Don’t do too much if you will be updating in a few years. meanwhile, the first thing I would Do is repaint the walls for a fresh feel. Next, in the centre of the cabinets, what is that? Does it come off? After removing That I would paint the cabinets themselves a nice light color And add nice hardware. Leave tiles and counters as is for now. they will be wasted when you renovate.

Save your money for the remodel. Keep it uncluttered and it will be a perfectly fine kitchen for a few years.

I would paint the cabinets, and remove the thing in the middle of all the doors. Maybe add nice hardware if it is in the budget. For sure change out that light fixture in the center of the ceiling. - maybe a nice LED flushmount or a track light system.

I 98% agree with saving your money for the full remodel.

I would change out the light fixtures (but don't buy expensive ones right now, just prettier and providing better light) and might add under cabinet lights here and there if you have the outlets available.

You could remove the handles from the door/drawer centers, fill the holes and sand, and paint -- I wouldn't spend money having it done professionally though. It might make it overall more pleasing to your eyes, depending on how much time you can spend to do a careful job.

Don't do anything. Live with it and get a good KD who can make your budget work for you and increase the value of your home when you are ready.

5 years goes by quickly. I would add under cabinet lighting if it doesn't exist now and change the ceiling fixture if it bugs you. Other than that I think you should save your money for the complete remodel.

Sorry, but I couldn't live a month with those...

I'm guessing they're laminate...do your research on painting laminate (I did it a while ago and products have changed) and paint them. Remove the handles first and patch...

Remove the doors from those next to the sink for a different look...

I'm guessing the space near the peninsula was for a microwave...put a shelf up there for display/cookbooks, etc.

Change out the light.

Floor and backsplash look fine to me..

And don't follow the "gray" trend in here...it won't work.

Completely agree about not wasting time and money on a partial uupdate. Especially do not waste time painting the cabinets. To help the time pass you can start now dreaming about your new design. It can take a while to get things sorted. I see someone before you already removed the overhead cabinets above the peninsula.

I would paint those cabinets in a heartbeat. Love the cabinet hardware! If you decide to get rid of it please dont throw it away. Post it on ebay.

I would also paint the floor.

Another in the “don’t waste $ on it now, live with it” camp. We lived with a far uglier cosmetic and worse layout while we planned for the larger full guy renovation. Put whatever you were going to spend on a refresh in a kitchen renovation fund as your seed money and keep adding to it while you formulate a plan. You might be surprised how long it takes to come up with a final plan and how many iterations you will go through before settling on that final version.