I am probably the wrong person to ask...but my kitchen is 20'x20' and I'm in love! We don't have cabinets in yet, but I think bigger is better in the kitchen. I think of it as additional entertaining space. I planned what I wanted IN my kitchen and how I wanted to use it and then built around it...it turned into that space.

It is certainly not too big. It actually looks a little light on storage but there may be a pantry out of the frame. I have never understood why people eating at a counter would want to be directly in front of a sink. I would only do that if the kitchen space was too small to otherwise. I would also find a way to put the kitchen on an outside wall.

I really like your kitchen & great room layout. I think it flows nicely and doesn't feel too big at all. I think with that expensive of a house, if you didn't have a large kitchen then it wouldn't feel proportional. Our kitchen is 20'x19' with an additional space for the eating area. Our ceilings stay at the 10' though - can I ask why you're dropping them to 9'?

I wouldn't consider your kitchen at 19' 7" x 15' 3" to be excessive or unnaturally large. Also, don't know where you are building and what average building costs are in that area, but would presume in many areas it would be expected to have a gourmet kitchen in a 7-figure home.

My kitchen will be 15' wide x 19' long and I think that will be just right.

It does not appear at all overly large to me, in the context we are given. If anything, to be honest, it might be a bit small. The best person to ask is a local realtor ... eg, for this area and sq ft and price point, make sure you have what would be considered a desirable kitchen. You want it to at least meet expectations for the size and price point of the home, or resale will be difficult.

Is something going to the left of the oven? It looks a bit odd if you are planning open space on either side of it?

Definitely not too large. Agree with renovator8 - where's the pantry? ;D

No, not too large. And your layout needs work. Start by putting

The fridge on the range wall, clean up sink on the right hand wall, and add a prep sink to the island. But post it on kitchens for better feedback.

Excellent feedback, thank you! In response:

• In addition to what's shown, there is a large walk in pantry (important detail for me to miss). It would be on the bottom right of the pic and accessed in the hallway as you walk toward the mud room. We wanted it tucked back a bit. There is also a 42" upper and lower at the end of that hallway... good spot for stuff we don't use often.
• There are only three of us in the family and this is a TON larger than our current kitchen (that doesn't even have a pantry). We are constantly stepping all over each other in the worst kitchen ever designed (mass home builder that's now out of business).
• Good feedback on kitchen design issues and I will definitely read that link. We have plenty of time to firm up the exact appliance/cabinet layout and workflow.
• As far as the island eating area facing a sink... I get it. We mostly use the island for quick meals, but will use the actual dining table for "meals". That area has a great view. Heck, maybe we should make the counter eating as uncomfortable as possible to force us to the table. ;-)
• Home isn't huge related to the price tag... 4500 ft2 with three beds up and a basement office that will also be considered a bedroom. We're doing a couple functional spaces that took up some space, but will definitely be used (1) craft room for a VERY artistic kid that constantly has the kitchen destroyed with her latest project and (2) dedicated theatre room for me.

we have a run of cabinets much like yours--our dimensions are roughly 15x18 sometimes i feel it's a bit of a long walk from one end to the other.......... but my previous kitchen was some what smaller, so i think i'm just adjusting slowly to it .. also we were unable to find a microwave that opened right to left we solved the problem by putting it in the island, but i would have preferred it in the original location...and perhaps it won't be a problem for you (or possibly we just didn't look in the right places and there really is one out there)

i tried to imagine myself preparing Thanksgiving dinner (the largest meal i prepare) in my kitchen before i chose the plan and that really helped me feel comfortable with my plan

Seems reasonable, not out of scale. When you asked the question I expected to find two islands!

I'm with you on getting infrequently used items out of the main workspace (and out of the most expensive cabinetry).

By the way, that's a nicely drawn plan.