Thanks for the tips.

The reason to have the cooktop on the window wall is so that the rangehood ducts directly outside. That's where it is now. But maybe that's not a good idea.

The bench on the left side is open to the family room. Part of the reason to have things away from that side is to hide the mess somewhat.

In the current kitchen, everything is along the window wall (except the fridge), but it's just one long bench, not a U-shape. It works well, though it's small.

So maybe it would be better to consider the new kitchen as an L-shape.

Hi, I have a U shaped kitchen. Sink is central under the window which works well for natural lighting & watching kids in the yard. Couldn't imagine being jammed in a corner cooking or doing dishes! My oven would be central on your b design. Though I have a walkway, then a wall of fridge & cupboards that sit below your plan kind of making it a full square kitchen with a walkway. Only thing I hate with the u shaped in general is the dead space corner cupboards.

I love the long bench space on the left.

I'd go look at some kitchen show rooms. Take your current plan with you & measurements. See what works for you. Good luck :)

Excellent decision - you won't regret it!

Hi Cattie, Ducting is possible to outside, add some overheads and duct it through a bulkhead.. Or if the island on the left hand side is a freestanding island have a ceiling mount rangehood with ducting through the ceiling space out to the eave.

I would consult someone who sells kitchens as they can recommend the correct solution in tricky kitchens. A stove top can not be too close to a window related to fire risk of curtains or blinds and gas flames blowing out. Can you create a galley kitchen style instead??

Thank you for all the comments. The last one from Suancol made me rethink it. What about this? It's no longer a U-shape, but has double-sided storage in an island instead.

why can't you place the sink under the window ? then you can have a view ? sink to one side looks odd..pop the stove on your island bench ? that way you can have your duct straight up to the ceiling and out?

when you're cooking you'd need room to move around ..or pop your sink on your island and the stove on bench the rangehood doesn't need to go against the wall can go up to the ceiling and be vented out..

I wouldn't put the stove in the corner..better to have in the middle so you've got bench space on each side to pop your dishes and colanders etc whilst you're cooking

Thanks for all of the comments. It's gradually becoming clearer what we can do (this is an old house with lots of limitations).