Small Kitchen and Dining Room Layouts: One-Wall, Galley, L-Shape, Peninsula and U-Shape

If you have a small kitchen and want to fit it into a dining room, these layouts offer a variety of options.  You’ll find kitchens ranging from 10 by 14 to 14 by 18, including one-wall, galley, L-shaped, peninsula, and U-shaped designs. What makes each arrangement feel comfortable is the space behind the chairs. According to kitchen designers who follow NKBA guidelines, leave about 32 inches from the edge of the table to the wall if no one needs to go back toward the wall, and 44 inches if people do. Two of the plans listed below don’t meet that measurement on one side; I will tell you which ones they are and what I would do in that case. When choosing a plan, remember that even if your room is close to one of these sizes but not exactly that size, the plan will still work. Compare the walkway numbers with your wall measurements before purchasing the table.

10×14 One-Wall Kitchen with Dining Room Layout

By placing the cabinets and appliances against one wall, it allows the rest of the room to function as a dining room with space to walk around.

This is the plan I should recommend to people with a small kitchen layout that only has room to place the fridge, the sink, and the range in a row along one wall. The sink is positioned below the window to take advantage of potential outdoor views and bring in natural light, which is always welcome in a smaller kitchen. The remainder of the floor space in the room is devoted to the dining area.

The table is rectangular and measures 36 by 48 inches and has four chairs, with each positioned so that there are 36 inches on each side. This amount of space allows you to take out a chair and sit down without hitting any obstructions. However, the space isn’t large enough to enable someone to slip past you while you’re eating, which is why the seats on the sides are the ones for people who often get up and move, such as the host. While the ones on the top and bottom are for those who are ‘sitting and staying’. 

You do sacrifice some counter space with this setup, since if you fit three 30-inch appliances onto the10-foot wall, you’ll have a 15-inch leftover space next to the fridge and roughly 30 inches between the sink and the range. One person can cook with this arrangement but two people will often have some trouble, and as a result the table begins to take on prep work even if you had not intended for it to.

Dimensions:

• Room size: 10′ x 14′ (120″ x 168″)
• Counter depth: 24″
• Refrigerator: 30″ x 30″; sink base: 30″; range: 30″
• Dining table: 36″ x 48″ with four chairs
• Clearance from table to side walls: 36″

Design Tips:

• Use the table as your second countertop or impromptu island, and select a top that can hold a cutting board, and hang the pendant over the table, not over the sink.
• The 15-inch section next to the fridge is too narrow to use for chopping, and works more as a drop zone for putting away groceries or bringing out ingredients.
• If you are buying appliances, then get a counter-depth fridge since it fits perfectly into 24-inch cabinets, and this way you get back six inches of walking space in front of it.

8×18 Galley Kitchen with Separate Dining Area Floor Plan

Most long, narrow rooms are difficult to plan a layout for, but a galley is precisely the kind of shape you want to maximize functionality.

In the first 10 feet, the kitchen is arranged with the fridge, sink, and range along the right wall, with a full row of cabinets opposite them on the left. The final 7 feet consist of the dining nook in a somewhat tight zone. The aisle width between the counters is 48 inches, which makes this arrangement work. The usual recommendation is 42 inches for a single cook and 48 inches for two, so this galley accommodates two people without anyone having to turn sideways to pass the other. 

The dining end presents the difficult arrangement, since the room is only 8 feet wide. By placing a table measuring 30 inches by 48 inches, you’re only left with 24 inches from the wall on either side, so the side chairs have no room to move back. You can remedy this somewhat by getting rid of the two side chairs and instead fit a bench against one of the walls. This would give you the same seating accommodation without the constant shuffling.

Dimensions:

• Room size: 8′ x 18′ (96″ wide)
• Galley aisle: 48″ between 24″-deep counters
• Kitchen run: 10′ (120″) with 30″ refrigerator, 30″ sink and 30″ range
• Dining zone: 7′ (84″) long
• Dining table: 30″ x 48″, with 24″ to each side wall

Design Tips:

• Construct a bench along one of the long sides of the table, positioning it close to the wall. This provides the rear support space that the chairs do not have and also offers storage space underneath the bench.
• Buy chairs that are low profile and can tuck neatly against the table so it’s easier to pass through when not in use.
• The left-hand row has no appliances in it, so it should have all deep drawers. This way the side acts as your true storage wall.
• Turn on the two areas separately. When the under-cabinet strips in the galley and the single pendant above the table are switched on, the room appears to consist of two areas at night.

12×16 L-Shaped Kitchen with Round Dining Table Design

Put L-shaped kitchen cabinets going out from one corner and pair them with a round table in the large open square of floor for an inviting design.

This kitchen design utilizes an L-shaped arrangement, with the top wall shared by the range and the sink. There is a 36-inch corner cabinet with a lazy Susan at the corner where the L shape turns, and then leading to a fridge that is positioned at the bottom of  the right leg. This layout brings the sink, range, and fridge near to one another, so that people do not have to go through the dining area in order to move between them. The lazy Susan is perfect in an L-shaped design since the corner cabinets are often where pans can get lost. The Susan makes the spot more easily accessible.

Round tables work well in small rooms since there are no edges to bump into, and they allow four people to sit closer to one another than they could around a rectangular table. The table is positioned in the lower-left area, with 36 inches from the wall on that side and approximately 60 inches on the side next to the fridge. The 60 inches matters more than it seems because it refers to the distance from the table to the fridge, and this space is wide enough that someone who wants a drink doesn’t need to ask anyone to move.

Dimensions:

• Room size: 12′ x 16′ (144″ x 192″)
• Range: 30″; sink base: 33″; corner cabinet with lazy Susan: 36″
• Refrigerator: 36″ wide on the side wall
• Clearance from table to left wall: 36″; to the refrigerator side: 60″

Design Tips:

• Choose a pedestal base rather than four legs for the table since the legs clash with the chair legs when sitting around a round table, and a pedestal allows you to fit in a fifth chair if needed for entertaining.
• Treat the surface between the sink and the corner as your prep area and make sure it remains clear, with water on one side and storage on the other, and nothing else in the room coming near.
• Hang the pendant over the table, not in the center of the room; the table is deliberately placed off-center, and a light which moves with it makes it seem as though this has been done intentionally rather than by accident.

12×16 Peninsula Kitchen with Eat-In Bar and Small Dining Table Layout 

Adding three stools to the peninsula plus a small table brings the total to seven seats in a room often called only a four-seat kitchen.

This kitchen design has the same 12 by 16 footprint as the one above, but features quite different goals. This version is intended for those who want many seats, and offers three stools placed along the six-foot peninsula, and another four chairs added around the 30 by 48 inch table in the open area. The sink and the range are positioned along the upper wall beneath the window, while the fridge together with a set of tall cabinets occupy the left wall; the cabinets then turn and form the peninsula, which is 72 inches long and thus provides each stool with the 24 inches of elbow room required by counter seating.

Something to note is that the overhang is shown as 12 inches, which is acceptable at bar height (42 inches), but at the standard 36-inch counter height most guidelines recommend 15 inches, since with only 12 inches an adult’s knees may tap the cabinet doors while sitting.

The table is once more the bottleneck, as it leaves 24 inches before the right wall, which means one chair has to be shoved in to get past. In reality, this table provides two seats on a weeknight but four if you manage to have them all. With the stools, you still have seven seats, which is a lot more than normal for a room this size.

Dimensions:

• Room size: 12′ x 16′ (144″ x 192″)
• Sink base: 33″; range: 30″; 55″ of counter to the left of the sink
• Refrigerator: 36″ wide
• Peninsula: 72″ long with a 12″ seating overhang and three stools
• Dining table: 30″ x 48″, with 24″ to the right wall

Design Tips:

• Decide on the height of the peninsula before you buy the cabinets, since the bar height ensures that the 12-inch overhang is correct, and one that is counter height may be more comfortable at 15 inches, which takes up three more inches of floor space.
• Get stools without backs that extend all the way under the floor. They can be placed directly in the path between the fridge and the table, whereas a stool with a back always protrudes into that path.
• A drop-leaf table is put to good use in this instance: during the week, fold it up against the right wall, and when all seven seats are in use, open it up.

14×18 U-Shaped Kitchen with Dining Area Layout

This U-shaped kitchen offers the largest number of countertops of all the plans shown here, and there is still room for a six-seat table in the middle.

This is the largest of the plans, and it offers a lot of cabinet and countertop space, with cabinets going around three of the walls, with the fridge, sink, and cooker on the rear side and long stretches of base cabinets on both sides. In the middle is a table that measures 36 by 72 inches, together with six chairs. The distance between the table and the side cabinets is 48 inches, which distinguishes the space as a real dining room rather than just a place to eat around a large island. One person can remain seated while another goes behind them to access something in the kitchen without causing them to tuck in.

The disadvantage of a U-shaped layout is that the table ends up acting as the island, whether you want it to or not. Any hot items coming from the stove often end up going there, and so do the groceries. So if you want the table cleared away and laid out before anybody arrives, it may take extra work to ensure that it doesn’t get crowded with food prep before dining.

Dimensions:

• Room size: 14′ x 18′
• Refrigerator: 36″ wide; sink base: 33″; range: 30″
• Side cabinet runs: 108″ long
• Dining table: 36″ x 72″ with six chairs
• Clearance from table to side cabinets: 48″

Design Tips:

• Put the plates and cutlery in the side cabinets closest to the table so that you can set and clear them easily without taking extra steps and getting in the way of the cook.
• Choose a tabletop that you are willing to use for cooking; preferably one made from sealed wood or a good laminate since it will be used as a prep surface and have hot items set down on it.
• Hang two small pendants above the long table with one large light fixture. This way both ends will be illuminated and you will still be able to see across the U.

When choosing a small kitchen and dining room layout, pick the plan beside on the walkway rather than the kitchen shape. Measure your room, subtract 24 inches for the counters, and then check if you can leave at least 32 inches behind each chair. The layout that achieves this will be the one that is functional and easiest to use day to day.

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