can you take down the wall and go into the dining room? then you could do an island. (or, do supports there is you have, take out the wall and do a island w/supports. Hard to tell since I can't see above the soffit. It's a good space and you have some great possibilities. Honestly? I would hire a kitchen designer and see what they come up with. even if it ends up costing you 500, it will be worth every penny. Do it right because this is the last time you'll do it!

Could you post a sketch of the entire 1st floor?

How often do you use the dining room, and is there another entrance into it?

Does the entire 1st floor have that angled ceiling (like, is it from the roof angle), or is that just an odd decorative thing?

Once you have a floor plan posted, could you also share what you would like and want in a space? For example, you mention that the kitchen is seen immediately when you enter the home. Would you possibly like to eliminate that? Do you use your dining room?

I'm not a pro, just a frequent lurker. But Beth H is right on. With enough money in the budget, perhaps there's a way to close up that entrance to the kitchen so you can't see the kitchen from the front door. Then you could perhaps do an L-shape kitchen, with cabinets along the doorway wall and the refrigerator wall. Well, it's an idea.

In addition to a kitchen designer (and since I always think about budget first), I'd play around with the Ikea kitchen design tool. It's pretty easy to use once you get through the beginning steps. Youtube videos helped me through anything I didn't understand. That allows you to price out very nice, but less costly cabinets, and come up with a ballpark figure.

It would be absolutely foolish to decrease your counter space, let alone decrease it by almost half of your total counter space which is what you’d be doing if you chopped off the peninsula. REALLY foolish. If you had an abundance of it, sure! But you don’t have an abundance of it; you barely have enough! And the same goes for the storage provided by the cabinets that would also be lost if you chopped off that countertop.

they aren't soffits in the traditional sense. I wouldn't take them out as they seem a part of the original infrastructure and style of space, also with pitch to ceiling. It could be great to work with them- get a good designer who has restored mid century homes. Are there some other features of the home that provide some insight as to "original" concept ?

Before you get rid of the bar, think about shoving the papers into a drawer just underneath the counter. When the drawer overflows, empty it into a cardboard box and put it somewhere else. Then think about how you want to organize your paperwork to reduce it (i.e. paperless billing or an upcoming bill stack, catalogs & magazines, coupons, receipts, junk mail that can be sorted later). Think about a file cabinet in a different space. Maybe you have a organized paperwork drawer at the bar, and a second drawer for shoving paperwork into. Keep your counters dusted, washed and dried (to prevent mineral buildup), then admire them every so often. Even tablets can go in a drawer when they are not being used.

EDIT: You have a lot of stuff on the counters. See if you can move some of it to a pantry, or consider finding a space where you can put them in appliance garages.

Can you close off the entrance from the front door? Can you get from the front door to the dining room without going through the kitchen? It may be inconvenient, but you might get used to it.

I agree a designer would help improve the layout, especially if you add or remove walls or need new storage solutions.

Is there space in the eating area that you can use for storage? Could you use that space for an island instead of a second dining table?

Please sketch out the space including dimensions and the rooms around it. Post a photo of your drawing here and we can brainstorm ideas.

You have a cool space with the vaulted ceilings. A galley without the peninsula looks like a good solution, you just need to get your sink and range on the same side. The sight line from the front door through to the nook chandelier and window is nice.

Is the room on the other side of the sink wall a formal dining?

Those soffits could be beams essential for structural strength. You might consider leaving them and build your cabinets specifically designed to totally enclose them behind your cabinet doors -- building cabinets both above and below them.

I think you need to talk to a real kitchen designer not a cabinet sales person to get some real help. But that said if you post a detailed floor plan of the main floor we can also help with ideas. Details include windows doorways plumbing and how easy it is to reach the plumbing for chages and first and foremost how much money are you willing to spend, Looks to me that new appiliances are in the plan too.

What are the cabinets made of and what condition are they in?

New flooring? Before or after you demolish the existing cabinets?

Usually, flooring is installed after the existing cabinets are demolished and before you install the new ones. As Grace mentioned, if your layout changes, you don't want to be stuck b/c you only installed new flooring in some places.

The other thing to keep in mind is that you want the flooring to go with whatever cabinets, etc., you choose.

Another consideration is that you don't want to trap existing appliances that are in "alcoves" (e.g., DW) in case you need to remove them for repair or replacement before you demolish the Kitchen. This happens when new flooring is either installed over existing flooring or even when existing is torn out but the new flooring is thicker than the old flooring (e.g., ceramic tile vs vinyl).

I agree with others that you need to get someone knowledgeable about structure, design, etc., involved in this. Not a cabinet salesperson, a real designer -- it may mean more than one if you cannot find one that is good at Kitchen design, interior design, and, possibly, structural design.

I wonder if you made the peninsula more functional as a Prep Zone if it would cut down on the "junk collector" issue. E.g., adding a prep sink.

Do you have a place for people to put mail, etc., now? If not, designing a place for that type of clutter near your family's main entrance may also help -- a "Message" or "Command" Center to hold mail, keys, etc.

Do you have a bathroom on the first floor? If so, it may not be that difficult going without a kitchen for a few weeks. We went almost 7 months without a Kitchen (long story) and we had no water on the first floor! Our kids were in Middle School when we did it and we survived! There a few posts about a "temporary kitchen" that might help you.

with all due respect, contact paper on kitchen cabinets ?? I am all for doing something easy and not much $ but it has to be functional (and attractive- but I get that attractive is in the eyes of the beholder). Contact paper would never stand up to the daily wear of a kitchen.

This wild range of suggestions is what always happens when there's no budget mentioned. What kind of budget are you working with? According to Remodeling’s 2018 Cost vs. Value Report the national average cost for a minor, midrange remodel of the heart of the home was $21,198. In my area that doesn't even cover the cost of the contractor firm, much less cabinets - and appliances alone can be easily $10k. Are you keeping the appliances?

Yes you are right Jasmine--- so for this kitchen it is only appropriate for the side of the cabinet and yes that looks better and will wear. For the doors though he says its only recommended on slab doors. Noted.

When I look at your photos, the first thing that occurs to me is that there is a serious lack of functionality in your workspace.

There is no flow between the sink, the stove, and the frig.

The second thing that I see is that there is an obstacle in the way with that cabinet abruptly jutting out from the wall. It divides the space and becomes the central initial focus as you walk in the front entrance.

Changing the way that the front entrance leads into the kitchen and closing it up looks as if it might create more awkwardness, as opposed to solving problems. Instead of eliminating that, I would suggest to create a kitchen/dining area that pleasantly greets you and welcomes you in as you enter the house. Don't fight that entry. Embrace it. Direct that money that you would pay a carpenter to close up that wall into doing something nice in the kitchen.

You see all the way to the other side of the dining area and out the back window as you come in through the front entrance. That can be quite visually pleasing and add to a sense of space and flow.

But, currently, you have that cabinet blocking the flow. blocking the flow, blocking the flow......It stops up everything and you say that it is often covered with debris of life. Eliminate it!

If you can configure your kitchen into a more compact and efficient work area that leaves that area open you will gain not only functionality from having a more efficient work area, but also a nice visual flow that looks enticing and inviting from the front entrance.

You could walk in the front door and be drawn all the way to the back of that area to the open window and a nice dining area, as opposed to being stopped in your tracks by a wall of cabinets piled up with stuff. Not good!

Perhaps after you eliminate that counter island, you could put in some type of a desk area to run along that wall where your family could use to accommodate all of those paper things that families seem to have stacks of. Or, just a countertop space that is dedicated to that type of function. Or, you might have some glass front cabinets installed to house and display some nice kitchen ware, or, whatever might suit you. You can run/extend a cabinet along the wall as opposed to having one that is perpendicular to the wall and jutting out into and dividing the space.

I really think that you need to start with embracing and working with the elements that are already there. Deciding on a more efficient work area for your kitchen is something that you can think out for yourself or hire someone. You really do need some new cabinets and some new flooring. Whatever design that you decide upon I think you will do yourself well to open up that space all the way to the back. You might be amazed at how much more welcoming and spacious it seems! Think how delightful it might be to walk in the front door and be greeted by a pleasant visual space all the way out to the back!

Another thought about the work area space is that, if you can position the frig and maybe the range into a position where they are not right in the direct line of vision from the front entrance, that would be a plus. It may or may not be possible. You have some thinking to do on that.

In summation, I suggest that you need a more efficient and flowing work area and you need to eliminate that cabinet that divides and blocks, and accumulates debris.

I think the OP has abandoned this thread.