The kitchen is the heart of the home and it should be just right. In India, we usually have closed kitchens, separate spaces behind walls and doors. However, an increase in property prices has made residential floor space a precious commodity. To give the illusion of more space, some urban apartments are doing away with kitchen walls and merging the kitchen with the common areas of the home to form an open kitchen. It is essential to check important factors like practicality and ease of maintenance for the smooth functioning of an open kitchen in an Indian context. Although the new-age modular kitchens are good looking and are a place to flaunt, the question is whether an open kitchen design is best suited for your home or not. Read on and find out.

What is the difference between an open and a closed kitchen?

• A closed kitchen gives privacy and is demarcated from rest of the home by walls and a door.
• The open-plan kitchen knocks out barriers like walls and doors to unify the kitchen with common areas such as the dining and living areas to form a single large space. Open kitchens are interactive and they infuse an informal look to the home.

What are the advantages?

• The biggest advantage of this layout is that it eliminates partition walls and merges the kitchen with rest of the home to make the space seem more expansive.
• An open kitchen looks bright and well-ventilated because it not only gets natural light from the kitchen but also from windows opening into the adjoining areas of the kitchen.
• Another plus is that they are best for entertaining or conversing with guests and catching up with your favourite TV show while cooking. Additionally, it is easier to supervise what’s going on in the living room while cooking.

What are the disadvantages?

• The major disadvantage is that the mess created during cooking is always visible, so it becomes essential to always keep the kitchen clean and organised. If your kitchen is prone to chaos and clutter, then be sure that an open kitchen is not for you.
• The noises from the kitchen can spill into adjoining spaces and disturb anyone chatting, watching TV or studying. There is quite a variety of kitchen sounds, and they usually cannot be avoided: the whistles of the pressure cooker, the noise from the mixers and grinders (when in use), the clatter of dishes being washed or the sound of a running sink tap.
• Indian cooking uses a lot of spices and tadkas, which emit a strong odour and fumes that can spread throughout the home despite using a chimney.
• One concern about an open kitchen is that it cuts down on cabinet storage because of the absence of additional walls.
• Another drawback is that during elaborate cooking, the kitchen becomes very hot. This heat spreads to the rest of the connected space. Hence, the the cooling of the AC might not be very effective in the living and dining areas during that period of time.

How can I make an open kitchen work in my home?

If you are keen on an open kitchen layout then consider these essential points:
 

• Do make sure to have proper ventilation and install premium quality chimneys, along with an exhaust fan. This shall prevent smells from spreading into the common areas of the home (to some extent).
• It is advisable to incorporate sliding doors for your kitchen so that you can open or close the door whenever you want
• Instead of an entirely open kitchen, consider a service window or a half-partition by creating a cut-out within the wall to create an interactive kitchen, as in this example. If the kitchen is close to the dining area, with such a window serving becomes easier and faster. This way you have an almost open kitchen design and will not lose out on cabinet space. The cabinets forming the partition here are illuminated and glassed on both sides, making a visually insubstantial partition.