading of groceries. Also next to microwave at kids' height in a base cabinet next to fridge (most things to be microwaved come from fridge) with drawer underneath. Drawers nearby for snacks, plastic wrap, pyrex dishes, etc. Prep zone has trash, water, drawers for kitchen towels, small appliances such as mini food processor, etc. Next to stove, the 15" full height cabinet is for a pullout for oils, etc. The 15" standard base cabinet is for spices in the drawer and trays on the bottom. 30" 3-drawer base on the other side of stove is for kitchen utensils and pots & pans. In clean-up zone, you have dishwasher and drawers for dishes. The 27" wall cabinet to the right of the hood can be for mugs and glasses if you don't like them in drawers. Dirty dishes come from dining room side. Easy to load the dishwasher from one side and unload it from the other.

Con: As some noted above, it is against the rules to have two appliances (oven and dishwasher) open into each other. However, you are only in the oven for a second and it is probably at a different time than you are opening the dishwasher. Plus, you have room for a wide aisle.

If you like this plan, I will tell you the Rev-a-Shelf inserts that fit these cabinets, as well as ideas for what to store where.

I like emilyam819's plan to keep the DW and dishes on the side closer to
the DR, while putting the fridge on the pantry end. If using a MW drawer, though, I'd put it on the island, to keep
users out of the work aisle. I tried to stay as close to the 13' (156")
measurement as possible in the following plan, accounting for 1.5"
overhangs on the counters. The end cabinet on the range wall could be
12" plus two 3/4" fillers beside the range, making the total run 156",
or it could be 15", which would make the total run 157.5". If you opt for the 12" cabinet, I think open shelves would be nice on the upper, for cookbooks or display.

Okay- deep breath... Here are the steps I would go through (sorry- my sketches would not upload):

• First, and always first, think of natural light. The closest windows in this kitchen is a small one off of the dining room! If you pay for any upcharge, make that a big, gorgeous set of French doors or large (to the ceiling) windows with a windowseat under it. Get rid of that side door it is going to bump into the table if you leave it anyway, and you have doors right there next to the fireplace.
• Second, put your dining table right up to the windowseat. You can seat 6 like this in a much smaller space.
• Third, do yourself a HUGE favor and move that door from the garage from going directly into the kitchen...to come through that utility room instead and through to the kitchen. A foyer/ mud area is just about the most important part of the house- keys, coats, boots, bags... if you can in any way use the space more wisely by putting laundry or pantry elsewhere too, you won't regret it. It looks like you have some room where the stairs to the inside from the garage would have gone for something.
• Fourthly, I suggest a double island. That is a high end thing and awesome for a reason: go to anyone's house with a 13 foot island and see how long it takes until you get tired walking ALL THE WAY AROUND if you are on the bar stool side. It's a total obstruction. By the way, barstools are very uncomfortable so it is unlikely you will have 4 people sitting there to eat all at once. Less should work. With a double island, you can have one for utility purposes, and one for barstools if need be- so those eating are in a table arrangement and not in a lineup.
• Fifthly, I would put your main sink on the wall with the stove and dw by extending the whole wall config a little further toward that window. A small sink in the island is fine, but piles of dishes on a counter that get in the way and can be knocked off easily makes main sinks in islands not fun. This extension also give you more room to pull off the double islands (which by the way, are often better if they are not matchy-matchy---- as are cabinets).
• Sixthly- replace all of those wall cabinets with open shelves on either side of the sink for your everyday dishes. Wall cabinets blocks your vision by being a big wall box in the way when you walk in.
• Finally, scoot your pantry door inside your mudroom but shrink it so it isn't a walk in. This leaves room to build in your refrigerator facing the kitchen and gets it out of the way. Sink it just enough to line up with the entire wall of cabinets that I suggest you create and put right next to you on that unused prime wall space under the stairs. The can be just pretty doors, to save on "cabinet" costs, and dual as a pantry too. By the way, after that depth is factored into that wall, the entire kitchen arrangement should have exactly the same walk through space on each side- not different distances like on this plan.... so everything just needs scotched a little closer to the dining room.
• Oops, one more thing- on the main wall, I suggest (from left to right) skinny cabinet with small pot rack over, oven with hood, skinny cabinet with potrack over, dishwasher with space over, cabinet with open shelves over, sink with something you love over, cabinet with open shelves over.

Would love to know what advice you take/ don't take and why- I'm working on a design business and had fun thinking through this. Best to you- I hope it turns out beautifully! Jackie

Ps- inexpensive hoods are easy to build in with a little wood and trim so you don't have to spend on a fancy one. Hope this helps! All in all, I think I decreased your cabinet costs- hopefully that pays for the added doors/ windows:). Islands are easy to make, by the way, too and a great place to add color!