Hi Lil, I believe your original plan works much better than the revised version. While the notion of ideal working widths is great, the larger problem here is the post. I worked on a project very similar to this last year where a post could either be connect to, or separate from the island. What we found was that by separating the island the space between island and post became very awkward. It's not enough of a space to comfortably walk through or be seated at the island in front of. Instead of your room feeling open and generous in proportion, it is going to start to feel cramped and awkward. We have a kitchen in our showroom (Kitchen Studio Tauranga NZ) with a 6ft gap between bench and back wall and it works wonderfully. It allows someone to work at the sink and a second at the island with ease. Stick with the original plan. It will feel a lot more spacious, without compromising work flows.

I have a stool on the kitchen side of the island and love it. It does men you lose a cupboard to allow for the stool , and the space between the island and kitchen bench needs to be at least 1200- mine is 1400. It is great for socialising around the bench. It seems to be where we all gather- I can sit and join in, organise food, drinks easily. It works so well 2 of my friends have incorporated the idea into their kitchens.

I think it depends on the size of your household and how many people sit down to dine. Do you have family and friends for dinner? The current round table looks like it can seat 4 people comfortably, but six people may be a bit cosy. If you need a table for more than four people then I would go rectangular. You could always compromise with an oval table? An oval table doesn't need to align with anything, so it can be angled to make the most of the space without looking crooked. Best of luck, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls

Planned Island (in the design photos) is square 1.2mx1.2m. From the back part of the kitchen, there is sufficient space to move it even 1.2m away. If we make the island smaller, there would be more room on each side for passage (current 0.72m), but even if we make it just 1m, that would only add only 0.1m on each side (bringing it up to 0.82m - enough to pass, but a bit tight in terms of looks, how it makes nice big open space appear crowded). And the island would be rather small so not really worth it.