Bump for you. :)

I'd like a long island that forms a galley with the island and the fridge/cooktop.

I like lots about this floor plan but I'm not feeling love for what I can do with the kitchen with this footprint.

How much would I have to have it grow?

The main kitchen/DR can stay the same size, but the garage takes another hit. This is quick messy, but I'm leaving soon--I think it gives the general idea. I moved the sink from the bev bar to the island:

I don't have time to go back and change it, but I'd put the MW in a drawer on the island corner across from the fridge, with a trash pull-out on the other end.

I've been turning this over and over again in my head for days now--thanks so much mama_goose.

Given how far towards the front of the house the entrance from the garage would need to be, I wonder if it'd be better to keep the kitchen in the front--but keep very close to your last layout. (Have to figure out ovens, etc)

My biggest issue is that the front of the house faces north and will have a front porch. I don't want a dark kitchen and that's what I'm worried about if the kitchen faces the front of the house. On the other hand, the entry to the house from the garage is more awkward if the kitchen is in the back, because you rightly show that the entrance needs to be between the dining room table and the kitchen.

But I like the idea of prepping facing the living room more than I like the idea of prepping looking at the hall/stairs/wall.

I'd appreciate input on how to balance these things. I'm trying them on in my head and trying to figure out which "feels" right.

My biggest issue is that the front of the house faces north and will have a front porch. I don't want a dark kitchen and that's what I'm worried about if the kitchen faces the front of the house.

Beth, I believe you are building in northern IL, yes? We live in N IL, and have a north-facing front-facing kitchen, with a covered front porch (about 6' deep) and big trees. It also has a second story above it, which blocks a little more light in the winter. Double window over the sink, larger double window in the breakfast nook. Borrowed light through the wide doorways to the separate, south-facing dining room and playroom behind.

Here is my experience: it isn't dark. It's also, admittedly, not bright light-filled like my south-facing, porch less rooms, especially in winter. The light is perfectly fine for most tasks in the daytime, although if I am doing something detailed, I will turn on the light over the prep area or the light over the cooktop. However, each is just one light. I put in some puck lights under the overhead peninsula cabinets, but we never use them.

Our kitchen has white cabinets and wainscoting, white tile floor (ugh), and pale yellow walls (chosen to bring a sunny feel).

I said in your thread in Building that I love my front-facing kitchen, and it was one of the top items in my wish list when we bought this house. The breakfast table also faces front, and I love to sit here to read or work and watch the neighborhood go by, and easily see who's coming up the driveway. When I'm cooking dinner, I like being able to see when someone is arriving home or when guests are pulling in.

That's just my experience, everyone else's mileage may vary, of course.

edit to add Dining a Room experience: I also love my rear-facing dining room! When we entertain in daylight, we get a view of the garden instead of the street. We don't entertain formally, but even a casual lunch, coffee, lingering around the dining table is nice. At night, I don't feel like the dining room is on display to the street with its large windows. And if we are on the terrace, we can flow in and out with food on the dining table instead of on the island/peninsula, which may be where we have beverages.

I agree with bpath. I don't have a front facing kitchen and it wouldn't work in my house, but my in laws had one and one of the houses my son and family lived in, did, too. But if I had small children, I would prefer one on the back of the house so I could keep an eye on them when playing in the fenced in back yard. Depends on stage of life...

You can flip the layout with the longer island, and keep the original location of the back door and garage layout. The only disadvantage I see (other than kitchen being in the front of the house) is that anyone coming from the front entry and stairs will be inclined to cut through the work areas and past the range, to get to the fridge.

I've been playing with it and added 90 sq ft to the house to do this but want to run it by people. I'm not sure this is totally to scale.

I widened the area by 3'. I used mama_goose's idea of recessing the beverage center into the utility room area.

The door to the house from the utility room/garage is between the dining room and the island.

I gave myself a corner pantry for food stuffs, which means the cabinets should be quite sufficient for all the primary non-food stuffs.

There's seating for 3 on the island. Only those 4 cabinets would be raised--the L shape part of the island would be counter height.

I have the oven/microwave next to the fridge and counter space on both sides of the cooktop.

Am I getting close? (Of course, budget has yet to play into this)--but I think this would make me happy.

There's some camera capability to the software I'm playing with. I haven't figured everything out yet so:

• The finishes are wrong
• The uppers won't be glass
• Bases will be drawers not cabinets
• There will be a hood over the cooktop
• Island shows 30" deep cabinets with stools. They'll be 12" cabinets under the counter with 18" overhand
• Sinks will be IN and not ON the base cabinetst
• The window to start at the counter.
• The living room will not be grass :-)

Please advise...

I'm not that worried about going through the workzone, because DH won't do it (beverages will be in the beverage center) and at parties, it'll be obvious which way to go. I hope I'm right about that.