Cooking isn’t my favorite thing. Feeding a family of six is no small task, especially when half of them are teenage boys. I don’t mind it much if I have a plan and a clean workspace, but a clumsy layout, crowded access to supplies and other people trying to do things in the kitchen at the same time can make me grumpy. The kitchen is without a doubt the busiest and hardest working room in our house. I knew this kitchen had to be planned out well enough to make performing tasks as efficient as possible. I also needed to be mindful of how multiple people can work around in the space, without getting in each other’s way.
Goals for this room:
- Efficient layout for multiple people to work together
- Open to the family room and dining spaces
- Work zones built around specific functions
- Enough storage to allow for mostly clear countertops
- A bright yet warm overall feel
Design Concept:
Visually, I wanted to achieve a mostly symmetrical look with the range and hood as the focal point. The dark blacks, crisp whites, and warm wooden tones form the main color palette for the entire home and are repeated throughout. The contrast of light and dark mixed with the warmth of natural wood makes a rich yet neutral background to build on, which I love. Designing a kitchen is more than picking pretty features though. For me, the challenge of making the room look beautiful and simultaneously smart functioning is very satisfying. I’m in favor of work zones rather than the traditional “kitchen triangle” method. This kitchen has three main areas that I have broken into several smaller zones to separate tasks and maximize the space.
Cooking Zone
I never thought I would own a stove this large. There are so many options when picking out a range, and prices vary widely. We looked at cooktops with separate wall ovens, traditional ranges with warming drawers, and a great big restaurant layout you need a second mortgage to pay for. I knew I wanted a gas top, as I much prefer to cook with gas over electric. Double wall ovens and a separate cooktop with six burners sounded nice. I don’t use two ovens often, but I reasoned it would be great to have for large family dinners, and four burners on a traditional range always seemed crowded. However, double ovens would cost me quite a bit of counter space. And six burners take a significant jump in price. With all this in mind, we went on the hunt for a range. I decided on one and then changed my mind more times than I can count. After scouring the market, I had conceded that a single range with six burners and one oven would be a nice upgrade and make the most sense all around. Then Brent got involved. If I’m a sucker for a big showy piece, Brent is even more so. Especially if the item in question can be categorized as “gear”. While weighing the cost/benefit ratios for several options, somehow we happened to find this affordable pro-style range from Thor online. Brent talked with customer service for hours about the mechanics and reliability of the range. It was not available to look at in any of the showrooms or dealers in our area so we had to take a leap of faith to buy it. Convinced it would be all we hoped, we ordered one.
Boasting two ovens, six burners, and a griddle all in one unit, this thing does it all. I have plenty of room to spread out large pots and pans on top. The griddle is perfect on a busy weeknight and I don’t have to get out a separate griddle if we are having pancakes or grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner. And though I don’t use the second oven a lot, it’s nice for the occasional side dish or slow roasting at lower temperatures than other dishes. For all this, I only had to sacrifice twelve inches of counter space as opposed to two and a half feet required for wall ovens. Also, the size makes it possible for two people to cook side-by-side. We knew with this large pro-style range, we would want a powerful vent hood to go with it. Fried chicken or roasted garlic smells delicious while it’s being made, but I don’t want to continue smelling it after the meal is over. Plus it added to the focal point of the overall kitchen. In the end, our choice of ranges was crucial to the design of this kitchen. It gave me plenty of cooking power without sacrificing the zone concept that was important to me for efficiency.
Appliance Center
I fell in love with many examples of a baking center when looking for inspiration for this kitchen. I also knew I wanted to have as many small counter appliances hidden as possible. I don’t do a lot of baking but I do love to be able to quickly turn out some chocolate chip cookies on a Sunday afternoon. I decided to combine a small baking area and an appliance garage into one. It keeps many breakfast items within reach, and a batch of cookies is a cinch. Ultimately this area ended up smaller than I had planned, due to a change in the size of the range we chose, but I can keep some of the other appliances ready to use in the nearby pantry.
Food Prep & Cleaning Zone
The island is divided between food prep and clean-up. In the past, I had a separate food prep sink in the island, while the full-size sink and dishwasher for cleaning tasks were on the window wall. Here, the island does double duty with one side reserved for food preparation and the other side used for clean up. This has worked out well so far. It helps me to clean a little more as I go, instead of stacking it all on the side to deal with later. A friend once told me she thinks the secret to a happy kitchen is to be able to empty the dishwasher without having to take a lot of steps. With this in mind, I placed all the dinner and service ware directly opposite the dishwasher and on the dining end of the kitchen. The food preparation side has a pull-out trash bin and room for a cutting block just above the knife drawer.
Food Storage and Snack Bar
All of the food is organized along the adjacent wall. The fridge and corner pantry form the bookends to the lunch and snack area. The microwave is here also, for quick heating of leftovers or melting cheese over nachos. This is where the kids spend most of their kitchen time looking for something fast before they head off somewhere.
The separation of zones means that someone can be emptying the dishwasher at the same time I’m starting on breakfast. Or kids grabbing a snack after school are not in my way while I’m preparing dinner. There is room for improvement and maybe adjustment to the snack and baking areas, but for now, I’m quite happy with how the space works for us.
Things I’m Still working on:
- The pantry has potential but is not yet fulfilling it. It has basic shelving in place but needs a small counter area and lots of love in terms of organization.
- Stools. The barstools are just sad. They wobble and the fabric is torn and they have been around forever. Somehow I still haven’t found just what I want to replace them.
- A light in the baking/appliance cabinet.
The kitchen is just what it ought to be. Not too big, not too small, and central to the home. As a bonus, the design and upgraded features have inspired family members other than me to try their hand at cooking, which is always welcome.
