Current kitchen

“Hallway” on the right side of pantry leads to living room. To the right of that are stairs to basement.

Yes, it is strange. I think that if I was working in a kitchen like that, it would drive me crazy. Making that odd L shape will make the adjacent room less functional too (I am guessing that is a dining area?). Also, the view into the kitchen will be dominated by this odd looking island- it creates a weird pathway/hole to nowhere in your last mock-up picture. Do you really want to look at that from the other room? Further, it looks as though the edge of the island hangs out a significant bit when it is viewed from the hallway next to the door, so it will look strange from that direction as well. And then to have to navigate around it when you are in the kitchen or to head towards the hallway, all just to fit another seat at the counter?

If you don't have room, you don't have room.

Here is a post for determining island How to Determine Kitchen Island Placement that I thought was spot on and very useful. Can't tell from the drawings if the pathways are wide enough.

It is unusual but not necessarily awful - it really depends on the traffic patterns throughout the house. Can you post a floor plan of the entire floor?

I agree. It’s different but not the worst thing ever seen. Personally I would avoid it and have the seating on the straight part. But I don’t think it will look absolutely horrible. It will impede on functionality tho

move fridge around to the left wall from where you show it. Create a U kitchen. and wrap counter and storage all around the 3 walls. Can you move range to the left a little bit. Put coffee items between pantry door and range then. Remove coffee bar from your proposal. Then calculate if a squared or rectangular island will fit down in that space. Use walls better / " coffee bars " are optional ....instead place coffee maker on counter and create 'hospitality drawer" in island and tray on island w coffee /tea items. Your 3 walls up there should be fully utilized and I think L shape island can be reconfigured / L is last resort. Dimensions are missing from the sketch but a taped off trial on your floor for rectangle or square island can assist.

Here is the designer's floor plan. I "extended" it to give you an idea of how the house flows east and west of the kitchen. The dimensions on these extensions aren't exactly to scale (the kitchen is to scale of course). This is a duplex, so no windows on the south shared wall. The front door opens to the living room, you walk through a short passage to the kitchen and then onto a dining area and out the back.

if you want coffee bar put it on unused bathroom wall at top of dining room . it can also be a mini drop zone coming in from back door. dining room can be left , and table of your choice w drop leaf or rectangular piece closer up to a wall ..you use dining table at certain times. then I would still wrap 3 walls in your kitchen zone and bring a square or rectangular island out a bit...it is a straight line in from living room and getting it back away from 3 walled kitchen it will be more desirable in my opinion and get LOTS of use.

It's a bit of a strange space for sure! What is the open area between living and dining (where your island seats and coffee bar will end up) used for now? And what will the dimensions of the remaining dining area be after the island is added?

Herbflavor's suggestion of a large U seems like a natural fit for the space, but that's what you have now and obviously it's not working for you or you wouldn't be changing it. What is it that you dislike about the current layout? Is it just that you want seating in the kitchen? If so, does the seating have to face the window, or would you be okay with seating facing the pantry or DR?

i think the older maple cabinets/ black counters and backsplash / no real interesting detail made the old kitchen feel "stuck" . Once you change to all new with ? contrast between island and perimeter maybe some glass doors on walls..lighter counters and backsplash / base drawers/ pendant lites for island w stylish hardware and top etc ..... It will be a different space even w U or 3 walls wrapped.

It IS a strange space, right??? Currently, I have a desk pushed against the south wall (so, my back is to the kitchen). But basically that area is used for.... NOTHING. It is a shared duplex wall, so no windows.

Our biggest issue with the room is that it's just a lot of unused space. The things we want are

1.) More counter space

2.) A place for our 2 young children to sit and eat breakfast, do homework

3.) A place for our adult friends and family to (eventually) be able to congregate and be social that isn't a formal dining table

I would be ok with the seating facing the pantry, but we don't want a peninsula (just a personal preference.)

Our designer has tried several variations, but in order to keep 36" minimum around the perimeter of the island AND have seating, the L shape seems to be the best (only?) option. I am open to room for just 2 chairs if anyone can figure out that math...

@herbflavor thank you for your help. I'm trying to envision what you're describing and drew over the plans in RED. Is this what you mean? Won't the island be too far from the kitchen itself? I measured out 36" from the walls since that is the standard clearance to my understanding. The island will have our microwave, which would put it quite far from the rest of the cooking area. I don't think I can fit it closer and still have the correct clearance.

what size is the fridge? if you nudge it to the right a bit and use diag cut cabinet to the left of fridge and reduce depth of coffee bar.... does coffee bar have to full depth...many times 12 in deep works well. sounds like you are between feeling island should part of working zone of kitchen and desiring seating aspect as well. personally I dont think I'd have such a wide fridge / probably would take out the very small pantry as you'd gain counter and then upper and lower cabs and things like mwave and toaster and coffee pot etc fit in the kitchen proper. then i would emphasize island as destination w seating and "removed" from kitchen these few feet actually is a plus.... but you have to figure this out and prioritize for yourself.

LOL, I was going to ask if you had considered a peninsula. Given your needs and the unique shape of your space, I think the current plan might actually be your best bet. The seating doesn't stick so far out into the thruway between living and dining, and with an L rather than a U at least some portion of the island is in the main work zone for counter space. Will you be putting a water source and mini-fridge on the coffee bar so that people don't have to go into the kitchen proper to get water for the pot and milk/cream? A mini fridge over there would also be useful for kid beverages/snacks so that they can grab something quickly without entering the main work area of the kitchen.

ETA: I just noticed herbflavor's comment about removing the pantry - IMO that is a great idea. You'd be able to shift the range down the wall a bit and get a lot more counter space between sink and range (where you need it most), plus it would make the island feel like it's a bit more a part of the kitchen and make it a little more useful in the main work space. The coffee station could then be configured to give you lots of pantry storage.

That layout would make more sense if the fridge was switched with the pantry, and a prep sink added to a rectangular island with seating on two sides. But you would have the bare minimum aisle space recommended by the NKBA. I think you could get by with 36" behind the island if the seating is toward the bottom side, and fridge is moved to the outside corner. If that's not possible, herbflavor's suggestion of a U is better.

(I also switched the DW to the other side of the sink, to give you space to stand to unload to the corner cabs.)

Work paths:

Thank you, everybody. @herbflavor I really appreciate you thinking this through.

-The fridge is a counter depth, so I think it may be a little wider than a standard fridge.

-Yes, I do want the island to operate as part of the kitchen. I'm personally not a fan of diag cut countertops and cabinets (there is an upper diag cabinet in this layout, but that is going to be switched out)

-I'm intrigued by the idea of putting the coffee bar on that north wall, but I worry about this looking like one large long wall kitchen as opposed to keeping it in the "center" of the house. There's also the question of what I'd do with the rest of that long south wall.

@biondanonima (Zone 7a Hudson Valley)

-Yes, there will be a mini-fridge / wine fridge in the bar. No running water though to keep costs down. It is a little annoying to walk to other sink to get water for coffee, but for me not a dealbreaker. Adding snacks to that is a great idea!

The first response to this post got my heart beating and I almost texted my designer to call the whole thing off. (I appreciate truthful and frank comments that appear on houzz.) Feeling a little better now. This may not be the most ideal set up, but it will meet our family's needs better than the current open nothingness. Let's call it "a creative solution?" Also I think @herbflavor is correct that just updating the surfaces will make the entire kitchen feel better. We plan to move in the next 3-4 years, so I'm hoping this won't be SO offensive to a buyer that it's a dealbreaker.

Oh wow @mama goose_gw zn6OH I just saw this. Very interesting.

I really like mama goose's plan. When you have a 36" pathway on one side of an island, you really need at least 40" on the adjacent side, otherwise you feel like you are just squeezing around a kitchen. mama goose was able to solve that issue. Kudos!

Also, if you are planning on selling the townhouse, an odd shaped L island will reduce your resale value.

Sorry I got your heart rate up- I guess I was being a little too frank. But if you are getting comments like "it's not the worst I've ever seen", that tells you something because there are some pretty crazy messed-up kitchens out there.