I currently do use drawers as well. Am confused as to why you feel they are easier to access ? Are the pullouts more inconvenient to pull...? Also , I definitely need a spice pullout and my cooktop & oven is in the center of the countertop. So was trying to make it symmetrical by having 2 pullouts on either side. Also, was thinking of going with a stack of 2 drawers so they would be deep. What are your drawer depths ?

Width is better than depth. The ones with pull out with cans mean utensils lean over making opening and closing more difficult. I also think they waste a lot of space. My drawers are standard cabinets depth or drawers depth of about 22”. Things slide to back but I put less often used items toward back. A stack of 3-4 drawers on each side, possibly shallow top increasing as you go lower might work. My main drawer is 30” wide. I also use drawer same size for spices. I just lay bottles and containers down flat. So easy to see labels. I organize them alphabetically.

Thanks ! Got it. I need to store instant pots so definitely need a deep drawer. For the stack of 3-4 drawers , what are the individual drawer heights ( vertically) ?

There are 9-10” lower, 8” middle and 4-6 top depending. You have around 24” above the kick and below counter to work with. 1-1/2” Approx between drawers for facing. Just depends on your space. Kitchens are all about inches!

Got it ! Thank you !!

Most of my frequently used utensils are in decorative crocks on either side of the stove for easy access. The less used ones are in shallow wide drawers. Works great for me.

Thanks Dana, am looking to minimize things on the countertop. I already have the stand mixer on the countertop which I use everyday and a flour canister. But I agree that drawers should solve a lot of my issues :)

Also, for the drawers I am told by my contractor that soft close won’t be warranted beyond 1 year since they tend to cause problems. Is this true ?

We have cabinets with pull out drawers. Our Instant Pot base barely fits. So measure, measure, measure before buying/ordering. Do not take the contractor's word that they will fit.

Your contractor is not using a good cabinet company I have all drawers with soft close from Ikea some loaded up with cast iron pots and they are 12 yrs old and well used since I run a catering company from my kitchen. BTW I find drawer organizers for my utensils works very well I like the ones from Interdesign I think they might be called Idesign now, the organizers come in all kinds of sizes so keeps everything in its place I also us them for cutlery. They look good and hold up very well. Do not get cabinets with doors and then drawers inside they waste storage space and IMO are a PITA when you are busy.I do agree make sure your drawers hold what you want them to.

Thanks a ton Patricia for your feedback. I was very surprised to hear that too.

Is this some cheap site built site finished cabinets with knockoff hardware?

I have that exact pullout and love it. It stores a lot in a narrow footprint. Previously I had two crocks and a knife block on the counter with another drawer of less used utensils. I can now see everything at a glance and it stays dust-free. Easy in, easy out when grabbing what I need for cooking and then when unloading the DW. There's two slots for knives so you can separate your serrated and straight blades. On the other side of the range top I have a deep drawer pullout for baking sheets, cooling racks, and splatter screens with a drawer above for pot holders. Spices are in IKEA spice jars with labels on top which fit nicely in a shallow drawer. Very easy to see with the big print on top of each jar.

Several years ago someone used this holder from the Webstaurant store on the shelf in their pullout. I think that this was before RAS introduced their utensil pullouts but I thought it was a great idea and was originally planning to do the same.

https://www.webstaurantstore.com/cal-mil-1425-6-60-bamboo-six-cylinder-display/2111425660.html

I have two of those pullouts and wished I'd gone w individual pullout drawers. A TOTAL WASTE OF SPACE AND MONEY!!! The middle space is wasted because I can't reach to get anything (I use it for olive oil and other pantry items).

Thanks !! Could you please post a picture for me to visualise and understand better

Thanks Wilson , we use many many many spices ! so am definitely using a pullout for spices as I have seen and used one in an airbnb but good to know at least someone likes the utensil pullout :) + the caddy idea is great !!

My Blum soft-close drawers and doors still work great after 6 years.

As for utensils, I imagine drawers would be a better use of space, but we haven't seen your layout. I am a "function over form" person, so I would choose a more efficient layout over symmetry every time.

Here is my utensil drawer (I made the inserts with Lee Valley clips to hold the wood dividers). 6 years later, it still looks like this, because it is easy to see where everything goes.

Thanks :) , that is definitely a very nicely organized drawer and great idea to use the clips.

I too keep my utensils in a wide drawer. Make sure you have one deep enough for utensils like ladles and citrus presses and things of that nature that have more depth/heft. If you are doing custom you can get your drawers pre-divided for utensil and flatware organization. Deep drawers are a dream to have in a kitchen as well and I recommend a mix of deep and regular depth drawers. I use my deeper drawers for Tupperware type storage as well as dish towels, boxed items like foil, saran wrap etc. and pots and pans. You mention your instant pot and mixer. If you use them daily I would set aside two cabinets , one each to install pop up shelves that hold them. It really makes life easier to keep them stored off the counter but be able to quickly access them but not have to lift and move them each time.

Here's the thread that shows the bamboo caddy that I mentioned above.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/2673193/please-post-pics-of-your-organized-cabinets-and-drawers