Bigger island or dining table

[ManicMonday007]

Help please. We've just had an extension for a kitchen diner and because we want an American fridge freezer it leave us a bit limited for space on where the dining table was going to start. The kitchen man has suggested we just have a bigger island with like 6 stools around instead of a dining table.
Thoughts please?
I think my biggest concern is for Christmas day, but then I suppose we could get a temporary table. Any thoughts?

Don't get the island obsession if you already have enough kitchen surface space. We just have a 8-10 seater dining table.

It seems a bit rubbish to get a nice new kitchen extension and then have to eat around a kitchen island because of lack of space. I'd choose a dining table over an American fridge freezer or a kitchen island tbh.

Table would get my vote.

Table.

I've seen people use an upright fridge and a matching upright freezer in place of an American FF. Keeping them both in the kitchen but it can give more versatility in that you can have one in one place and the other somewhere else in the room.

Depends on how long your meals are likely to be. I find sitting up high uncomfortable for long periods of time - but I have fibromyalgia so my hips are often in pain.

I would always chose a table. Sitting on a stool hunched over an island is for a quick coffee not for eating a proper meal. I think stools at islands are all for the look and not for the comfort.

We have just finished a kitchen renovation and had no room for island, so we just have a round dining table and am so happy with it. We used to have a peninsula with high stools, but I much prefer sitting at a table.

Table - not all your guests may be fully able bodied or temporary broken leg mean sitting apart.

Would a peninsula work better than an island? Check out this guy on YouTube, he has loads of fab kitchen design/layout videos...(I watched everything and I'm so happy with my kitchen).

Definitely table. I don’t like sitting at an island

But to answer your question, I think a table is important.

I've found my people.

I HATE sitting at an island/ breakfast bar.
So table all the way from me.

Can you turn it around and have a table instead of the island?

I’d choose the dining table too, even if it means a smaller island or no island.

I would prefer a dining table

We have an island and a dining table. We hardly sit at the island, as we always sit at the dining table. Dining table gets my vote.

Hate eating on islands

I hate sitting on stools, definitely prefer a table.

Can you show a diagram/floor plan? Would maybe a round table work better? Or a good extending table - sized for everyday use/fit, and doesn’t matter if it’s a bit more of a squeeze when extended on the odd occasion?

I like an island to perch on and chat, but I'd much much rather eat at a table.
My order of preference would be dining table, island, American fridge freezer.

But I only like an island where it works in the space. I looked at several houses before we moved where people had put in an island in order to have an island, but the kitchen space made no sense. Much as I like them we don't have one as it doesn't work with the shape and layout of our kitchen

I love a big sociable dining table. Bar stools are ok for kids but I wouldn’t want to sit on one for long.

I prefer a table. Is there space to have a table sort of melded in to the island so you have the right height to sit at but you are attached to the island ? I've seen pictures where a round table bit is at the end of an island.

First thing I did upon moving to our new house was to rip out the (clearly very expensive) island unit. I just don't get it. Island units are a scourge.

Nice big kitchen dining table wins every time.

Are you sure you want an ASFF? The freezer capacity is terrible so lots of people who have them have second freezers somewhere else! If you had a nice full height fridge in the kitchen, would that give you room for the other stuff you want? And do you have somewhere for a freezer? (We put ours in the utility rm, but could have gone in the garage if we had internal access to that).

As PPs have said, having an extension and no table is bonkers!

Important for dc if young to learn to sit around a table and to have that family time. Stools and islands are fine for breakfast as everyone rushes off but l wouldn't like a Itchen with no table.
Saying that we with stayed with my friend abroad and first night we had dinner at their table as they were making a big of a fuss since we just arrived. After that all meals were around a huge island with lots of stools and we had some fantastic evenings just sitting around there chatting and eating. I noticed their teens stayed longer after the meal joining the conversation and it was all very relaxed. But they did have the table which l soon gathered wasn't used very much.

I second this. We bought an American fridge freezer coz they look cool and everyone seems to have it on instagram. In reality, it was bulky, difficult to use (fridge drawers on the bottom so I had to bend down often or kept forgetting about veg in there, doors hard to open with so many things on the full height door, never used the water dispenser coz water came out so fast it just spilt everywhere, hardly used the ice cube dispenser etc.). Absolutely hated it and got rid of it after a year. Replaced it with built in fridge at the top and freezer at the bottom. Much happier now and actually makes the kitchen look way nicer. It was an expensive mistake for us. I’m sure some people love it, but it just did not work for our life style.