ETA- sorry this is so long! Kicez- thanks for asking. I'm still happy with the Veddinge, but they're not for everyone, You do get what you pay for when it comes to the IKEA fronts. My husband chipped a bit of paint off one of the fronts during the countertop install and I anticipate with two adults and two smal kids that's just the first of many blemishes. I'll just touch up with color matched paint if it ever starts to annoy me, but that might be unacceptable to others. one of the reasons I chose Veddinge is that I might paint them a pretty blue/gray someday and they should be easy to repaint. I also chose them because I wanted slab fronts and they were a relatively good price (I also priced out the ringhult-pricey!) If you want a durable finish, the present equivalent to the old Akurum White Adel shaker style is worth consideration; grimslov maybe?. The thermofoil on those adel in our last house was wonderful. The down side to many folks is that they're off-white. i was at IKEA on Sunday buying more cabinets for our mudroom and the IKEA employee said the new sektion doors this year are more modern in style and a departure from the more traditional options, so if you like a glossy finish you might wait until the fall release. Hope that helps!

My old galley kitchen had a 3' aisle and I had no problem with it, so I don't think I would find a 3.5' aisle too tight, especially given that the peninsula side wouldn't have upper cabs. However, I don't think I'm a fan of the peninsula because it leaves us only one aisle into the actual kitchen. With the island set up we have now, there are two, so if I am cooking and my husband comes in from outside and needs to get to the sink, he can access it without walking past me, or if we both come in with groceries, etc., one can go to the far side of the island and the other cut in on the side closest to the door.

Can you take out the two small closets by the door? You could have a wider island, with dish storage, which would make moving the DW to the left of the clean-up sink more efficient (especially if the dining area is off to the bottom of the LR). Here's a quick re-work of a previously posted plan: Ideally, the fridge would be on the short wall on the right, near the stairs and living areas, providing easy access for someone coming from those directions--but then you wouldn't have the symmetric open area from the entry and LR. As it's drawn, someone who wants an item from the fridge has to walk all the way around the island--either past the seating, or through your work space. My guess is they'll cut through the work aisle. ETA, is the kitchen only 12' deep? The red rectangle, scaled to the area I marked 'dining?' is 12'7" deep, so I don't think you have space for an island, a sofa, and convenient working and seating/traffic aisles. How deep is the range, including oven door and handles?

I agree with the others that you will not see the symmetry from the living spaces. My comments are strictly based on my own experience. I moved my refrigerator off the end of the run nearest the breakfast table and it is now in the prep area between the island prep sink and range top. I now have open countertop and dish storage where the refrigerator used to be and I much prefer it this way. It is no big deal for the few times that you might want condiments on the table to walk a few more steps, but we set the table every night so having the dishes close to the table was more important to me. Ours are in a drawer. I could see a pretty dish hutch nearest your table. If your kitchen were mine I would keep the sink on the island and move the DW to the other side and flip the refrigerator to the right of the cooktop. In the same vain I would reverse the mudroom and pantry so that all of the appliances would be at the working end of the kitchen. Someone could load or unload the DW or set the table without getting into your cooking and prep area while you and another helper are working to the right of the cooktop and on the island. If the pantry were nearest the patio doors you could easily go around the far end of the island to get to your ovens and freezer without interfering with people at the island. I'd strongly consider a ledge sink. it is a multifunctional tool which expands working space and can also be used for serving. My husband has a big wooden board that covers almost the entire sink where he carves his BBQ masterpieces :) I love a fireplace in a dining area but you might be better off with a built-in for serving food. A round table will help to alleviate the bowling alley feel.