HALLELUJAH! We thought we were the only people who don't want "open concept". We LIKE separate rooms.

Now I just need a few people to say that they don't like hardwood floors...

I love my hardwood floors in the living room, dining room and hall, but I wouldn't put them in the kitchen.

I love my closed concept 1970's house with wood paneling! We had an open concept house before this one and I hated the fact that when you walked in the front door 70% of the house was visible so I felt I needed to keep it tidy all the time. That's very difficult with many small children. Also, my kitchen sink was about 4 feet from the couch so I could never relax with dirty dishes in the sink and watch a little tv after dinner. In our "new" house I can happily greet people in our entry room and then take them into the formal living room and dining room or even the casual living room without them ever seeing the kitchen. They don't have any idea that behind the kitchen door may be a huge mess from baking/cooking dinner/kids crafts/etc. I love the look of the open concept house but from an everyday standpoint I wouldn't trade my closed concept house for it.

I'm an open kitchen concept convert (OKCC). :) I THOUGHT I preferred the OKC, however, I realized the sounds of the kitchen (ice coming from the dispenser, running water in the sink, cabinets doors opening and closing) are disturbing to family members trying to watch tv or talk amongst each other. That's my current situation and I can't wait to move to a home with a separate kitchen.

We built new, just over 4 years ago, and I was sure at the time that open concept was NOT for us. Today, I am so happy that we went with that concept/design.
It just works for us...
I love to cook from scratch, I process garden produce & I also bake alot. DH loves his TV...
The kitchen/dining/great rooms are at 45 degree angles to each other, which gives each of us a measure of privacy, but they also offer quick access when needed. (I can lean over the peninsula and "yak" at him when required)

Great topic. Our kitchen is not open to the living room or family room, but the way we've designed it, it's the main room towards which people gravitate. Sometimes it's nice to hide and try to focus on what you're cooking but with everyone RIGHT THERE and of course talking away AT you... (talking TO, would imply a conversation :)...)

I keep vowing to be a better host and am gradually getting better at making sure everything is done beforehand (or selecting recipes with which I can involve my guests) because I for one cannot cook and talk intelligently at the same time.

When we remodeled the kitchen in our 1978 ranch three summers ago, we added a wall between the kitchen and the family room. It was completely open before, with only a 6" step down delineating the two rooms. Now we have about 7 ft of full wall, another 7 to 8 ft of a half wall, and 4 ft of ramp. No more falling out of the kitchen!

We were not really looking to add wall. Our set of gently used cabinets that I used in the new kitchen design had a corner double oven cab. I used it as a corner raised dishwasher cab with a shelf for a microwave above the DW. Next to it was a 36" wide pantry cab. Then we had the desk unit that came with the kitchen. My carpenter/builder saw that putting a wall behind this line of cabs was just natural, and he was right. Before, with only a plywood backing between us and the dishwasher, even our quiet Bosch made noise. Now we do not hear it at all. The wall also gave us a place for two new electrical outlets in the family room and two new outlets for the desk area in the kitchen.

The person working at the kitchen island can still see the TV. It only takes a slightly raised voice to converse between the two rooms. DH likes the desk, as he can see into the family room with a simple raising of his head, and the TV is right there for him, too. So when he is working late on something that needs partial attention, he can watch the baseball game or talk to me, as well. Visually, the clutter of each room remains in its own space. Before, even a straightened set of rooms seemed visually cluttered just because you saw the side tables, easy chairs, lamps, magazine rack, kitchen chairs, buffet, and table all in the same glance.

Here is a link that might be useful: Behind the new wall, and go forward one more

I would never want to be locked away in a kitchen alone somewhere; I already feel like I live in the kitchen (and laundry room) but being alone would make it feel like an actual prison! However, I agree that I can't really cook while talking to someone... maybe I can whip cream or assemble but not real cooking. I also do not want people seeing dirty dishes. I have learned to prep and plan and prep some more so everything is ready. I would love to have a second dishwasher though! I do like the layout of our open kitchen (kind of a c-shape with a raised bar around the perimeter). It definitely keeps people out of the heart of the kitchen.

I don't like it completely open, but not closed off and hidden away, either. Don't these gourmet kitchens all have dishwashers - sometimes 2? So why would anyone be "looking at dirty dishes"? Our dirty dishes go directly in the DW, other than nonstick pans.

Our house is a small split foyer, with one bedroom upstairs. The kitchen, dining room and living room form an open L, with the kitchen in the small end, the dining room in the corner, the stairs to the foyer between living and dining, and a railing-height wall around the stairs. The kitchen is open, but there isn't a direct line of sight from kitchen to living room.

Our Whirlpool DW is so quiet, we can't even hear it when we're in the kitchen, except when the water drains out.