Come & talk to me about the practicalities of a kitchen/breakfast room...

[Legacy]

We're 'knocking through' two rooms and will have a large, longish kitchen/breakfast room, separated by a breakfast bar.

We currently eat in the kitchen, but in future will be eating at a table in the 'dining' part of the new room.

I'm looking at kitchen plans, and am thinking about how we should design and use the new space. Various questions keep popping up in mys head, e.g.

• should I keep the everyday crockery and cutlery in a) the kitchen, near the dishwasher & easy to put away when clean, or

b) in the breakfast room bit - near to where we will use them

What about cereals/jams etc?
What about table cloths/ place mats etc?
Where to keep wine glasses (we're losing formal dining room...)

We currently have a TV in the kitchen, which I have on in the background when I'm cooking. However DH wants to have it in the new breakfast room end, so he can watch it if he's eating on his own/ working at the table..

If you have a kitchen breakfast room, how do you use the space? What do least like/ wish you'd done differently?

[Sonnet]

I have a 30 ft kitchen breakfast room.

I have all the kitcheny things - plates, cutlery etc in the kitchen bit so it is easy to unload dishwasher.

In the dining rooom bit I have a large table ( have been known to sit 12 around it with the extension out)and a large dresser and a large squishy armchair.

I keep tablecloths, mats etc in that part of the room. I alos keep the "posher" dinner service {grin] in the dresser, posh glasses etc.

we love ours - very communal space that is well used.

[Lindy]

We have a kitchen dining room with a dresser in the dining bit that has all the cutlery & crockery - the most useful thing, in my opinion, is the cupboards under the 'breakfast bar bit' (which actually isn't a breakfast bar - just a work top) - one set of cupbaords opens out into the dining area where we store cereals, jams etc and the other side is for kitchen bits - baking tins etc.

Wine glasses in kitchen side but could keep in dresser.

Absolutely no TV in either side of room.

[wibblydibs]

We've just converted most of our ground floor into a kitchen/diner type area - it's fabulous. We have kitchen area at one end then a breakfast bar separates it from the dining area - but like Lindy it's a worktop with cupboards under. I've also got a dresser with "posh" china etc in the dining area and built in wall cupboards for kids drawing stuff, tablecloths, boring paperwork etc. At the other end is patio doors and a sofa with toys etc - we had to extend to fit this in but I'm so pleased we did as it's turned it into a proper family room.

We have no tv in either side - there is a tv point on the wall but we're kind of enjoying not having one (there is one in the sitting room, we're not that worthy).

[Legacy]

Not sure we'll have room for a sofa.. is there any point in having a single soft chair. Some friends have a rattan type chair with cushion, and I've never seen anyone ever sit on it!

[Mo2]

We have

Breakfast cereals/ jams in a cupboard in the dining bit of ours.

And wine.

And a cupboard for school crap organising the DC's educational bits & pieces....

Also have a laptop which lives there, and can be moved beween sections for music/TV (iplayer)/ surfing recipes/ doing homework/ e-mails/mumsnetting

[misshardbroom]

We've just sacrificed our separate dining room to make office space, and gone back to having a kitchen / diner.

I'm really happy with it, it means I'm a lot more in touch with what the children are doing while I'm working in the kitchen, and it's handy for combining things like homework / potato peeling!

We bought a big full height, double doored kitchen larder cupboard thing from Ikea's fitted kitchen range (luckily doors in our existing kitchen are plain beech, as is this, although if you're getting a new kitchen, matching won't be a problem for you ). All the stuff that was in my dining room sideboard, e.g. 'good' china & glasses is in there. I find that because it's right there, I'm using it more, not less.

[wibblydibs]

Hmmm, no I probably wouldn't bother with a single chair. Our sitting room is on the first floor so the sofa is good for us in the ground floor kitchen/diner. I'd try and fit in the biggest table you can instead, then there'll always be somewhere to sit.

[wibblydibs]

Oh, and definitely separate the areas with a breakfast bar if you can. Our architect told us not to as it would interfere with the "flow of the room". So pleased I ignored him!

[swanriver]

I have just in last six months moved all the everyday crockery and everyday knives and forks to drawers on the diner side of our kitchen/ diner (two rooms separated by bar), as it was so much easier to get kids to lay table and also quite easy to just carry dw basket full of cutlery and unload into diner drawers.
Also have tablecloths, napkins, cereals on diner side, but fridge has to be in kitchen end or you will be driven barmy.
No telly in ours, or easy chairs either, we sacrificed to have bigger table option.

You also, imo, need some sort of serving surface (preferably with hotplate) as well as a table in the diner part, or it all feels like you are endlessly moving dishes back and forwards

[swanriver]

I keep the cups/glasses on kitchen side, although it seems counterintuitive, because it will again drive you mad every time you make a cup of tea, glass of water if they are on the other side of the bar!

[MrsGokWantsatidyhouse]

We have a kitchen/diner. All everyday stuff is in the kitchen. I have a larder cupboard that is in the straight run between kitchen and diner so easy to get things to the table. We have a worksurface between the kitchen and diner. I have a big american fridge which sit against the wall oppisite the end of the central worksurface so it is accesable between kitchen and diner. In the diner we have a sideboard with all the posh china, glasses, booze etc. in. There is a TV, stereo, xbox, PS2, games for them, DVDS, books, games, couple boxes of toys, educational stuff on 2 huge bookcases. A table and chairs and a sofa. We spend most of our time in here and the lounge is kept nice for the evening or for visitors.