i agree with big reader it looks like a raised hearth for a wood burner or combustion stove

Looks very like a fireplace area, if you don't want s fireplace then put a cupboard there and use it for a coffee/tea making area.

Plant in a large pot, perhaps?

What about a large square aquarium?

If the platform on top of the bricks is wood rather that stone, my guess is that a heatbank sat on top. Heatbanks were large, powerful heaters that could be left on all day and night. They were popular in the 70s and 80s. You could turn the space into a bookcase, a buffet to service the dining area or a minibar with an overhead cupboard or shelves, bench top and cupboard or bar fridge underneath.

If you have young children it could be a ready area for morning rushes. You could put an ikea billy bookcase on it's side (cut to size) and make a bench. Each cubby could hold shoes/school bags etc. Sports bags, school hats, hair brush, mirror etc could all be housed on the walls on hooks, shelves. I wish I had an area like this in my kitchen when my kids were little and I was working as well. Would have saved a lot of morning stress!

Don't think fireplace either as the timber would not comply. I would think what i needed to put there and then put it there, there are no rules to what you can do in a space, go crazy.

Coffee making? i would need plumbing and it seems to be a long way from any plumbing, art maybe, sculpture? Knock out the brick base if you have spare tiles, or remove the tiles and replace the floor? skies the limit.

a small study area, but the brick base has to go?

If the house was built in the 80's when exposed brick was a "feature", then l would say there was a slow combustion wood heater there. You could have a gas heater installed there; or, first remove the base which probably consists of house bricks, then have a built in cupboard for extra storage; or once the base is removed l am sure you will find a bookshelf, cosy chair, or other solution for this corner which appears to be in your dining area rather than in the kitchen.

I would agree with all those here who think that the space was built to accommodate a combustion wood heater...especially if there's a round mark in the ceiling where the flue ( either an enamelled steel or stainless steel chimney) would have gone from the top of the heater up through the ceiling and out to the roof)....and because most people situate these haters in a corner. Seems from the photo that there is such a mark in the ceiling. Maybe the heater was removed because it had seen better days. Combustion heaters are still very much available and those designed to be freestanding are usually situated on brick hearths and surrounded by heat proof materials...like brick as you have here. I think that's the most likely answer to what wasthere. I have a log heater in my all timber house. The only requirement was that it should sit a certain distance from a wall and that it have a fireproof material behind the flue. If you think you would like to replace the heater the "fireproof" requirements are more than met with all that brick...and that is usually a big expense, The main benefit of a brick surround is that it radiates the heat into the room together with the exposed flue. I would be taking advantage of that. If you want to see log combustion heaters just Google that and you will find that there are many very nice designs and different sizes to choose from and all very attractive.

What about a large pantry or cupboard? You could box in around the bricks to the floor to hide them and put double doors at the front. There must be power for the freezer so make a bench height shelf in the cupboard for small appliances with power points, then put wire basket drawers like Storex baskets under the bench and as you can afford it add pantry shelving above. Or if you have enough kitchen storage already make it into a cupboard for ironing board, vacuum cleaner, brooms etc, maybe put in a dedicated area for charging devices if you have lots of phones, iPods, etc with cords everywhere.

my first thought was a pot belly stove.

Make the most of the era and the exposed bricks. Put in a large skylight and fit wall garden system to "green up" those bricks and larger pots on the base. The brick base is perfect to hide the drainage system you'll need. Get a steel fabricator to weld up a drip tray to fit inside. Mesh over the top covered in your choice of pebbles or a sheet of CoreTen rusty steel laser cut to a design of your choice. Some Balinese statues maybe. Year round herbs.

to sandiallen13..now that's a really lovely and practical idea! I can see a small indoor fountain too! Love "living" indoor green areas. The idea of ' year round herbs' also a great one.

to de_lite....hope you will let us know what you decide on...its an interesting one!

From Sandi, Glad to help. I think having plants (and some more light) near your dining area will be a cool (in both ways) feature too. Heaps of image ideas on the net. Good luck.

Just remember plants need good lighting to stay healthy.

This is straight out of the late sixties/seventies and through to the early eighties, especially with the timber edging. Its for indoor pot plants. The base will hold spills and the plants generally stay in their pots so they can 'holiday' outside every now and again and get some sun. I grew up in a house with one, taller than this (H700mm), we used it as a wine cellar and made a tabletop for it.

Corner bar??????