1. What's behind the door?

2. Can you afford new cabinets?

Yes. And the door is a pantry. Thanks!

We thought about taking that bar out. The area is small and extends in to the dining and living area. We haven't bought it yet. Just looking at possiblities before making an offer. Thanks!!

The pantry will help greatly with storage. Removing the peninsula may be more involved than you think if the flooring doesn't run under it. It would also mean getting new countertops. Is there a dishwasher in the peninsula? If so, that would be a deal breaker for me.

Location, location, location...you can change a kitchen, but not the location of the house. You said its in a "perfect area". Can you live with the footprint of the kitchen and the pantry until you can get a professional kitchen designer in to modify it? That's the question. The pantry is key to making it work IMO.

Do the sliding glass doors go to a balcony for view or do they lead somewhere else? I ask, because you could change that to a window if the doors aren't necessary and use that entire space for a kitchen.

We remodeled our small kitchen a few years back and maximized the space by getting cupboards that go all the way to the ceiling and by investing in useful "add-ons," such as a tip-out tray under the sink, extra shelves, slide-out drawers and hidden drawers. I don't regret one single add-on. They make our small kitchen very functional.

You could also see how you can add some space, for example by doing what laurkade suggested, i.e. removing the bar area, running the cupboards as far as you can (top and bottom), and adding an island with storage space. You may even consider having storage space on two sides of the island. The space on the seating side would not be as accessible but could be used to store items you rarely use. Can you add any space anywhere, for example by extending a cupboard by a few inches?

The pantry seems to be spacious. You could also invest in organizing it to maximize storage and functionality.

Carefully planning the remodel with your needs in mind is key.

Additional thought... I would consider have a piece of furniture made to put along the wall to the right of the patio doors (not too deep). I know it's not in the kitchen, but it could be used to store items you don't use on a daily basis.