Your changes are so much better. Those angled-corner pantries are quite often ridiculously big, encroaching too much into the kitchen, and look like behemoths. The way you have squared it off will look so much better and give you back that room in your kitchen. It will be functional and more visually appealing. Your island design is also much better. We cook from fridge to sink to prep counter to cooktop/oven. So you want your appliances in that order for best efficiency. If your aisle width from island to perimeter counter is at least 48", you could also have a prep sink in the island. Quite a few people lately have done narrow windows on each side of the cooktop lately, so that's what I put there. Something else you might want to consider is your storage needs. If you do all drawers on the lowers, you will have more accessible storage which can also hold more items than lower cabinets. You have a decent-sized pantry. And it looks like you might have quite a bit of storage in that laundry room nearby although it's cut off so hard to tell. If so, that might be a great place to store items you don't use often or for your overflow bulk storage needs. Like if you buy a case of something on sale, you could put 3-5 of them in your corner pantry and the rest in the laundry room just moving them into the pantry as they are used up. If you have enough storage between your lowers, the pantry and the laundry room, you could eliminate some or all of the upper cabinets and have more windows! This will make your kitchen lighter and feel more spacious. And it's nice to work without cabinets in your face.

Ok, I finally made it home. As you'll see from the sketches, we are in the early conceptual stage of house design with our architect. LOL.... It was said and agreed upon on the build forum that architects aren't great kitchen designers (and neither am I) :) :) We like this particular layout, but I wanted to make sure that we could get a functioning kitchen before we move further forward with this particular variation.Garage is in the top right corner which I cut off on the picture. I agree that a true butlers pantry opens into the DR, but we are both ok with it as it is because it is also quite like a wet-bar for us. We still can stage food and remove dirty dishes, etc to this spot. And a section through the kitchen: And finally, a more squished in version of the kitchen: Hopefully that gives everyone a better idea of what we're trying to do.

I will do an as-built drawing tomorrow! Right now the kitchen is two separate rooms, and you can only enter the laundry room from outside (house used to be a duplex). The kitchen part is 11x13, the laundry part 11x7. I'm surprised by the U suggestion - isn't 11 feet (134 inches to be precise) too wide for a U? Even with extra-wide counters there'd still be six feet in between the arms of the U - that sees awkward.

Some information that might help you understand my comments... Work Aisles Work aisles should be a minimum of: 42" for a one-person and always a one-person Kitchen 48" for two or more people working in the Kitchen . Work Zones There are three primary work zones in the Kitchen: Prep, Cooking, Cleanup. There can be other, secondary zones or centers, but they are not the heart (or focus) of the Kitchen. Prep Zone...This is the zone where food prep takes place. Food prep can be anything from making a sandwich to preparing a multi-course meal. It includes cleaning/rinsing food, cutting, mixing, processing, etc. For many people, especially those with small kitchens, their Prep Zone is also their Baking Center for rolling out dough, etc. 70% or more of the work and time spent in the kitchen is spent prepping. It's the most often used and longest used zone in your kitchen! Cooking Zone...This is the zone where you take the food you've already prepped and apply heat...cooktop, oven, MW. Only 10% of the work and time spent in the kitchen is spent actually cooking. This is the least used Zone, relatively speaking. Think about it, you usually don't spend the entire time standing in front of your oven or cooktop watching it cook. Sure, there are some things that do have to be stirred constantly, but most things do not. And even then, you usually still spend more time prepping before you begin cooking. Cleanup Zone...This is the zone where the dirty dishes are handled! Dishes, pots, pans, etc. 20% or less of the work and time spent in the kitchen is spent cleaning up. Cleaning up includes not just putting dishes in the DW, it includes clearing the table, wiping down the table & counters, handwashing a few items, loading & unloading the DW. What else do we need to keep in mind regarding planning a kitchen and zones? Dish Storage...works best when it's near the DW and near the serving/eating locations (island, DR, Nook, etc.). It should not be in the middle of the Prep or Cooking Zones. Food Storage...works best when it's near the "action". It's nice to be able to store staples, etc. at their point-of-use, so food storage can be spread throughout the kitchen. E.g., flour, sugar, etc. in a "Baking Center", spices in the Prep or Cooking Zone, Cereal close to where breakfast is eaten, etc. If you have a dedicated pantry, it's nice to have the pantry near the point where the groceries enter the house as well. Refrigerator...works best on the periphery of the kitchen so it's easily accessed by people working in the kitchen as well as "outsiders" looking for a snack without the "outsiders" getting underfoot of those working in the kitchen. It should also be near the Prep & Cooking Zones inside the kitchen and, if possible, near the main meal location(s) for ease of access during mealtime. Microwave (MW)...this also works best on the periphery of the kitchen so it's easily accessed by people working in the kitchen as well as "outsiders" looking for a snack without the "outsiders" getting underfoot of those working in the kitchen. Zone-crossing - avoid!...When planning zones, etc., try to minimize zone-crossing. For example, if you can avoid it, don't put the refrigerator such that you have to cross through the Cleanup Zone to go b/w the refrigerator and the Prep or Cooking Zone. Protection...of all the zones, the Cooking Zone should be the most protected from through-traffic as well as general-kitchen traffic. The Cooking Zone contains the range/cooktop where you will be dealing with fire (if gas), hot foods, etc. You also do not want to have to cross a busy aisle when taking a pot of boiling water from the range/cooktop to the sink for emptying...or anything else hot, for that matter! . Zones and Kitchen Workflow When designing your kitchen, ideally, the zones should follow the normal/usual workflow in a kitchen: Refrigerator => (Prep) Sink => Workspace => Cooktop/Range => Table OR (Cleanup) Sink => (Cleanup) Sink => Cabinets (dishes, pots/pans, etc.) Which translates to: Refrigerator => Prep Zone => Cooking Zone => Serving Zone => Cleanup Zone You don't necessarily have to have this exact flow, but something close. For example, you might have the Cooking Zone located between the Refrigerator and Prep Zone. This isn't necessarily bad b/c these two zones are tied so closely together. On the other hand (OTOH), it's not a good idea to put the Cleanup Zone between the Refrigerator and Prep or Cooking Zones on the same run or on the same aisle if it's a narrow aisle. In this case, the DW and someone cleaning up and/or unloading the DW will be in the way of anyone prepping or cooking because the refrigerator is an integral part of both prepping and cooking. And, of course, the reverse is true....someone prepping and/or cooking will get in the way of someone cleaning up! . . The above and more information can be found in our Kitchen Design Best Practices/Guidelines/Principles Threads: Kitchen work zones, what are they? http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3638270/faq-kitchen-work-zones-what-are-they Aisle widths, walkways, seating overhangs, work and landing space, and others http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3638304/faq-aisle-widths-walkways-seating-overhangs-work-landing-space-etc How do I plan for storage? Types of Storage? What to Store Where? http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3638376/faq-how-do-i-plan-for-storage Looking for layout help? Memorize this first. http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2699918/looking-for-layout-help-memorize-this-first .