FYI...bar-height is 6" taller than counter height, not 9-10". I don't think you'd be able to find bar stools for 9-10". Height from finished floor: Table-height: 30" Counter-height: 36" Bar-height: 42" If you decide to go w/a raised bar, I would make the raised counter 14 - 15 inches deep, not 12". 12" really isn't that deep an area and will make it difficult to eat there w/a normal sized plate + glass. Many of today's plates are now 12" wide or more (which is one reason why more and more people are going with 14" or 15" deep upper cabinets). If your dishes happen to be larger (or even 10"), you will have to be careful not them push it over the edge while eating. That would make for an uncomfortable meal, IMO. In the non-linked photo, the raised counter appears to be simply for display...note the plate/flatware/utensils are on the lower counter, not the upper. I also noted there is quite a bit of overlap w/the lower counter in your linked photo. The NKBA recommended overhang (extending past the lower counter) is 12" for bar-height. So, if you have a 12" overhang then a 15" surface is easy w/the "extra" 3" overlapping the lower counter. Granted the 12" overhang is a "recommendation", but recommendations are made for a reason... As to multi-level counters in general, there are quite a few threads discussing this....pros/cons. Personally, I don't like them as it breaks up wonderful workspace for larger projects (baking, prepping, crafts, etc.) and it can be difficult for children & older people to get into/out of the 6" higher stools. They really don't hide anything either, if that's someone's intent...any tween/teen/adult-sized person standing up will easily see over the overhang and onto the counter in front of it. And, of course, anyone sitting at the counter is looking right at the mess...regardless of seated height. But, it's your kitchen, so it's up to you.

You have a peninsula, not a breakfast bar, since the back doesn't allow for seating. The only way to change that would be getting new countertops (which would stick out past the wall) or changing the cabinets and then likely the countertops as well. Instead, you may be able to fit a small round table and two chairs on the far side of the kitchen near the windows. Without dimensions I can't recommend furniture placement. You can likely fit a small sofa and a chair. Your chairs from the table can be pulled in for use with company. I would wall mount the TV to give you more space. Measure and see how you can fit in a sofa first. A white or light rug could work, but wait to find your sofa and how it will be positioned which will help you know the correct sized rug.

Please, feel free to use my low-rent drawing. Spuyten Duyvil is beautiful and such a fun name to say. Yes, we are a stone's thow away. I'm near Ft Tryon Park in Washington Heights. If you have a good experience with your contractors, I'd love to get their info. While my kitchen is 3 feet longer than yours, it is only 7'8" wide. Light surfaces and bouncing light around makes a huge difference. If you place your fridge to the right of the sink, it will chop up your counter space, block the window light, and contribute to a small feel, just as the stub walls do now. Can you put the fridge where the stove is and move the stove to the right of the sink? Ask your contractor and building. When do you close and when do you intend to start construction? We had a month in between. Though we were only here on the weekends during that month it was incredibly helpful to get a realistic idea of how we felt in the space and how we wanted to use it. If you can do the same, I suggest it. We had a folding table and two chairs that we moved around the space. The window was a magnet and entirely changed our layout. We also scooted it around to imitate a countertop and approximate the feel of our sofas. Everything is so different in person with 3D objects. Not being able to get certain pieces of furniture through the bedroom door also changed things. We were moving from a 3 story, 5 bed house into this 2 bedroom apartment and in the end, having no room for a china cabinet, limited closet space, and no basement storage, putting up a wall and having as many kitchen cabinets as possible was a major reason to go with a galley kitchen. I cannot stress enough to ignore your realtor and do what you love in the space for the time you are using it. Our realtor and multiple contractors encouraged us to knock down a kitchen wall in our old house. We refused and ignored all of the experts. When we sold our house got four offers in two days, whereas others on our street sat on the market. People commented that our kitchen was a selling point. Yes, our kitchen with a wall between it and the dining room. Go with what feels right and is practical for you in the space. Also, try to find pics of kitchens with islands that have columns in the middle to get a feel for the look.

Hi HU. Not a pro but my kitchen renovation poses almost exactly the same dilemma as yours so I’m glad I came upon your post. You mentioned not being sure how to shorten the walk between your sink and stove. Your fridge being in a L shape to your outer wall is what is causing that issue, so I agree with the last 2 posters that you should remove that L and put your fridge in line with your stove and outer cabinet run. You can then shift the peninsula side of the kitchen 18 inches closer to the outer cabinets as long as you’re able to shift the walkway to the utility hall over. If there is no ductwork or plumbing in the wall currently right behind the fridge that shouldn’t be a huge cost, and you’d make up for it in not having to buy corner cabinets which tend to be more expensive and not all that functional. You’d also have less countertop costs since the top would just be straight pieces on the outside of the stove and between the stove and fridge. You’d have enough space for at least a 36 inch cased opening to the hallway, which will feel much more open than the current 32 inches with a fridge to the side of it. I don’t think you’d have enough room for a pantry on the outside wall with this plan but you could create a pantry in the 18 inches of space made by shifting the peninsula over. Yes it would face the living space so not ideal but it would be bigger and building a pantry closet is likely much less expensive than buying a pantry cabinet with rollouts. You would then have an overhang behind the sink for seating or for additional storage if you didn’t need the seating. That could a nice place for bookshelves facing the living room if you wanted a display area. I’d keep the entire peninsula at 36 inch height but you could make this part 42 inches if you wanted to shield the sink more. I know you wanted to stay within your current walls but the only demolition with this would be the wall right behind the fridge to move the hall into the utility over. As long as it is clear from obstructions this really isn’t a huge change to your footprint and you’d get a much more functional kitchen other than the pantry being just outside of it. I did a crude drawing to show this in picture form since it’s sometimes easier to decipher even with finger drawn lines. Selfishly I’m very interested to see if anyone has other thoughts on your layout since I’m having trouble coming to conclusions with my own but have been too nervous to post it and have it get ripped apart. You’re very welcome HU. It was nice to stare at someone else’s plans for a little bit. I have an irrational dislike of corner cabinets in kitchens and design them out of my renos when I can. I know you said you’re happy with the fridge location just thought it was worth throwing that option out there as a way to get the sink closer to the stove while still giving you more upper cabinets too. If you’re still open to it you can think about putting your 2 foot pantry cabinet to the hallway side of the fridge in my plan, but that will only leave you about 4.5 feet of counters/cabinets for either side of the stove, which isn’t a lot of prep space. That also would put the fridge opposite the dishwasher, which isn’t ideal. You could also put the pantry opposite the fridge but that would take away a chunk of the upper cabinets that you were hoping to add on that side and the pantry doors could conflict with the opening to your hallway. My biggest concern with your current plan is that a pantry next to the sliding doors could block natural light from entering the kitchen, which already seems a little dark in your pictures and has no windows of its own. Is there any room off the utility hallway for a pantry closet? I know that puts it out of the kitchen footprint but if you could carve out a even a 24–36 inch wide by 12 inch deep space somewhere near that hallway opening it’d be close by. On the subject of natural light, I know adding a window on the stove side probably isn’t an option since it would cost you an upper cabinet but that could solve any natural light issues as well if that truly is a problem in the space. I’m a huge fan of open concept and islands but I ended up adding walls back into my plan since I only had 6 feet of uppers with my original one wall and island layout. I’ve never private messaged on here but I can send you my plans once my architect updates them. I can’t believe how hard it is to find pictures of this type of set up since it’s such a nice, functional compromise between fully open and fully walled off.