kitchens

Triangles in Kitchens

I have been thinking lately about the work triangle in the kitchen. This was a construct of the 1940’s when men in suits were trying to engineer the function of the kitchen to make women’s lives easier. The work triangle consists of the locations for the storage, preparation and cooking of food. Fridge, sink and stove. The triangle ignores some other important functions such as cleanup, the idea of different types of storage (fridge, dry, long term, short term easy access) Sam’s club (24 packs of paper towel rolls) Also if there are several people working in a kitchen, the triangle may result in conflict. I have sketched my ideal kitchen. It is not for everybody but I have lived and cooked in over a dozen kitchens so I know what I like. I like a large island with a small bar sink for all food prep. A drawer type fridge under the counter is helpful because I like a separate fridge and upright freezer of equal size in a large and very adjacent doorless pantry. (I am a gardener and have lots of frozen food) The pantry allows me to keep things such as my mixer, coffee grinder, pasta maker, food processor, microwave etc. out on a countertop. The island allows me to spread out. Due to my long arms I also like the height of the island to be a few inches lower than the countertops. I like a large cooktop with 6 burners and a good large quiet hood with good lighting. I like a very large deep sink with a tall faucet. When I do my own kitchen someday I will get a restaurant sink and faucet. (foot pedal operated faucet?) I don’t like upper cabinets at all but prefer as much glass as possible over the counter. I also detest corner cabinets and strive to avoid them. A variation on this sketch would be to put wall ovens and a fridge on either side of the cooktop along the outside wall. And perhaps put the sink in the island. This works well if there are no windows over the counter.