Hi All, I'm currently in the middle of a kitchen remodel. There is a significant height difference (1 1/2 inches) between the new tile in the kitchen and the adjacent hardwood floor. My contractor said that they had no choice about the height difference. He said that they needed to do 2 layers of floating cement in order for the floor to be completely level for the cabinets. Note that this is an older picture from before the tile was put in. What is the best solution to fix this issue?

1. Use a reducer? It would need to be a custom reducer in order to account for the 1 1/2 inch height difference. Is there a code or rule of thumb for how long the reducer transition needs to be? It can't be too large of a transition because there is another door near this transition.
2. Install new hardwood floors. Ideally we wouldn't need to do this right now due to the cost, however, I'm not sure how long I can live with this issue. I'm worried that it could be a tripping hazard, as well as, just unsightly. I'm also not sure what will need to be done in order to get the new hardwood floor level with the kitchen tile.
3. Any other suggestions?

Thank you in advance for your suggestions.