Kitchen Re-design Pt. 1

I designed my kitchen to be the most efficient as possible. Having my dishwasher open right to my island saves so much time.

One of the single most important lessons I’ve learned working in restaurants for 25 years is how to be efficient. Every single step and movement counts during service because time is never on your side. Efficiency is at the forefront of my mind every day at work and at home. Time is a commodity I don’t have so if I can save myself even a few minutes I will.

My kitchen is not large so I was very thoughtful when we decided to remodel. I could not change anything structurally. Although I did have a wild idea at the very beginning to completely relocate my kitchen and knock a wall down. That was taken off the table real fast once we heard what a ballpark cost would be!

The biggest “structural” changes we made were extending the island 6” on either side and moving the refrigerator. In our previous kitchen where someone would sit at the island no one could because the refrigerator doors opened to that space. It made no sense. Now that space houses a custom cabinet to hold appliances and two giant drawers.

During the design process, I measured appliances and carefully plotted where everything I owned (which is A LOT) would live in the kitchen. I thought about how I would be moving in my kitchen and where I would need to reach for what I needed. In restaurants on the line (where the cooks are) cooks set up their station to be the most efficient as possible. Limiting their movements is key to getting food made quickly and out to the guests. A good line cook has everything they need literally at their fingertips so all they have to do is turn around 180º to the stove/grill/oven. If you see a line cook running all over the place they are going to be having a conversation with Chef later because their station wasn’t set. This was my mindset when designing my kitchen. I did not want to be walking in circles to get what I needed.

I can’t waste time, in my kitchen, or really in any part of my life. My days are super scheduled around kids, clients, and food because no one stops eating at my house. One of my favorite parts of my kitchen is the dishwasher opening directly to my island. I can open the drawers of my island and the door on my dishwasher to unload one into the other. I’m also obsessed with my third rack for silverware. It separates it all and there is no more poking yourself with a tine on a fork. This simple, seemingly tiny thing is making a big impact. I can’t wait to show you what else I’ve done in my kitchen!