Dream kitchen - what should I have/not bother with?

[DianaBathesInTango]

So my list of must haves is:

Induction hob
Pan drawers
Warming drawer
Spray/hose tap
Two big bins (one for waste, one for recycling)

My list of not sure things are:

Quooker boiling water tap
A larder or larder cupboards

Anything you love/hate/regret having in your kitchen. This is going to be our long term home so I want to make sure I get it right this time.

In my current kitchen I have an oven at waist level and a separate hob, which I now don't want to live without. Also a waste disposal unit which cuts down hugely on what goes in the bin.

My kitchen is old now but if I re-did it I'd still have a lot of what I've got now,
Including,
A pull out larder
Deep pan drawers
Plenty of ordinary drawers
Built in double oven with the smaller one being a combi microwave/ oven/grill.

If I had the space I'd have a nice big kitchen table. I'd never want a breakfast bar.
Friend who re-did hers got rid of her lovely table, had a breakfast bar with high stools instead, and regretted it bitterly later.

I wish I'd put in a charging drawer for iPads phones etc. Plan where the vacuum and ironing board are going to live. I'd also have a drawer for 'live' paperwork like school letters etc.

Put a water softener on your list! We are in a very hard water area and I live mine, am always recommending them. No trouble, no electrics and soft water - makes such a difference to cleaning.

My new kitchen has deep pan drawers, under plinth heater and a tall slim pullout larder.
I wouldn't want an induction hob (I prefer gas).
My utility room adjoins the kitchen so I can shut out the noise of the washing machine and tumble dryer, and my big American style fridge/freezer is out there too.
I love with my kitchen 😀

We have just done our kitchen, love
Quooker
Induction hob (we are on LPG and have solar panels so pretty much a necessity for us)
Pan drawers
2 ovens
Built in combi microwave
Separate utility

We need to source bins though, we want separate recycling one for under sink.

My fave things were a wine fridge (!) granite work surfaces water filter tap and an insinkerator which is a waste disposal. I built a kitchen in my old house and these are the things I miss since we moved - particularly the insinkerator - no food waste in the bins. Would get a quooker hot water tap now. We didn't spend much on cupboards but lots on appliances and surfaces. Have fun!!

Omg! Two dishwashers would be amazing Unfortunately we need lots of cupboard space

The whole point is you need less cupboard space because one of the dishwashers acts acts as a cupboard.

My pull out larder is my most hated thing in the kitchen.

I'd want almost no base cupboards and LOADS of big drawers.

If I had the space I'd have a nice big kitchen table. I'd never want a breakfast bar.

I want rid of the big table and a double depth breakfast bar!

Big deep drawers are definitely more useful than cupboards, no crawling on hands and knees trying to find things at the back of a low cupboard.

Love my waste disposal Insinkerator. No more hideous bin plate scraping and generally a lot less smelly stuff in the bin.

We're just in the middle of building works - my kitchen will have:

Big walk in larder with shelves floor to ceiling
2 waist high ovens
Induction hob (we already had this
Loads of lovely big pan drawers
2.9m table (v excited about this)
Glass splash back / granite worktop
Big sink nice taps
Most importantly lots of space and good lighting
Snug seating type area

Separate utility with wading machine/ tumble dryer/ drying rack / sink and drawers etc

Separate boot room area

Decided against boiling water tap

Can't wait for it to all be finished- desperate to move back home!!

Definitely drawers rather than cupboards.

lights under your wall cupboards. We have some which are just right if you need to wander in to make a cuppa in the middle of the night
YY to 3 part bin and also to deep drawers - I altered one cupboard to drawers postfit
pull out storage for large flat stuff to be stored upright - eg, trays, baking sheets, chopping board.
specific area for making a cuppa, maybe a big tray so coffee drips etc don't stain your new counter - looking at you, DH
Realise that whereever you put your dishwasher, and whatever you say, people will dump stuff just above it, rather than put inside, so that worktop will always be cluttered - also looking at you, DH
The big stuff you tend to think of, it's the little stuff that trips you up, eg, putting the spice rack/ paper towel holder/ knife rack on the most sensible wall

I have mostly my dream kitchen, done about 5 years ago. I have a utility off the kitchen with washing machine/tumble dryer and a big chest freezer along with cupboards. And a pantry.
Plinth drawers I kept from my old kitchen as new kitchen people didn't do them
Pan drawers yes.
Induction hob yes
2 ovens yes
dishwasher yes
wire pull out trays instead of shelves yes
But the big NO is those horrendous pull out corner thingys, which I was told were so good. They are not - totally useless bit of kit. I am having mine taken out, new doors and shelves put in.

I don't understand why plinth drawers are so hard to find. I love them!

We didn't spend as much on appliances as we could have as we were doing a lot of work (knocked through a room to create seating area just off dining kitchen, all new windows and our utility/boot room is massive and almost another kitchen in terms of size/cupboards).
Would have loved:
Wine fridge
Insinkerator (though we do compost/have a septic tank)
Gas hob (see previous post re LPG/solar panels)
Level floors (we have a huge island to hide the slope, the cost and effort to level would have been too much, it has already been 3 months and counting...)

I do have a belfast sink though which I have always wanted, it is pretty impractical but looks lush.

Can I be honest and say I have no clue what plinth drawers are?

Ooh, mine is nearly done.

I think lots of people have said that pull out larders are a bit useless - they are very heavy to pull out and after a while can come off their rails. I have a cupboard, but each individual drawer pulls out so I get the benefit of not having to rummage in the back of a cupboard but don't have to pull 4 or 5 drawers out all together.

No wall cupboards

2 single side by side ovens

Separate utility but yes to just off the kitchen. Actually have a pocket door between our utility and kitchen and so we haven't lost space in either really.

Big island unit with overhang (for seating area).

I would have loved a boiling water tap but just couldn't justify the expense.

plinth drawers are great - use space underneath the base units, where normally they just have kickboards . I keep floor cloths, plastic bags etc in mine
like this

Go for practicality over design - for years we lusted after a classic Smeg fridge - it looks great, and always will, but I wish we had gone for an american style Jobbie with an ice dispenser.

I love our wine fridge although we already had it so just built a new unit around it.

We also have an Aga, which I realise isn't for everyone but I do love it.

Thanks for all the posts!

hecantbeserious why do you hate your larder cupboards?

It's a pull out larder - full height and about 30cm wide. There's 4 baskets/shelves so there's a lot of wasted space overall, and every time I want a stock cube or herb jar I have to pull the weight of all the tins, jars, packets and bottles that are in there. Drives me nuts but was the main reason we bought the house. You live and learn!

I am very pleased with our single oven plus combination microwave/grill/oven, our cupboard with sockets inside for charging, utility room with door and bulit in table thingy.