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I’ll be frank: I wasn’t excited about moving when I found out that the beloved Brooklyn carriage house my husband and I have called home for nearly five years was being sold. That’s the downside of renting well into adulthood. You can settle down but only with an asterisk. However, as a fresh start began to take shape—namely with expanded counter space, the glorious addition of a dishwasher, and under-cabinet lighting that might actually let me see meal prep—I warmed to the idea. And it made me reflect on the 7-by-8 feet where we’ve cooked both simple and elaborate meals together on the regular. I’m bidding adieu to you, tiny kitchen, but this is a thank-you for your service. —Samantha Weiss-Hills, managing editor, home & shopping
On Board: Little League
When we moved into our 750-square-foot apartment in January 2020, I didn’t expect to cook as much as we ended up doing over the last 1,693 days. But I didn’t predict a pandemic either, one in which we didn’t order takeout or eat in a restaurant for six months. The shutdown required us to maximize our space in creative ways, and once people started coming over again, we kept at it. Bread baking and fresh pasta making are still going strong in 2024.
Here are my 10 tiny-kitchen game changers:
- I prefer to store my knives in a wood block, but our kitchen’s narrow dimensions made this impossible. I opted for a wall-mounted magnetic strip that has served us well.
- We only have so many cabinets, so we hang regularly used cookware, wood cutting boards, and small utensils like measuring spoons and small mesh strainers on two pegboards. This is the pan I reach for the most.
- A diminutive 4-gallon trash can is plenty large enough for two people’s waste (we take the rubbish out pretty often, too). Not to mention it’s touchless and self-sealing.
- In my head, I’m cooking in a tiny kitchen that looks exactly like this one, designed by Zoe Feldman. I’m head over heels for the soothing color palette and textural touches.
- They’re kind of an open secret, but the CB2 Marta glasses stack neatly and are surprisingly durable for how thin they are.
- We pull shots from a Gaggia espresso maker every morning, and it takes up less than 10 inches of counter space.
- Extremely shallow metal shelving—it’s the exact depth of our fridge, so nobody can see…
- The magnetic shelf on top of our stove has been a home for several types of salt, a Dansk butter warmer, and the pepper grinder I reach for daily.
- Yes, I do store things in my oven—just not clothes. It’s where you’ll find extra sheet pans and a Dutch oven for ragus, meatballs, and braised vegetables.
- This Yamazaki dish rack has made it through so many 10-person dinners and lived to tell the tale. We use the draining board on the bottom for a double-decker dryer.