Attractive, functional kitchens don't just happen; they're carefully engineered, either by hand or using architectural software. The concept to start with is that there are three basic task areas to coordinate; these are food storage (refrigerator), cooking (stove/microwave), and cleanup (sink/garbage disposal/dishwasher).
These three areas are configured in such a way that travel between them is efficient and convenient. It turns out that the best way is to have each area be a point on what's called the kitchen work triangle. Food preparation like slicing and dicing can be done anywhere inside the triangle or in some cases, on an island counter just on the outside edge of one of the sides of the triangle.
The U-Shaped Kitchen Layout
In this layout, three cabinets are laid out in a U-shape. The cleanup sink and dishwasher area are in the center of one side, the refrigerator food storage on another, and the cooking area on the third. This leaves an open area in the center that allows for more than one person to work comfortably if the kitchen is large enough.
