I believe that was beaglesdoitbetter1'.

That sounds like [beaglesdoitbetter's kitchen?[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/mostly-finished-kitchen-pics-dsvw-vd~2498667).

When we bought our house in 2003. one of my conditions was that we would replace the kitchen. My DH asked why I cared since "you don't cook". Okay, I'll admit it was mainly because I didn't like the DW door blocking the dining room door, and the fact that i had to open the fridge door in order to access one of my lower cabinet drawers and it had a completely useless triple sink, but once I got a decent space to work in, I started to cook. I'm spending even more time in my kitchen since the remodel last year, and although cost would have bought a whole lot of great restaurant meals for many years to com, the meals coming out of my kitchen are pretty darn good and I am very happy we did the renovation.

I cook all the time and now that I have a new kitchen I spend almost all of my time in there.

Truth be told, I was a little shocked at how it easy it was to be without our kitchen during the remodel. I had no idea that premade food was so cheap and so easy peasy! The kids thought it was the cat's meow to be able to grab a Marie Callender's pot pie from the freezer and nuke it.

I'm not sure it's worth putting in an expensive kitchen if you don't cook, but to some degree some neighborhoods demand it for resale. I really don't think they demand high end appliances, though. I've been through plenty of Parade homes that didn't have them.

I do cook, but I can see why someone might want a kitchen reno even if they don't cook......it's a room in the house they want to use with a design/set-up that won't be so specialized that it will hurt resale. (I heard of someone yesterday who put a glass wall between his home and attached garage.....now that's a specialized renovation that few others will likely appreciate.)

I think a lot of people who don't cook still eat in a reasonable amount....My brother and SIL are like that, eating mostly prepared foods and take out unless they're eating out, or their cooking is limited to making a few stove top things like pasta or oatmeal. And their higher-end appliances - present when they bought the condo and high end at the time - were more for resale than use, and if they replace them, their reason would be the same (fancy condo needs at least reasonably fancy appliances).

I agree, whether or not people cook, they have a kitchen and it needs to meet certain aesthetic and functional standards. I don't imagine people who do not cook spending a ton of time thinking about all the details of spice cabinet placement and whatnot, like beagles did.

Yes, beagles is a rarity, in my experience. It's true that the look of the kitchen often matters even more to people who don't cook, but they usually seem to remodel by keeping everything where it is and only upgrading the finishes, or maybe needlessly tearing out a wall or two.

I know many non-cooks put in expensive kitchens for resale or just for looks, but as someone who does cook A LOT, if I were purchasing a home I would far rather see a non-renovated kitchen with the house priced accordingly (so that I can renovate to my liking) than try to live with a non-cook's idea of what a nice kitchen should be. People who don't cook simply don't understand what works and what doesn't in terms of layout, and unless they hire a designer who DOES cook, it's unlikely that their beautiful kitchen will be fun to cook in.

I agree with many others, even if a family rarely cooks, the kitchen needs to maintain a good degree of complimentary aesthetics and functionality in touch with the rest of the house if only for resale, but also because the kitchen is often a gathering place.

Perhaps if I didn't cook, or cooked very little, there are some aspects I might leave out, and some appliances I wouldn't consider - again, it depends on the location and resale of the home.

I cook excessively (or so I'm told!) and we are doing a whole house renovation over a period of time (years?!?) Fortunately, much of the house needs far less than the kitchen (primarily because kitchens are the most expensive renovation), but we are still spending more than we should of our entire budget on the kitchen in relation to the size of our house and location - only because I do cook a lot and we do intend to retire here. If I did not cook as I do and this were a home we'd sell within 10 years or less, I would never consider much of what our current plans are for our kitchen. However, it would still need to meet certain standards for resale.

BTW, GW has changed my mind so much - opened my eyes to variety! I used to think chandeliers were excessive in a kitchen... have to say I've seen quite a few 'basic' and not-so-basic chandeliers and am now leaning heavily towards a 'basic' chandelier style lighting for the island. Never say never... : - )

The one appliance I couldn't live without is my large outdoor gas grill! Our meals are pretty simple with grilled meats, steamed veggies and salads. The remodeled kitchen will have Wolf, Subzero and Miele and it will be due to the property values and size of the house.

Yes it was Beagles' kitchen. I loved the stone she used. Blue Ahia. We didn't see any available when I had to replace my Fusion. DH would have salivated over the blue.

I have had everything from a full time housekeeper to no help at all. My housekeeper started making me really fat, so I started cooking again even then.

I cook a lot but think even if you don't a remodel can be worth it (depending on the state of your kitchen). Our main motivation for renovating is to improve flow and create a more spacious eating area for our family of 6. I guess I'm assuming that even if you don't cook you still eat in your kitchen or have people over and order take out. So yes you still want a beautiful space that functions best for however you plan to use it. I certainly think a cook and non-cook would make very different choices when renovating though!

I cook a lot and that is the reason that we are renovating the kitchen (they layout does not work) but it is also the reason we are not tearing down the wall between the dining room and the kitchen (I am a messy cook :)!) I have really appreciated this forum in helping me think about layout from a functional perspective.

As a funny story...my grandma cooked a lot. When they were starting to slow down, grandpa announced that they had tried some of these new fangled convenience foods like strawberry jam and rolls, but they just did not like them very much. When they were about 60 they moved into a newly built condo. After about a month, the oven broke and it was replaced under the warranty. Grandma asked if they had a lot of problems with these ovens, and they said to her "lady, I doubt anyone else has turned their oven on."

But, I was not planning on getting high end appliances.....I guess maybe I will miss my 1950's double oven! It is a pretty good gas stove!

I cook a lot, well more before the kids entered this picky phase. Now it’s the same boring easy stuff, ha!

I really like like the way may kitchen is laid out, and it works well for my needs so the only things we will be Messing with are updating surfaces (counters, floor) when they die. Same for appliances. I’m a little happy that the oven is slacking because I’d love a convection but nothing high end. Just something reliable that will fit a good sized turkey.

i can see why someone who doesn’t cook but has the money would love a beautiful kitchen- who doesn’t like to have a nice hous? But I wouldn’t want to inherit a kitchen designed by a non-cook

Interesting that the "cooks" assume the "non-cooks" can't design a kitchen! I'm sure both groups are equally represented in badly or well designed kitchens, since people work differently and have different needs/wants when they design from scratch or remodel within a budget and/or space constraints.

Also what is your definition of a cook vs non-cook ... I've met plenty who would consider themselves cooks who don't produce great tasting meals! My in-laws were certainly in the quantity over quality group. My mother can produce a gourmet meal out of whatever she finds in the fridge.

Every house I have owned has had a decent large kitchen, but there was always something I would have changed to suit my needs. The cooking status of the previous owner didn't really matter.

I dislike cooking, but you can bet that I want a well designed kitchen. If for no other reason than when I cook 2x a week, I want to make it as easy and as efficient as possible for myself. And even though I don't enjoy cooking, I am an excellent cook. After all, if I have to eat, I might as well eat something that tastes good.

And yes, I want a pretty kitchen. I still eat breakfast and lunch at home daily, so why shouldn't I eat in a pretty space that makes me smile every time I enter the room? Plus the kitchen is open partly to the living room.

We analyzed our appliance usage. The two appliances we use the most are the DW and the fridge. For those we're using an integrated Bosch fridge and a Miele DW. Most of my cooking is done on a cooktop. For the cooktop, we are switching to induction and again are using the 36" Bosch cooktop. I only use the oven occasionally and mostly for baking, so we are getting the Bosch 500 convection oven. And for us, the only other appliance we need is a microwave which will be a drawer Sharp MW.

'Cooking' is one of many tasks done in a kitchen. You still have to serve; you still have to eat; you still have to clean up. OK, I'm sure some folks eat dinner right out of the styrofoam boxes with plastic sporks, and then just chuck the whole thing in the trash. Regardless, a house needs a functional kitchen (it's code), so you might as well have a nice one.

We almost always cook. I can't actually remember the last time we ate out, or bought take-out. For one thing, we're so far from a take-out place that it would be cold by the time we got it home. That being said, we don't do full-blown cooking every day. We do a lot of cooking on the weekend, and coast on leftovers through the week. Like our Depression-era parents, we've gotten good at this. When hash appeared at the dinner table, you knew you'd finally reached the end of Sunday's roast!

" a functional kitchen (it's code),"

I'm pretty sure it isn't.......codes are generally about safety, and safety and functionality are two entirely different things. A safe kitchen might be really dysfunctional, LOL.

Would you illustrate what codes require a functional kitchen where you live (regardless of whether it's code anywhere else, of course)?

I cook from scratch almost every night (lamb stew tonight - can't wait!) and EVERY DAMN DAY now I am cursing my current crappy layout and eagerly anticipating our remodel. I can almost taste it, but I've got a good few months to go.

LOL stillpitpat! Yes, I sometimes imagine I'm cooking in my future layout, with my future appliances... but mostly I curse too now that I know what a good layout and what a well-functioning kitchen can be! I feel you!

OTOH, I envy your lamb stew tonight... cooler and rainy today and lamb stew sounds marvelous, but I can't get good lamb here : ( Might have to imagine that tonight, as well!

When our previous NDNs put their house on the market, they did some kind of remodeling in the kitchen. We had fallen out by then (unstable, violent drug-user & fam), so I never saw what they did with the kitchen. Well, the house was bought by a cook/kitchen design guy, who immediately remodeled the kitchen again. I heard that the previous occupant was skulking around at one point while they were tearing the kitchen out, and he was screaming about them pulling out the cabinets he had just had put in. I felt a tiny bit bad for him, as his family had wasted money on their kitchen remodel for resale, but I think the cook/design guy would have put a brand new kitchen in no matter what house he bought. He wanted it to suit him, as it should. And boy have we benefitted from living next door to a cook!

2Many, I started making lamb stew fairly often once we got a grocery store that stocks lamb regularly. They actually have a lamb section in their meat department. The only time I have had a hard time getting it was during Ramadan (it was sold out). It's cold here today too, and this will be just perfect. And even better when I can do things like chop vegetables without using up *all* of my prep space.

stillpitpat, I'm rather upset with you {grinning hugely} as I've just looked up a lamb stew recipe and will look for it today if I have to go to 3 grocery stores! Prep space? What's that? : )

Toronto Veterinarian, no where can I find it's code to have a kitchen. I'm not the one who posted that, btw, just was curious. However, I'd think it remarkably dumb not to have one in any home, whatever the reason for not having one.

I tend to keep up with home sales in our area, and some of the higher end homes which boast 'gourmet kitchens' have newly installed 4" granite back splashes, islands that are added in and definitely obstacles (even saw one today that's 2' x 3' in a high end home, and is still an obstacle), no under cabinet lighting... I could go on. They are selling, not cheaply either. So I think what one does, or needs to do largely is regional also. Clearly 'gourmet kitchen' means something very different in some areas (at least according to realtors and home buyers). I would never say our future kitchen is 'gourmet', but then again, I may change my tune! Frankly, when DH and I discussed moving as opposed to staying here, our kitchen update would have been minimal, a fraction of the cost, and we'd have sold quickly even so. Every day I am grateful to all those on GW!

In real estate every kitchen is described as a gourmet kitchen or a cook's kitchen!

... ya gotta wonder if car salesmen should take a cue, and start advertising cars with rusted fenders as having a 'living patina' : - ) I know I'm calling my re-purposed cabinets (from kitchen to laundry room) with exposed (and discolored, brass) hinges as 'living patina'!

No kitchen, no certificate of occupancy.

When we first started house hunting, we were actually interested in a house that didn't exactly have a kitchen. I don't remember the details now, but the fridge was in a pantry and the "kitchen" was like half a room. Maybe it had a sink but no range? Something weird, but I don't quite remember. However, we were interested in the house because it had 2 bedrooms and a full bath in the basement, so one of the 2 bedrooms on the first floor could have been turned into an actual kitchen. What we loved was the second floor. The whole thing was a master suite. It was set up like a giant bedroom/sitting room, with a couch, coffee table, and TV, in addition to the bedroom furniture. Very large bathroom and walk-in closets, plus a tandem. The price reflected the problems with the kitchen, and the reduction would have made up for the cost of putting in a real kitchen. We didn't move fast enough on that one, and someone else snapped it up. I never forgot that master suite though. If we won the lottery (which would require me to buy a ticket, and I never have, so.....) I would raise our roof and put a master suite in our attic. And continue our kitchen remodeling plans, of course.

I do remember the inspector saying that we had to have a kitchen sink to get a CO. I asked if it could be a temporary utility sink, and he was alright with that. Oddly enough, the bathrooms and kitchen HAD to have finished floors for a CO; the rest of the house did not. It could well be that a kitchen is not required by code- I stand corrected.

I think remodeling a kitchen for people who do not cook is fine if the people plan on moving out in a few years. Otherwise, I don't see the need for major work.

One of the houses my builder showed me belonged to a newly retired couple who had only a vestigial corner of a kitchen - a small fridge, a sink, a counter with a microwave and a portable electric burner, and maybe a foot and a half of extra prep space. No range or anything like that. Can't recall if they had a dishwasher or not. One small overhead cab, and whatever minimal cab space was under the counter top. No recollection on my part as to the composition of that counter top, since the kitchen was of zero interest to me in evaluating my prospective builder!

I've been in tiny re-conditioned NYC apartments and the cramped kitchens were far more functional than this. But.

They didn't cook, and wanted to focus on the rest of their house (sunken tub in the master bath, a fantastic stone fireplace, sinks in every bedroom, etc.) They just didn't cook. Somehow, in the middle of that relative "food desert" they did carry in. Or something like that.

But there was plenty of space for a future buyer to add in a real kitchen, if they ever sold.