Kitchens vs. Dining Rooms: Who’s on First?

Kitchens and Dining Rooms have always had a complicated relationship. Like two battling siblings, the Kitchen has been boxed up for years behind walls, kept in servitude as a utility room while the dining room reigned supreme, although hardly ever used. The 21st Century re-introduced the open kitchen as the primary center of the house and the dining room was relegated to a second-class citizenship in the so-called “Great Room “. In those holidays that required a big setting, the collapsible dining room table was expanded, and chairs were collected around the house to serve the multitude.

The new open Kitchen and the floating island have become wildly popular for over a quarter of a century. Historically, the Kitchen has always been the center of the house. Only in the 60s and 70s did we box it into a room by itself with marginal work areas, poor lighting, totally unacceptable to multiple cooks and family members who are left out in the Dining Room. With the explosion of the 21st century, Kitchens have taken center piece once again over our homes and lives.

But is the Dining Room dead? Does it need to be an afterthought in the corner of the Great Room where the living area takes all the honors? Let’s look at that after we consider the new trends in kitchen design that affects the whole living experience.

1. Colors: return to neutrals such as taupe, mushroom, light earth, tones, and more traditional colors. Think rustic.

What to avoid: bright sterile whites, cold grays with blue saturations; very 1990s.

2. Backsplashes: Full height tile backsplashes are still in but softer, lighter colors, not the bright Mediterranean showy stuff that competes with the food prep; subway horizontal tile still works.

What to avoid: bold patterns with explosive colors that are good this month, outdated next. Avoid the latest trend or passing fad. Think long-term and complementary.

3. Countertops: look for impervious, local materials, such as granite from Nevada or, as far away is Indiana, not India. Tumbled black granite with a rougher more rustic hued surface is coming back. It doesn’t show dirt as fast or as reflective. Think of Slate finish.

What I also see returning is authentic hardwood surfaces. People say they scratch, but not with the new polyurethanes. All countertops scratch. Minimize cutting or scratching on any surfaces. Make sure whichever product you use is professionally reworked once a year. Synthetic materials, often call Onyx, is fine if properly prepared.

What’s out? Shiny marble or real onyx that stains; anything with grout lines.

4. Structural supports: Show off structural beams in ceilings or posts in walls. Real wood and rustic forms are welcomed. When remodeling, often crude lumber pieces emerge, and are typically thrown away. Recycle and make it into your story of the process and history of the kitchen.

What to avoid: ceilings with fancy Crown Molding that has nothing to do with the house.

5. Lighting: Much as I love pendant lights, more and more discrete LED single fixtures lighting is emerging. Hidden LED lights behind beams in the ceiling or under countertops and cabinets provide subtle discrete illumination and not blasting light.

What to avoid:  6 “ceiling flood lights are out. The three pennants hanging over the island are history.

6: Drawer and cabinet hardware: often referred to as the kitchen “jewels in the tiara“ fancy pulls are out; simpler pulls and hardware are more appropriate. Pulls become outdated easily and ready to be replaced in 5 to 10 years. If you have pulls from an old family kitchen, here’s the chance to use them for the great story.

7. Cabinet designs: Simple trim and doors, flush with the cabinet surface are more appropriate: the Shaker look is still good but extra trim is irrelevant. Colors should be light, neutral, and real wood, lightly stained is classic and timeless.

What’s out: cabinet surface mounted doors and exposed hinges. Bright shiny and date sensitive hardware. They should not compete with the rest of the designs.

8. Sinks: Under counter sink, still rule, but three stainless steel basins reign supreme.

What to avoid: the big single basin farmhouse sink. Old school and not efficient.

So, are dining rooms history? As our market has changed with the pandemic, bedrooms, and bathrooms have become more important for the value of a home. Yes, a central Great Room with the open Kitchen is essential. Realtors count on the total square footage and bedroom suites.

Outdoor spaces, canopies, and trellises make good sales pitches. Minimizing Dining space requires creating outdoor spaces to compensate.

Both the pesky high mortgage rates, the rising home prices and Baby Boomers refusing to sell, make buying a new home a challenge for young family buyers.

We also have a generational shift from baby boomers to millennials and Gen Z which are desiring a more open facility in room. Entertainment of multiple generations become a major desire.

We want families to be able to age together in places that encourage family connections. In reality, the living room becomes less important in the future, and the dining room combined with the open Kitchen becomes the center of family affairs.

Formal Dining spaces may have a comeback as multiple generational families have found the family gathering is not around a kitchen table or island, but a real formal table. Thus, the dining room is coming back in a different way as traditional and generational forces take over.

Chris d Craiker AIA/NCARB