With its origins in ship kitchens, the Galley Kitchen Layout includes two parallel counters designed to maximise both functionality and storage space in tight quarters, making the style an ideal solution for chefs on the sea and home cooks alike!
The simple ease and elegance of a galley style kitchen has made it a classic go-to kitchen layout however, it has lost a bit of its appeal over recent years in favour of layouts that will allow for an island, ‘L’ or ‘U’ shape. Although different layouts work best for different people, here’s why we LOVE the old galley style kitchens!
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Efficiency & Practicality
A galley style kitchen allows for optimum efficiency when using your kitchen thanks to the highly effective placement of kitchen zones such as: storage, cleaning, preparation and cooking. A galley kitchen layout allows you to designate these zones easily to create your optimum practical kitchen, often allowing more than one person to comfortably use the kitchen at the same time while also allowing for maximum storage space as vertical storage can be easily incorporated (i.e. tall cupboards, overhead storage, hanging storage options, etc).
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Aesthetic Appeal
Aesthetically, a galley style kitchen is visually pleasing as it provides an element of balance and symmetry to a space. Although this can be rather subjective, a symmetrical effect in any space of the home play a great part in creating a sense of harmony.
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Enables a great ‘Work Triangle’
The almighty kitchen ‘Work Triangle’ is the starting point and basis of every great kitchen layout. Basically, there must be a clear and direct route between your sink, fridge and cooktop, allowing for maximum efficiency in the overall usability of your kitchen while also minimising the amount of steps required to reach each station. To learn more about the Kitchen Work Triangle, click here for an excellent guide. A galley style kitchen easily lends itself to this core design principle as it enables a perfect Work Triangle, providing an excellent working space!
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Allows for Creativity with Colours
Another bonus provided by embracing a galley style kitchen layout is the flexibility in colour selections this style allows; You have the option of mixing different cabinet and benchtop finishes along the two sides of your galley style kitchen to create a truly unique and exciting vibe in your new kitchen. One wall of cabinetry could be white with a black benchtop and the opposite wall could include black cabinetry with a white benchtop, for example. This element of flexibility allows you the opportunity to get creative with your use of colours and finishes.
Key Considerations
- Allow a minimum of 1200mm between the two opposing sides of your galley kitchen
- Take the time to plan out your kitchen zones during the design stage; include zones for: storage, preparation, cooking and cleaning
- Click here to download our handy guide to help make sure you’ve allowed for all storage necessities
- Ensure excellent lighting to avoid feeling cramped up in the space; a combination of natural and artificial lighting is ideal
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