Here is another view from open concept room showing fridge. My dining table and chairs will be in front of island.

Island

Definitely do the counter-depth, it will look way better. We have a counter-depth side-by-side for 2 people and it's plenty of room, capacity-wise.

I'd definitely exchange it, it doesn't look right there. For one person, the amount of space in a counter depth fridge will be plenty - ours is never full and there are 2 of us plus 3 cats whose frozen raw food occupies our freezer :)

Congratulations on the new home, it looks lovely!

It is too visually dominant, imho. I would get a counter-depth or I would see if the fridge can be recessed further.

Thanks to each and everyone! I sincerely appreciate your fast responses and help. I was told I was over thinking by others...but I understood my visual and useable intention. There is no more space (Wall) behind fridge due to a small full guest bath. I've asked if fridge was pushed backed all the way and will check again tomorrow, however builder told me it was today. So, I will get a counter-depth fridge. My builder put in all FRIGIDARE appliances and told me today they may not make counter-depth ... which I am sure cannot be true, so guess I will be checking tonight. It is Stressful as I need to be in by this Tuesday. This is only one of many issues I'm dealing with ....however, I know that I'm fortunate to buy a new home and all will work out eventually. This site is so helpful.

On a side note....your kitchen is very pretty. :) We have a counter depth because ours in a location like yours...it is 22 cubic feet...for a family it would be nice if it were bigger but we do just fine with it.

Cubic feet specs help so much @wheezel. I rarely ever fill a fridge except for frozen foods. I am a frozen food microwave and blender smoothie eater for most part and only use addtional fridge space on holidays when my grown kids or family come to stay. Thanks for the compliments. I really love my white kitchen. Can't wait to add color with accessories.

I think that looks visually off and obstructive. Frigidaire makes several good counter depth models. Here's a LIST.

If you have the money for a counter-depth refrigerator, and you don't need the space (sans family, you probably do not, but only you know for sure), I'd switch to counter-depth. It will fit the space so much better.

It sounds like this refrigerator was delivered brand new to the home. If so, you can sell it to someone else and recoup a nice chunk of its value.

Fridges are not the easiest to replace in an existing opening so brace yourself. I would not assume anything in terms of what's available from any brand.

I'd measure the depth and interior width of the opening of the fridge cabinet and get cracking on my research. Each appliance has a specification sheet that gives dimensions. I would use the spec sheet, not the summary.

The most important dimension for a fridge is the depth, followed by the height. It's likely to be an expensive switch out but it will look much better. Also be sure to check the clearance needed so doors can open. It's likely the door will still protrude but not the sides of the fridge.

It's also a personal pet peeve of mine that they don't finish the sides of the fridge in the same stainless as the door. It's really obnoxious.

For one person I'd definitely go counter depth if you can. If you have the time look for a counter depth model that's on sale or discontinued so that you can get a better price. We are very happy with our counter depth LG. Not only does it look better but items on the back of the shelves are easier to access.

Pretty Kitchen! I would also go for CD fridge. We got, in two homes, Fisher Paykel CD Single door Bottom freezer and really like the look. They also sell FD. Plenty of room inside and not very expensive.

I have this Samsung French Door fridge in my condo kitchen. It is not CD and was very reasonable. I live alone and it has plenty of room for me.

My family of 5 lived with a 22 cubic foot counter depth French Door fridge for 6 years in our last house and it was plenty of room except for holidays. If it's not a budget buster I would definitely replace yours with a counter depth model.

A head's up - after you measure, A.J. Madison is probably the best online resource for quickly sorting a large number of appliances by size, and then seeing which one(s) are going to fit your nook best. The query features are helpful and the width/depth/height information is right on the sidebar for each item.

Counter depth are not only shallower, but usually have the coils at the back configured such that the coils are not exposed and the fridge can be pushed all the way against the wall. That's why they are more expensive, all that reconfiguration. Regular fridges need a few extra inches of space behind to allow air circulation around the coils. So counter depth will fit in there if you get one made without exposed coils. Frigidaire does make counter depth, we have one - Frigidaire gallery side by side. We're very happy with ours, it has easy clean finish and all the features we wanted (except sodastream which came out in samsung later!). But look at all brands - you do not need to have all appliances from the same manufacturer! We have Bosch DW, Frigidaire fridge, Ikea range.

You'll want to measure the depth of your cabinet and look for a fridge that will fit and can be pushed against the wall, you will still need 1-2" of space of course.

Here's ours it is 28.5" deep excluding handle. We needed a shallow one for our small kitchen and because the original kitchen doorway was a little under 30".

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/frigidaire-gallery-22-6-cu-ft-counter-depth-side-by-side-refrigerator-with-thru-the-door-ice-and-water-stainless-steel/8366146.p?id=1218873336815

The small bathroom doesn't eliminate the possibility of recessing the current fridge. I doubt your current contractor will do this and, if they do, they may charge more than someone else will later, but the sheetrock behind the fridge can be cut out and the studs behind the fridge can be eliminated. Basically, it's framed as if there would be a door there. If it's a load-bearing wall, a header needs to be installed to bear the weight. And then the fridge can be pushed back about 4 more inches.

I suggest you move in, get settled, and then hire a good handy-man to come in later to do that work. While the fridge definitely looks too bulky in that space, I could live with it for a few months to get all the other things you alluded to taken care of, unpacked, relax awhile, and then hire someone else to tackle this project.

Also, since the fridge probably looks fine from straight-on views and other parts of the kitchen, you could also consider having the over-fridge cabinet and side panel removed, and then have a bit of wall built that, once painted, would match the cabinets, then reinstall the cabinets and side panel. You have the room to do that.

I'm not sure which of these two options is cheaper or easier to make look right. And it would depend on how well you can get the paint to match if you choose option two so you would want to experiment with painting to match before deciding on that option.

Either of these solutions should be cheaper than a counter-depth fridge. NONE of this needs to be done by Tuesday unless, of course, you can come up with a good solution with your contractor before then.

If you can exchange it, I would use a counter depth in that space. Our old refrigerator stuck out into the room and I was really surprised at the difference when we switched it out for a CD. It made the kitchen look much more open and spacious. We have a french door Kitchenaid in the 72" height but they come shorter or taller. I like that the water dispenser is inside rather than on the door.

The title of your thread says it all "....small open concept....". It is, for me, too big and overwhelms the entire space, not just the kitchen area.

We have this Frigidaire CD: http://www.ajmadison.com/cgi-bin/ajmadison/FGHG2366PF.html

I love our fridge, and in fact, we used it again when we had to redo a kitchen 2 years later (a job transfer left us having to renovate 2 kitchens in 2 years). I believe the height is not too tall because the reason we bought it in the first place was because we were stuck with a small custom slot in the first house that 90% of fridges didn't fit in. Also, note that the price on AJ madison drops by like $700 if you add it to your cart and take the rebates. We bought this in july and paid $1500.

Whatever you do, definitely change up what you currently have. I have no idea how kitchens get away with that jutting out look - it makes it so not-custom.

Another vote to go counter depth. For one person it it plenty big. I'm even finding it's fine for 4 person family. I personally don't think the extra space is worth doing all the recessing business for when the easy answer is to get a smaller fridge.

Be careful though - the doors must stick out past the surrounding panels/cabinets/counters to allow the doors to open fully and to allow the interior drawers to not only open fully, but also be removed for cleaning.

For counter-depth refrigerators, it's just the box/carcass of the refrigerator that is "hidden"; the doors (and handles) need to stick out.

So, as RococoGurl mentioned, carefully measure the alcove. Most CD refrigerators are around 36" wide x 70" or so tall - if your alcove isn't at least that wide x tall, your selection will be limited (especially in the mainstream manufacturers). So, you need to check the specs of your chosen refrigerator and determine what you need:

• The width of the opening = at least the width of the refrigerator + whatever is needed for air circulation on the sides
• Height of opening = at least the height of the refrigerator + whatever is needed for air circulation on the top

Thanks so much to all for your help and advice!
My builder switched out the fridge to counter depth for no additional charge. So much happier and plenty of room inside. Excuse the blue tape. Now on the paint issues. Before & after photos of fridge.

That's great! Looks so much nicer.

It does look better. I'm so glad you got it resolved to your satisfaction so quickly!

Looks so much better!

That really does look better. I'm glad you made the switch.

Much better!

Looks so much better! Glad you were able to switch!

It looks great & that has to be the easiest, fastest switch ever. Kudos to your builder.

Much better - and yay for the accommodating builder!