Big Kitchen or second Reception 🤪

[Curlielou]

I need some mum opinions!!
At home we have a lounge, dining room, kitchen and playroom/craftroom/useful dumping ground. I have been planning on turning this 'multi purpose room' into a second lounge/snug for the childrens (age 9&12) future use. I thought it could also be used for friends to hang out, games consols, TV disagreements and maybe even a sofa bed as we don't have a spare room.
However, my kitchen is very small and in no way a sociable space. It's standing room only and can be a lonely place!
Someone has planted a seed recently that I should/could knock through to the 'multi purpose room' to make a bigger, more sociable kitchen, which could house a breakfast bar, TV and a couple of chairs. I immediately dismissed this because having a second reception room is useful and a good selling tool. Now I'm thinking 'what if'.
It's a first world problem but, what would you do and why? What are your experiences?
There is no room for movement with any of the other rooms due to the layout of the house.

I'd go for the kitchen diner, it's the heart of the home !! I used to have a tiny kitchen and hated being cooped up in there by myself, now we have a big space that we all use

I would knock through. You've already got a dining room and sitting room. A sociable kitchen would be perfect.

Could you knock into the playroom to make a kitchen diner then repurpose the dining room as the second reception room? Or would the new room you create be too small for a proper kitchen diner? Would you post a floor plan then perhaps people could make suggestions?

I immediately dismissed this because having a second reception room is useful and a good selling tool.

I think more people would rule out buying a house because it had a tiny kitchen than for not having a second reception room. I'd go with the kitchen diner.

@Maybenowisthetime Not really, the dining room is an 'L' shape off the lounge so there are no walls and it would be a lounge in a lounge. The playroom space wouldn't be big enough to double up. I'm grateful for your thoughts though.

Larger kitchen every time!
DS does his homework and chats whilst I cook. It's warm and sociable. Turn the dining room into a snug/ study.

How big would the new, bigger, kitchen be? If big enough for a kitchen diner, then the diningroom can be the second reception?

We need a floor plan, please!

We have a sort of similar layout to yours, and once there’s enough pennies in the bank we’ll be ripping that wall down and going for a kitchen/diner/snug space.

When we viewed the house we both thought the room off of the kitchen was a waste of space, and lo and behold, it really is a waste of space now we live here. It’s too small to do much with other than dump ‘stuff’ in it, it leads on to another room so it’s either a very messy storage area/large hallway, or it gets absorbed into the kitchen.

So you have a living room that is big enough to house a dining area, a small kitchen, and a separate room that is currently a dumping ground.

if you knock through the kitchen to the “dumping ground room” would it not become a kitchen/diner? Would you still keep the dining table in the living room too?

I've just put this together whilst DH is watching the rugby. It gives you an idea...

@fishfingersandchipsagain the second room is a bit smaller than the kitchen so it wouldn't be big enough to expand the kitchen and put a table in, unfortunately.

Can you extend the kitchen outwards? You’d get the bigger kitchen and keep the multi purpose room.

Knock through but turn your dining room info the second reception

You don’t need a dining room and a dine in kitchen

If you can’t extend outward I’d knock together the dining room, utility, kitchen and multi room onto one big space and section off the lounge.

@TakeMe2Insanity we don't have the space sadly. The 'utility' houses the boiler, meters & fuse board so that can't be touched either (builders advice). It's a bit if a topsy-turvy house really.

Oh I see it’s not big enough

In that case probably not - somewhere to throw teenagers is useful and it can double up for overnight guests.

Making the kitchen bigger is just going to give you 2 big spaces which can be nice but you are doubling up so it won’t be as useful.

I’d definitely knock through. I’d never buy a house with a tiny kitchen

@BaronessBomburst added, thanks 😊

100% knock through.

And is there a reason why your dining room is so much bigger than the lounge? Can you swap them?

If you can somehow add some sliding doors to the extra bit of kitchen, it can perhaps flip between being a bigger kitchen and separate kitchen and extra room occasionally.

In other words, both options might be possible?

I'd have the dining room as the main lounge, the lounge becomes the snug.

Knock through to the play room.

Don't automatically buy a breakfast bar in. Think carefully about what will really work.

I'd definitely knock through, especially with patio doors would make a lovely big sociable kitchen. We have a very large kitchen and we live in it, never use the lounge.

I gave up a second reception room to get a large kitchen diner and don’t regret it at all. No longer stuck in the small kitchen at the back. Much better for family life. Do it.

I would knock through, but make the l-shaped room at the front the “family room” ie kitchen/diner/lounge, and make the room at the back the sitting room.

That way you have a big entertaining space that includes the kitchen, and a separate sitting room to retreat to if teenagers are dominating the larger space.