There's no link to see what kitchen.

Here is the kitchen in question. The door on left, near the sink, is the front door. Hallway on the left goes to bedrooms:

But I'm not sure it matters what the kitchen looks like -- when lived in I know I couldn't keep it this pristine. I wouldn't want this to be the first thing I see when I come home.

I don't understand WHY anyone would want their kitchen seen from the front door -- ALL of the open concepts -- you walk in and you can see the kitchen. I don't want my kitchen to be seen by guests at the front door.

As to why, open concepts are popular and would assume that the original kitchen was there but closed off. The plumbing was there so when they made it open concept -- it's "right in your face".

Martha I agree ... It is an open kitchen with no consideration for the greater scheme of the house layout. It's exactly where the original small galley was located.

I just wondered if anyone actually liked this type of layout. Were it my home, I'd install a dividing wall and create a hall by the front door, eliminating the kitchen view.

This is THE door that guests would enter into? There isn't another that goes into a foyer or living room?

I agree, but then it's not that much better to walk right into people's living room --- which is super common.

I like an entrance hall, but if there can't be one, I'll take people walking directly into my LR than my kitchen, any old day!

We actually opened our small galley kitchen up so that it is in full view from the front door. Is it ideal? Of course not! But where we live, smaller older houses often don't have proper entryways, and it's not uncommon for houses in the "affordable" range -- e.g., under $1.5m -- to have the front door open into living areas. Our situation is exactly the reverse, and having lived with this set up for 14 years, I now really value the sense that our living space feels more private. When you're renovating a small space, as with the photo above, you make the best of what you have to work with. Obviously, the best case scenario is a big roomy foyer that avoids either problem!

Not all open layouts have the kitchen visible from the front door. I don't even know that most do. We have an entry, then you walk to the LR, the dining area is in the far corner and you'd have to come into the LR and then crank your neck around to see the kitchen. It is "open" as in connected, but not visible from every location. But this was designed purposefully, not the result of randomly blowing out walls a la HGTV.

I also prefer entrance..whether hall or a corridor, just something..and I don't want kitchen to be seen right away

if I think in some lofty terms of..say, intimacy..all the most dramatic things in family life, they kinda take place in bedrooms and kitchens..

so even if I'm the most tidy(I kinda close to that lol), the most gracious(doesn't happen) the most great(also doesn't happen) cook in the world-it's not just about the mess..it's also about some magic. what if I'm making a love potion there? witches' brew?lol. do they show people make potions in the living? no? I didn't think so.

requires just a several more steps I think. They can be short steps almost imaginary ones. but there should be some perceived distance. between outer boundaries-and inner ones.

obviously open concept can be amazing-if it's considered with the general layout of the house.

it's just that more often that not it's not that considered

I don’t think this is necessarily anyone’s ideal, but assuming it’s not a new build we all have to work within our budget with what we have. I am going to guess that they took a wall out next to the front door to open and enlarge the kitchen. Losing that cramped entry was probably worth it to that homeowner to improve the tiny dark kitchen that was there.

Making the side wall next to the sink full height would help

ledmond10 -- it seems that most of the houses I see on HGTV that are made open concept, you CAN see the kitchen from the front door. In fact, they tear down ALL the walls so that you can!

We built a house 2007, you can see the kitchen from the main entrance and we designed it that way, we like open floor plans and do not care for closed off kitchens. No visitors have yet fainted dead away from shock or been so repulsed by the state of the kitchen that they refused to return because of our abject gaucheness. Just sayin'.

Oh one of my most beloved houses had an open concept kitchen. Looked pretty fab, That was great house on many accounts. I didn't design it this way but I was pretty darn pleased. You could see the kitchen straight away it was just more deep inside..after the living etc. This feeling of depth probably translated into those imaginary steps one needs to take..:)

I was really proud of that house. It was such a huge step up for us. It had so much great stuff going on. And the previous owners- I think they practically licked it lol..it was clean as tears..:)

I had to leave it just after eight or so months after we bought it..I was so sad..

Here, you think you have a perfect house-and then no, you don't really have it. Lol.

That's a very theoretical thread..

Obviously you do what you've gotta do.

If you have a choice-you already, in my book, pretty fortunate..

Yes, Martha, that is what I meant. I know in our old house, if we had removed walls, that would have been the result. Was just trying to point out there is more than one "open" floor plan.

I think it depends on the overall style/feel of the house. Certainly for a second home, lakehouse, beachhouse, whatever, it is fine. It just seems less formal or less grand, and so I think such a layout in a center hall Colonial might grate.

My house was designed with the kitchen right inside the front door. It's closed off somewhat but there is a passthrough right there.

There are four of these houses, and one has a complete entry hall with the dining room closed off just like the kitchen, one other is like mine with a closed kitchen and completely open dining area, and one has been remodeled so that the entire first floor is open and there is a big kitchen right inside the front door. Most people who have lived in that house (it's now a rental) go in the back door.(It's the only house with a back door)

I am keeping my kitchen closed off rather than opening it to the front door and I may separate the other area more than it is.

my current house and my last home both with foyer areas, have kitchens visible from the front door. I guess it's not my favorite but I have watched guests enter my home to see what they are looking at. none of them even look at the kitchen. windows in both homes were a deterrent. if there is something to look at other than the kitchen I don't think it really matters.

My son is living in an apartment where there is a small entry hall --- but it goes straight into the kitchen. Not past it -- into it. And then the kitchen is completely open to the eating area and living room. Once you are inside the apartment, it is nice and feels homey. I actually like it better than his last apartment -- but this is still student housing and depending on his assignment next semester, he may be moving at the holiday break. For 6 mos to a year, you can live with less than ideal. In a home, front door kitchens feel like older starter homes.

Small footprint = needs must.

Small budget = needs must.

Older home renovation = needs must.

These forums tend to skew towards new builds, large(er) budgets, and customization. Which is great for education and discussion on design, trends, day dreaming, bouncing ideas around, etc.

But reality = well...needs must.

I think it's what you're used to. Personally, when I moved to the US, I thought it really weird to stand in people's living rooms upon entering a house. Not formal living room for guests but actually where most of the family's living takes place.

So a kitchen may be less private and a more public place. I remember in my MILs house that deliveries were made to the kitchen and people would visit.

Definitely the kitchen was a revamp of a smaller, older home. It just didn't seem like there was any accounting for its location within the home, just the main goal of opening it up.

Kitchenwitch111 I like your suggestion of adding back some wall. That would make a big difference when first walking into the house.

My3dogs yes this is the only front door. The garage door enters into the kitchen as well, next to the fridge.

That is a stupid revamp of a common old small home pattern. They cut costs the wrong way and made their home backwards.

I personally would rather the kitchen in the front of a home and the living room in the back. The views are usually better back there. It blows my mind when a home has an ocean or mountain view out the back door and the only viewing is the window over the sink. Or when they build condos and the living room faces the parking lot and the kitchen looks at the woods.

I'll bet it was a closed off galley kitchen, the entrance is actually onto a hallway that once led around the kitchen into the living room, and the kitchen was once closed off and had a doorway on the opposite end leading to a dining area and then the living room. Our best friends growing up had that layout. Small entry way leading to a hallway that led one way to bedrooms, another way around the kitchen to the formal dining and living room. Also had a stairwell to the finished rec room in the basement. Small MCM rancher. Was a nice kitchen and I personally love galley kitchens, very good use of small footprint of space. If you suddenly had to go "open concept" with that kitchen, you would walk right into it. and around it to get to the rest of the house. Back when the house was built, the kitchen was mom's purvey and if you weren't doing chores or eating in there, you didn't care what was going on. If you entertained, mom brought all the yummies out from the kitchen to waiting guests, while dad mixed the cocktails! You were relegated to the rec. room in the basement! And don't you dare try to sneak a shrimp off of the platter mom put out on the dining room table! No one had breakfast bars either. If you were on trend, you had a little breakfast nook with benches around a table, in the kitchen. I love those too. Kids might eat dinner there too, before mom and dad had their more formal meal in the dining room when dad got home from work if he had a long day or long commute.

growing up we had either entrance halls and doors off it to different rooms, or a corridors and doors off it to different rooms. some kitchens were to the side, some in the back..but no, i don't remember one apartment that didn't have this artery of a corridor leading to spaces

maybe climates play role too-you really don't want the mud, snow, etcetera in the living or kitchen ..you change your shoes right away too. you always change your clothes as well-unless you're a guest of course

you always eat in the kitchen though. folks would have a dining table in their living room (or their room..depending how many rooms there were at all. lol) -and if you dine there it means it's festive and you have guests.

..and yes, I also don't like when somebody enters-and here's me watching TV

of course I lived in apartments where that was the only choice..then the TV goes on a wall that is not seen straight away

and it's not like I watch something horrible (wait. I usually do though. lol) ..anyway..it's like an invasion into privacy. same feeling when you read a book-any book-and then somebody comes up to you and looks over your shoulder. Few things irritate me more. Could be "Nursery Rhymes" for all I care.

I think what gets oriented toward the views should be related to where you spend the most time. The best views in the house where I grew up were in the eating area of the kitchen and the library (which is also where the TV was), and the LR faced the street. The formal LR was not used a lot, rarely in the summer and most often when it was darkish out anyway, so actually it didn't need much of a view.

I would imagine with the amount of time that people spend in the kitchen complex, that's where they would want their views.

My MCM ranch has an entry door to the kitchen. We also have a "front" door which opens to the foyer, but it's further down the front walk... both are at the front of the house, and according to the 1952 blueprints, this is original. My sink also looks out to the front. I love seeing who's coming up the drive, kids catching the school bus... in short, everything that's happening out front. Most people come to the kitchen door. The front door opens to a foyer-like area. According to the blueprints, it was once delineated by one of those way cool '50s indoor planters. That had been removed by a previous owner, and now that area is just a wide space with a coat closet, open to the living room and dining room. I love the layout of my house. Plus we spent a lot of $ renovating the kitchen and most times I'm happy to show it off!

My sister has that and I LOVE IT. The kitchen is the heart of the family! Of course, her kitchen is brand new and gorgeous and worth showing off. i might not like it so much if you were walking into a kitchen with 30 year old laminate and old olive appliances. She has a huge farm table and it's just a lovely place to gather with friends and family.