evandyk
Senior Member
The counter space is seriously lacking, especially once you put a dishrack next to that sink. But it's functional. There are many kitchens being built these days that are a lot worse than that.
Toronto TeaHouse 501 Yonge Condominiums | 170.98m | 52s | Lanterra | a—A
- Thread starter VoiceofReality
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Rascacielo
Senior Member
That looks like a full-sized fridge. The fridge at my old rented condo at Panorama (CityPlace) was smaller than that, and I still managed to have dinner parties there.
condovo
Senior Member
I just made a big pot of Turkish Red Lentil soup (Mercimek Çorbası). There's no way that could've happened in that kitchen. Where's the prep space??
evandyk
Senior Member
It's not a great kitchen, but there's plenty of space to make a soup in there.
bmiller
Active Member
Mmm good. It's that time of year.
zang
Senior Member
If you're an organized cook, it's more than enough.
I have about the same counter space, and less usable cabinet space, and my only real issue is having enough room to plate for a dinner party.
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
Looking at the recipe it shouldn't take that much prep space - but it all depends on how you operate in a kitchen. Some are sprawlers that don't wash the dishes as they go along - some aren't.
It looks fine - probably not great for sprawling dinners but ok otherwise. I'd be more concerned about the effectiveness of the hood and grease issues in general (open kitchen aren't the greatest for that).
AoD
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condovo
Senior Member
I'm a sprawler when I cook but I wash as I go along too. I guess prep space could be on a kitchen island or a dining table.
Northern Light
Superstar
Pffft. I practice mis-en-place when I cook, every ingredient organized into its own bowl/cup/ramekin before I begin cooking. That counter space wouldn't enough for 1/2 my recipes; just for that.
If you bake and you need a bowl for wet ingredients and another for dry; or serving plates/bowls .......
That is not a kitchen, or even a kitchenette, its a couple of cupboards and appliances tacked into a corner.
I have 12 kinds of pasta/noodles, where is it being stored? There's not enough cupboard space to put the French Press away after making coffee......
zang
Senior Member
Mise should be in your fridge until needed. Tsk tsk.
Stash everything until needed. That said, the average person is going to fill that space up with appliances they don't use while they cook their frozen meals in the nuke box, or just order out. People are lazy when it come to cooking, pandemic be damned.
And really, who are we kidding? These shoebox places are designed for "investors" anyways, who'll turn it around for a $3500 rental to 3 foreign students willing to sleep in the same 1-bedroom apartment. Few condos in this city are being built for normal human living; they're just built to sell to the speculator class.
I agree that it's small, but trust me that restaurant cooks are lucky to have that much room at their station. A team of three in a food truck won't even have half the storage space, let alone counter.
In a pantry cupboard/storage closet? Also, French Press? The coffee equipment in my house (grinder, Chemex, scale and kettle) stay on the counter at all times, because they're being used twice a day every day. Any other appliances (Toaster, vac sealer, immersion circulator, blender, immersion blender, stand mixer, ice cream maker) get stashed on a shelf or in a closet and pulled as needed. Even my chest freezer is in a storage closet.
Northern Light
Superstar
In that kitchen? Where? There are next to no cupboards, and nothing I'd pass off as a pantry.
What closet? What pantry? There aren't enough cupboards in that kitchen to hold my glasses and plates, never mind pots and pans and food!
See above.
DavidCapizzano
Senior Member
I lived in a unit with a kitchen like this and would frequently cook. I can give some insight into how I used my space.
I tried to narrow down my pots / pans to essentials. This meant that I had one good all purpose frying pan (12 inches), one pot for soup, boiling water, larger stuff (an enamel dutch oven) and a smaller pot for sauces / sides. I had a toaster, kettle, rice cooker as well as a hand mixer, and small blender (magic bullet) which were all stored in a drawer similar to the large one at the bottom beside the stove. My pantry was also above the oven, similar to what is shown here. It wasn't huge, but very deep. I try to be thoughtful about what food I buy and keep in the house to avoid waste, and as a single it was more than enough room to store my dry goods.
I rarely found myself using more than 2 burners at once (often I'd just be using one) so I would utilize the empty space on the flattop as a prep area. Glasses, plates, bowls, wine glasses, mixing bowls etc were all kept above the sink, as well as any serving ware and storage containers. Roasting pans / baking trays etc would all go underneath the oven.
Overall I never found myself wanting more space. It was perfect for one person, and perfect for the amount I liked to cook (3-5 times per week depending on how I'm feeling)
It's also important to note that I don't do "big grocery shops" - there are essentials I keep around and handy at all times, but I found myself popping over to the market or to the grocery store a few times per week and picking up just what I needed for a few upcoming meals (again to try and minimize waste)
Would this be a sufficient kitchen for a couple or a family? Maybe not, but for one person it's plenty.
If this was my unit I'd buy an IKEA island with bar seating to add some extra counter space and it'd be golden.
I tried to narrow down my pots / pans to essentials. This meant that I had one good all purpose frying pan (12 inches), one pot for soup, boiling water, larger stuff (an enamel dutch oven) and a smaller pot for sauces / sides. I had a toaster, kettle, rice cooker as well as a hand mixer, and small blender (magic bullet) which were all stored in a drawer similar to the large one at the bottom beside the stove. My pantry was also above the oven, similar to what is shown here. It wasn't huge, but very deep. I try to be thoughtful about what food I buy and keep in the house to avoid waste, and as a single it was more than enough room to store my dry goods.
I rarely found myself using more than 2 burners at once (often I'd just be using one) so I would utilize the empty space on the flattop as a prep area. Glasses, plates, bowls, wine glasses, mixing bowls etc were all kept above the sink, as well as any serving ware and storage containers. Roasting pans / baking trays etc would all go underneath the oven.
Overall I never found myself wanting more space. It was perfect for one person, and perfect for the amount I liked to cook (3-5 times per week depending on how I'm feeling)
It's also important to note that I don't do "big grocery shops" - there are essentials I keep around and handy at all times, but I found myself popping over to the market or to the grocery store a few times per week and picking up just what I needed for a few upcoming meals (again to try and minimize waste)
Would this be a sufficient kitchen for a couple or a family? Maybe not, but for one person it's plenty.
If this was my unit I'd buy an IKEA island with bar seating to add some extra counter space and it'd be golden.
Northern Light
Superstar
I couldn't make a single meal w/so few pots and pans! LOL
4 burners is not enough, I wish I had six.
If that worked for you, awesome. (seriously); but as one person who has a GF over on the weekend, and pre-pandemic, had a dinner party once a month; and hosted Thanksgiving and Christmas for friends...............not a chance it would work for me.
Also, while I enjoy decadent cooking, one way that's more affordable is that I make large batches of freezer meals, everything from Pho broth, to Bolognese Sauce etc etc. I do a dozen containers at a time. You need a stock pot, you need 3 dozen freezer containers for the resulting food; but you also need room to store the panty ingredients (canned tomatoes, tomato paste, 3lbs of onions, red wine, etc etc.)
I tend to shop 4-5x per week; but you still want to be able to take advantage of sale prices on good stuff. That means having room the fire-roasted tomatoes when they go on sale for $1 per tin instead of the usual $3....
For one person who doesn't do freezer meals, or elaborate cooking and rarely has company over........maybe, LOL
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On that note, I think I will exit this topic, as I'm sure we are all a wee bit OT here!
evandyk
Senior Member
We are definitely OT here, but your cooking flow definitely seems to be more suited to a larger place than most downtown condos. I have a pretty big apartment with a nice kitchen, but I have 3 burners (which is plenty for me) and would never "stock up" on something because it's on sale - I just don't have room in my cupboards.
I would never consider putting "dozens" of anything in my freezer. There's just two small drawers!
I would never consider putting "dozens" of anything in my freezer. There's just two small drawers!
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
A kitchen cart would free up a lot of counter space for actual prep in this case. And honestly the dishwasher is a waste of space in this instance.
AoD