I don't think it's bad at all. Some people would kill for that much counter space.

Plus, it's kind of cool that you could use the cooktop from either side... :-)

A coat of paint on the cabinets would transform it for now, and that would cost very little.
Upgrade the appliances, fixtures and counters later when the budget allows.

I never thought of using it from both sides...great tip! I believe the current owners have painted the cabinets and I think they were an oak like color of wood. I would LOVE a white kitchen, but wonder how that would look with the tile counters? My dream is a white kitchen with black or tan granite, but if we bought this house, new counters is far into the future.

The prep sink solves the problem of the main sink and stove being separated, for the most part. You will likely wash veggies and prep by the stove. This means you can do all the cooking and baking without fighting anyone for the main sink who may be doing cleanup, getting a glass of water, emptying the dishwasher, or doing a separate kind of prep (salad, etc.). Instead of a work triangle, you have zones, which many of us on the forum prefer.

The prep sink is pretty small...A little tight for filling a big pot, but still very useful.

The worst thing I see is that the cooktop has no room to the back or one side...So that people walking by could get splattered, and walking past the peninsula (the face or the end), someone could bump pot handles or hot pots with their arm. --And does it have a downdraft to move smells, steam, and smoke from the house? A downdraft isn't the best type of venting, but better than nothing.

So the layout itself doesn't bother me as far as a functional work space, but I am concerned about the safety issues. Do you have kids who might run through and be in danger around the cooktop?

Well, whoever designed that kitchen surely never visited this forum! The layout leaves a lot to be desired, but if the house is a really good deal, it might be worthwhile. The kitchen is certainly attractive enough. The stove does have the prep sink nearby, so the distance to the main sink might not be that big of an issue. I would be nervous having my cooktop that exposed to traffic, but a lot of people don't mind--or even prefer--their cooktops on islands or peninsulas. It also has loads of natural light, which is a huge plus. After living in my new kitchen for over a year, going from mine to that one would drive me crazy. BUT, if I were moving from my old kitchen into that one, I would think I had died and gone to heaven. So, is it a step up for you in that way? If so, the flaws might not be so bothersome.

Your layout is not that different from mine in terms of workflow -- I have an island between my main sink and cooktop and the prep sink in the island. The similarity is that you have a cooking zone that is separated from the cleanup zone and supported by a prep sink. In terms of workflow, this layout is a good one for multiple cooks in the kitchen, but also works well for one. The fridge is well placed for cooking, the ovens are out of the way of the cooktop but in reasonable proximity. The counter apace is good. Nice light and hopefully a good view from both the clean up and cooking zones. The prep sink supports the serving bar as well as prep work.

The negatives I see are --

dated white tile counters, but so what -- I've lived with them more than once and if they are in good condition, they are durable and very functional -- also easy enough to replace and update on a more limited basis

No hardware on the cabinets -- easy to remedy if you would like pulls

The fridge placement could lead to traffic through the kitchen while there is a lot of activity, but might not be a problem depending on who and how many in your kitchen. Looks like you have a way for kids to come and go out the side without getting in the middle of things. It also looks like you could modify to add a beverage fridge in the corner of that peninsula for kid traffic or entertaining.

The gas cooktop in the peninsula means that you could have a flame a bit close to the traffic on the other side. This is the only thing that gives me pause -- especially if you have little ones running about. In that cases, I might look at switching that out to induction to reduce the flame hazard. You would still have to be careful about hot pots simmering. The appliances don't look that bad otherwise -- maybe not the newest, but I've seen a lot worse.

rhome is spot on about the potential safety issues of the cooktop. It could be an issue if you have people dashing by.

I'm less concerned about the prep sink functionality. It's biggest problem can be solved by installing a faucet with a pull-out sprayer. This would do double duty as a pot filler.

Painting the cabinets white and then adding some nice accent colored items would be fine. Perhaps adding pulls to the drawers would be a nice touch as well. Look through the gallery, you'll see lots of all-white kitchens. I think it's a great look when combined with stainless steel appliances and fixtures and one or two items with a strong accent color - like a red stand mixer, or a big glass bowl full of M&Ms. :-)

Can you live with it for now?

I could. Moving into a new bigger and more expensive house means you will have a lot of issues competing for money. This kitchen can wait until you're ready to do something serious about it. There are some little to medium changes you could make, but now isn't the time to plot them.

In a year, you'll know if the "U" feels good or drives you nuts, if you have to move the cooktop or hate the counter. Until then, I wouldn't spend anything on the kitchen. Just concentrate on stuff that has to get done until you have a better feel for the direction you want to go.

White cabs + white tile + white floor + white walls + black appliances isn't striking me well.

we would not paint cabs white until we could afford to change the countertops.

I wouldn't change countertops without addressing the cooktop location... But we've sure seen worse kitchens!

Loving all the comments...keep them coming. We have been talking and IF we bid on this house we would change out the cooktop, oven and fridge for stainless vs black (our fridge we would be bringing is white but we would sellit and get a stainless for an updated look). I know that we could not afford to reconfigure the kitchen for many many years.

I echo what others have said about the cooktop issue and small children, but for me would be the older ones -- tweens and teens that would be making a beeline by the cooktop for the fridge. Seems like traffic would come by the cooktop either from the family room area or outside to get to fridge?

Something else I noticed -- is the only eating area the peninsula? Would that work for you? While there are three stools there, is there enough room behind that prep sink for someone to sit and eat? Prepping, cooking and eating in that space might be tight.

One other small detail -- is that a greenhouse window space for the main sink area? If so, have you been in the house when the sun faces that side to see how hot it gets there? I only raise that b/c in our old configuration my sink wall was almost unbearable in mid to late afternoon b/c of sun. Certainly could be addressed with some sort of covering/treatment if necessary, but more $$$ potentially.

Pros -- tons of natural light and counter space. Seems like plenty of cabs for storage. Easy update to add hardware to cabinets. Very spacious overall and I think does have great potential, but......in the mean time, could the current layout work for your family life for "many, many years"??

If there is not good ventilation for the cooktop, that would be a deal killer for me.

Hi Lovetoshop,

Do you like the rest of the house?

You could low ball the offer explaining your
concerns about the cook-top placement. I imagine many
buyers have the same concerns.

If everything was great about the house, location,
rooms etc.. I would buy this kitchen. I would do
a mini reno. Move the cook-top near the ovens and
put a pretty hood above.
Although I am not a double oven girl
and would pull that out putting in a super Range with
a hood. Since there would be a hole with the old cooktop.
I would either tile or butcher block for a year or two
until I could afford to replace all the counters.

Mini reno DIY would be the price of an oven range
with warming drawer or 2nd oven, and hood. Looking
at E-Bay or Used $1000. Replace tile in the hole of
cook top $200

Positives about this kitchen.
Nice high ceilings and great counter space.
The light coming in from those windows is wonderful.
That counter/peninsula will be perfect for entertaining
or even just baking cookies with kids.
It seems you have lots of storage too.

Is that tile floor? It looks like it is in great shape.
Nice neutral colors if you do change to white or creamy
cabs. If you have small kids those dark cabs will hide
the finger smudges.

I used to have white tile with white cabs. The whites
never matched. It always bothered me and we are in the
throws of a mini renovation to remedy this. I am keeping
my white cabs but I have teenagers who are never here
to make smudge marks.

~boxerpups

If the location is good, and you love the rest of the house I would say go for it. Concern about safety around the cooktop, you could place a narrow bookcase for cookbooks on the isle side so kids would have to say away from the cooktop. Or a narrow hall table. A small portable chopping block table at the end would give you extra work space by the cooktop and also keep kids at a distance. Good luck with your decision.

If the location is good, I would move to it in a heartbeat. As you are changing out the appliances, I looked more closely at your cooktop. It appears fairly wide, with the venting in the middle. If you were to choose a pop up venting system for behind the cooktop, (wherever "behind" is :) and chose a smaller footprint cooktop, with it eased away from the open end, you could gain some space near the outside edge of the peninsula. If you were to do that, you would need to of course change out the countertop.

I know that you would prefer stone, but if you paint the cabinets white, butcher block would look fabulous in the peninsula all the way around to the built in oven. I could just imagine it with white bead board where the "bar" is. You can get beautiful butcher block reasonably at Ikea (link below - I'll bet you could add that new countertop for less than $800 if you borrow the power tools that you will need) - seal it with Waterlox, (Original, then Satin on top - I wouldn't go high gloss because with all the beautiful natural light, it may reflect too much.) If you did choose a smaller cooktop, and used butcher block, check out the distance between the peninsula and the far wall - you may be able to get by with an even larger section of countertop hanging off there.

Later you could add granite/stone to the sink area at the beautiful window (honed granite, or soapstone because of glare potential, of course years from now) and I would love to see a couple of corbels under the back wall cabinets near the fridge - you could create a built in hutch look. (Maybe even add marble to the base cabinets?) For the upper cabinets, I've read where you can cut out the main door panels, and add glass very reasonably, as a money saver (being thoughtful about how light would hit glass there.)

The current kitchen does have a lot of potential. And if you are concerned about kids always swooping by the countertop to get at the food, and you have teens, you may want to consider keeping your old fridge and putting it in the garage (I'm not a huge fan of this energy wise, however I do know families who have teens who do this - just putting it out there.) If you have little ones, they will most likely be near the kitchen/you anyway.

Last, you could save money if you were willing to wait and purchase one appliance at a time as it went on clearance. Keep an eye out at Lowes/other stores that frequently have a clearance area. With your layout, you will want to replace the cooktop/venting first, if you are also willing to do the butcher block. Fridge next (it is the first thing you will see) as it will take you a while anyway to prep/paint the cabinets. If you want stainless appliances, they are more prone to scratching, and you will want to probably have the fridge installed after the cabinets are painted. Have you checked the dimensions of the fridge? I would compare the opening to a french door fridge, as that is the new standard size (from what I have read in this forum) regarding fridge size openings. I would also live in the house a bit, and stick up a mirror (or a piece of brushed stainless, if you have it) on the fridge on the front right door. You may be surprised at the amount of reflection. Perhaps you need to do with a refrigerator which accepts a panel? Just a few things to think about.

Hestia_Flames

Here is a link that might be useful: Ikea Butcher Block

Are you kidding? It's got tons of potential.

You're asking a hypercritical audience.

Ninety eight percent of the population would consider that kitchen a gift from God. Half of us had to turn the lights off while we ate for the first six months just to keep from crying.

It's actually pretty attractive. And you can definitely make dinner in it for a few years without harming anyone.

You just need to ask the basics. Are the cabinets, appliances, tiles etc. in good condition? Plumbing, electricals, ducting (the "mechanicals" ) fire & burglar etc. all that in good order? Make sure that window doesn't leak.

It's certainly sunny, spacious, has a nice view of the yard and opens onto a nice sitting area. Those are things that are sometimes hard to fix without tearing down walls and spending a lot of money.

Let this forum pick apart the flow AFTER you decide to renovate.

Right now, the real question is, is the house OVERALL right for you.

You can certainly have fun doing it over when it's time, but is it a dealbreaker? Absolutely no!

I think the kitchen is fairly attractive as it. I like the cabinets as is and you may too once you switch out the appliances. Getting rid of that huge black fridge and double ovens for brighter stainless ones should lighten the room up a lot.

Other than the cooktop issue it's pretty good to go. Looks like the prep sink is kinda tiny (but they are often switched out to a larger size without killing the ctops if necessary). Good storage space And the general layout is okay. You might live with the layout for a while and then only make minor tweaking with new face fronts when the time comes. For me I'd be trying to get that cooktop against the wall...

You are are so thoughtful in your responses. THANK YOU! You have all given me a lot to think about! We are going to look at the house again this weekend and I will look more carefully at the "bones" of the kitchen to see if we can get by with just new appliances. I agree that with the beige/cream tile floor that maybe a dark wood cab would look better then white ones. I have a long to decide b/c we would not be able to change the color for a loooong time if we buy this house :)

I think a lot of people would consider that kitchen a plus in that house. The cooktop location is weird, but in the grand scheme of things, so what. The kitchen is big, has lots of light, tons of counterspace and gives an overall nice impression. I would not hesitate to buy the house because of the kitchen. If you could see the kitchen I moved into, you'd laugh.

I think its workable as is for now. Lots of people would love it. If you are really concerned about the people being able to knock something off the range from the back you could probably put short glass screen there. However, I think that thing about people knocking things off the stove is overstated sometimes --it assumes people have no common sense.

I like it. I wouldn't replace the appliances if they were functional--not if you think you're going to redo it eventually.

A small butcherblock cart by the cooktop would slow down traffic and give a little buffer. A splatter screen might not be a bad idea either.

You can replace the prep sink faucet with a pullout if you want to be able to fill stockpots. But hey--the big sink is close to the cooktop from the back side, isn't it?

I agree with most of what's been said. I was expecting something awful, but find it to be an attractive kitchen. I actually like the cabinet color -- it's different! And white tile isn't so bad. At least the grout isn't dark, so you can bleach it if it gets dirty. Layout isn't the best, particularly that cooktop, but I don't see it as a huge problem in the relative short-term. And it's got a lot of light.

When you go back this weekend, look at what would be involved in moving the cooktop to the opposite side of the U. That might be the simplest way to move the cooktop. See if it might be possible to move the downdraft or put in an overhead vent on the other side. Or you might be able to slide the cabinets down, replace the double ovens and cooktop with a 36 or 48" range and hood, then new countertops. That would set the peninsula up as a good rep zone as well a s a serving buffet.

That wood finish is back "in" --you will be seeing it or variations on it soon--in magazines near you. I guarantee it.

Pain the cabinets now. That dark oak just screams "1980s". When you can afford it, replace the countertops and flooring. Just that coat of paint is going to make a whole world of difference. For more ideas, check out this web page - in fact, the whole web site has good articles with kitchen remodeling information.

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen Remodeling on the Cheap

The cooktop issue could be dealt with by adding a 1/2" thick tempered glass backsplash. It would probably help the downdraft work better. Am I am hoping that there is a downdraft vent! Otherwise, thanks but no thanks.
The colors seem pretty stylish to me. But the ceiling done with the same finish as the walls makes it a little precious. Maybe replacing the tile CT with marble would key everything together.
Casey

Strangly the owners have ALL the ceilings,doors AND baseboards painted the same color as the walls. I guess her mother-in-law who is a decorator advised her to do this saying that since the moldings and baseboards were not the wide modern type, painting it all the same color would not draw attention to it. I think we would paint the ceilings white to brighten up the place. The house does show well and the paint is not my choice but I could live with it.

Went to see it again today and it is not a "double oven" but a single oven with a microwave on the top. We will seriously have NO money to do anything other then replace what is currently ther (fridge, cooktop, oven and micro) so there is no way I can move the footprint at all. We love the house so I will have to live with the rest of the kitchen for a while if we get it.

How hard would it be to move the cooktop underneath one of the sets of upper cabinets? Then you could cut down oart of the cabinets & put in an undercabinet hood and it wouldn't be in the flow of traffic. If you just moved it to the opposite counter, it would be protected from traffic, and maybe it wouldn't cost too much to move the gas line? Because it wouldn't be very far. Then if you decided later you didn't want that U-shape, it would be easy to take it out.

I think that other than the small cooktop issue, it's an awesome kitchen. Sure, it could use new counters maybe, but they aren't too bad. I'd kill for that much space. And the windows over the sink are great!