The kitchen is one area of the home that continues to go through cosmetic transformations. There was a time when kitchens were closed off from the rest of the house. They were designed for one cook doing one duty at a time. They included a separate dining area for entertaining and one for daily dinners.

A recent evolution in kitchen design was the introduction of large, commercial, stainless steel appliances and sinks that commanded attention. Now a kitchen is less its own room and more an integrated part of a house. “The kitchen is becoming the focal point,” says Elaine Cecconi, principal, Cecconi Simone in Toronto, Ontario. “It’s no longer a separate room. It is integrated into the dining and living room or even the family room.” Kitchens are less formal because they’re integrated into the rest of the house, which also tends to be less formal. They feature an open floor plan that flows to the adjoining room, emphasizing integration. Because the kitchen now features an open design, more people are socializing, entertaining and relaxing in the kitchen. “The kitchen is command central, the social center of the home,” says Mary Jo Peterson, CKD, CBD, CAPS, principal of Brookfield, Conn.-based Mary Jo Peterson Inc.

Children are doing their homework in the kitchen while dinner is being made, or guests socialize with the cook while the food is being prepared. “When people are entertaining, they are preparing as guests arrive and it becomes the social space,” Cecconi says.

Zoning the kitchen

Traditionally, kitchen design relied on a triangle layout that included the sink, oven and refrigerator. This design works great when only one person uses the kitchen. However, now there usually is more than one cook. “The kitchen needs mini triangles or mini circles so that people can work without running into each other,” says Connie Mann, CKD, Dream Kitchens in Madison, Wis.

More cooks and more socializing in the kitchen equals more zones. “Because there are more people in the kitchen, there are more things going on,” Peterson says. “Kitchens are getting bigger and we need to provide multiple zones with greater clearances and greater walkways.”