Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

How big is your kitchen

54 replies

kavalkada · 23/08/2020 07:31

Posting here for traffic.

So, my friend came the other day first time since we moved to this flat. For context, she lives in a big lovely house, I live in a 82 sq metres flat (882 sq feet). I would like to have a nice house with two more bedrooms and nice little garden but I know it's not gonna happen (at least for now), so I don't spend my time crying over that.

So, the two of us are sitting in my dining room that looks on my small galley kitchen and during our two hour conversation she must have mentioned five times how she could never cook a meal in my kitchen because it is just too small. In her defense she has really huge kitchen and I can imagine from her point of view my kitchen looks like it was kids playing kitchen.

But is it really that small like she thinks? It has 6 sq metres (64 sq feet) and next to it is 0.9 sq meters pantry where I keep all my appliances and 90 post of my food.It is 200 cm (6.56 feet) long on one side and 240 cm (7.87 feet) long on other side. I have a dishwasher, a big sink, a 60 cm wide fridge, enough storage for pots and pans (although I have to be careful with buying new things because there is not enough space to buy what I want).

So how small is too small?

OP posts:

Weebitawks · 23/08/2020 07:37

I really wouldn't worry about it. I know lots of people with galley kitchens. Some friends have a really big house and have a lovely galley kitchen (it's a period house and listed so they can't extend).

My kitchen is big enough that we have a table in but we don't have a dining room like you so swings and roundabouts.

Oysterbabe · 23/08/2020 07:43

Our kitchen is pretty small but it's fine, enough space for the things I need and I can cook in it without issue. Ignore her, she was being a twat.

FudgeBrownie2019 · 23/08/2020 07:44

It's 9m x 7m. It's a wide space but so badly laid-out that I want to smack the legs of the people who built the house because they must have been drunk "yeah, whack a worktop there, one there, then have a massive floor area with nothing in it, that's right, nobody uses kitchens for cooking, make it look like a nightclub floor. Chuck a weird floor-to-ceiling window in on that side so the dogs can lick it, yep, done".

Your friend sounds like a bit of a bellend coming round to your home and finding fault. My last kitchen was in a two bed terrace and was a long galley kitchen at the back which I loved; it was such a lovely place to cook.

Blackbear19 · 23/08/2020 07:45

The layout of a kitchen is more important than the size.

We have a had small kitchens that work great but our current house has a big kitchen that I'd love to change. A couple of years ago I was all set to juggle it around but couldn't get end panels to make my juggle work!

Stripesgalore · 23/08/2020 07:45

She sounds rude.

I’ve cooked a variety of meals on a two ring burner in the porch of a tent.

Your kitchen is fine.

SmellsLikeFeet · 23/08/2020 07:47

How rude of her
You don't need a massive kitchen to cook properly
Did you pull her up on it?

Averyyounggrandmaofsix · 23/08/2020 07:50

Your friend is very rude and certainly not posh with those manners. My kitchen is about 18 foot long but not wide enough for an island which if social media is to be believed makes me pretty unique. It also appears I am one of the few who's bedroom is not big enough for an American king sized bed. I try not to let it worry me.

toodlepipsqueaks · 23/08/2020 07:50

The size sounds quite normal for a galley kitchen, which is all a lot of UK homes can accommodate! And I'm pretty sure my three bedroom terraced house is a very similar size to your flat. You're fine OP - ignore your thoughtless friend. I'm not sure why she'd say something li

veryvery · 23/08/2020 07:52

I've had galley kitchens before when I lived in Victorian terraces. I found them very practical and good to cook in. I had plenty of worktop space and cupboards. My current house has a larger more square shaped kitchen that fits a round 4 seater bistro table in. So it's not massive by today's standards but when I first moved I classed it as a big kitchen simply because you can sit and eat in it. Cooking wise it's no more practical than a galley, though. Added to this I think kitchen size is largely trend lead. Small kitchens were seen as practical as everything can be close to hand whilst cooking. Later it became to be seen as a more sociable sort of space whereas before guests would be seated in the dining or sitting room.

Spinakker · 23/08/2020 07:52

That's really rude of your friend. Of course you can cook in a galley kitchen. I went to Pakistan where they were washing up in a large metal bowl and hardly had any work surfaces. They were cooking 3 meals a day in there for a large number of people and would have loved the facilities we have. Some people are ignorant.

toodlepipsqueaks · 23/08/2020 07:52

*say something like that unless you'd asked for an honest opinion, but even then no need to say it more than once!

Original poster

kavalkada · 23/08/2020 07:53

@SmellsLikeFeet

How rude of her You don't need a massive kitchen to cook properly Did you pull her up on it?

I didn't, but she is actually pretty good friend, but as somebody who lived in the big house all her life I think she has difficulty to imagine how can someone live in a small flat with so small kitchen. To be honest, I would like to have a little bigger kitchen (I dream of big american style fridge) but this one works for us.

OP posts:

Dallymamma · 23/08/2020 07:55

She’s boosting her own ego.

Your kitchen works for you. She isn’t working for you as a friend.

Sailingblue · 23/08/2020 07:57

She’s rude. Mine is 3.5 by 3m and does feel on the smaller side although galley kitchens are likely to be a bit smaller than mine I think.also remember you’ve got a separate dining room which lots of people with a larger kitchen won’t have.

At the end of the day, all you really need is a worktop, oven etc. Anyone prattling on about how they couldn’t possibly work in a small kitchen is an insensitive twonk.

hammeringinmyhead · 23/08/2020 08:04

8x11 feet but it only has cupboard/hob space down one wall and then a small alcove with a sink and slimline dishwasher. That's for a 3 double-bed townhouse so I think her expectations are skewed by only living in large detached places! Our dining table is in the living room.

wherethewavesarehighest · 23/08/2020 08:04

Mine is the same size as yours and it's manageable for us but I wouldn't want it any smaller.

piscean10 · 23/08/2020 08:06

Wow that's really nasty of her. I have a big kitchen but I have had a small one too. You can have the best kitchen but all that really matters is if you can cook.

BlackberrySky · 23/08/2020 08:06

If it meets your needs then it's big enough

thelegohooverer · 23/08/2020 08:10

I’ve cooked meals behind a tent, on a fold up burner holding an umbrella; jostled alongside other hungry students in university accommodation, and entertained guests in a motorhome kitchen.

However, I’d struggle to cook in my bil’s kitchen, which is huge, cost a fortune but is very badly laid out. Still, you’d get great exercise trying.

HelgaDownUnder · 23/08/2020 08:12

If you cook alone large kitchens are over-rated. Galley kitchens are fabulously efficient. I have a galley in my large house and wouldn't change it for anything. A decent oven makes a bigger difference than cupboards filled with clutter.

Flamingolingo · 23/08/2020 08:14

Our kitchen is (in design terms) a wide galley with an island in it - it’s about 15ft wide and slightly longer but open at the end because it’s a kitchen diner. We have a separate pantry.

I’ve had galley kitchens before and have enjoyed using them. Key to their success is decent worktop, both around the hob/sink areas and at least one decent length of worktop for baking etc. A wide galley is easier for multiple cooks, narrow galleys are awkward for anyone other than the cook to be in.

Having had an island for several years now I would say that I’m spoilt by the worktop space. When we moved in here we knew that we needed to do the kitchen, but those first few months in the old kitchen I was frustrated because I was used to having excess worktop space.

dudsville · 23/08/2020 08:18

"yeah, whack a worktop there, one there, then have a massive floor area with nothing in it, that's right, nobody uses kitchens for cooking, make it look like a nightclub floor. Chuck a weird floor-to-ceiling window in on that side so the dogs can lick it, yep, done".

dudsville · 23/08/2020 08:18

Your friend was being mean.

Lollypop4 · 23/08/2020 08:22

Ive had a kitchen that only fits 1 person in, as a family of 6, it was too small to cook in but, made do until we moved. my kitchen now is quite small but Id say average for a 3 bed terrace.
One day, Id love a big house and big kitchen, I cant see it happening though

dementedma · 23/08/2020 08:24

Friend sounds thoughtless rather than mean. People who live in bigger houses just take the space for granted. My friends have often ( in various coversations) suggested using the spare room, or putting stuff in the utility or garage, or using the en suite etc. I dont have any of those. Its a real bug bear in these Covid times that it is assumed working from home is an option for everyone...because we all have a handy office/study/ spare room.

Flip

1 2 3