A butler’s pantry is high on the wish list of a lot of my clients, but, for some, the limitations presented by their home’s floor plan means that creating a large walk-in butler’s pantry isn’t always possible. However, if you are lucky enough to have the space to incorporate this sought-after luxury, there are some essentials that you should consider working into the design.
Blue Tea Kitchens and Bathrooms
Are butler’s pantries worth it?
Yes! Butler’s pantries are a natural extension of the kitchen and give the user extra space for storage, a secondary area to prepare food in, and a place to hide mess from dinner parties or everyday kitchenware such as lunchboxes. A butler’s pantry can be a stand-out feature in any home cook or entertainer’s dream house.
Before you finalise your new plans, consider which details you should include (and which you may not need) to ensure you get the best use of your space.
Bask Interiors
How much bench space should a butler’s pantry have?
Try to incorporate as much bench space as you can into your butler’s pantry. You can use the space to rest small appliances on, as a landing space for all your grocery shopping before you unpack everything, and even as a work bench when preparing meals when you don’t want to do it in the kitchen.
The butler’s pantry pictured here is huge and much bigger than most of us could even dream of having in our homes, but your butler’s pantry doesn’t have to be this big for it to work well for you. A designer can usually help you make the most of the space you have.
Provincial Kitchens
If space is tight, you don’t need to make the benchtops in your butler’s pantry the same depth as your kitchen benchtops (which are usually 600 or 700 millimetres deep). A benchtop depth of 400 to 500 millimetres will be sufficient for a butler’s pantry and will give you more floor space to move around the area easily.
Find a specialised kitchen designer on Houzz near you to help you design the perfect butler’s pantry
TyStyle Construction
Does a butler’s pantry need power points?
Small appliances that require power points, such as microwaves, rice cookers, slow cookers, juicers, and even coffee machines and toasters, are items my clients continually tell me they don’t want to have taking up valuable space on their kitchen bench. However, they don’t want to store them away either, which is why housing and using them in a butler’s pantry is the perfect solution.
Instead of putting your regularly used appliances away after each use, keep them plugged in on a benchtop in your butler’s pantry so they are always ready for action. To do this, you’ll need lots of power points in your butler’s pantry, particularly above the benchtop or inside the cupboards.
Tip: Calculate how many power points you will need… then add more! You can never have too many.
Provincial Kitchens
Should a butler’s pantry have a second sink?
Providing plumbing isn’t an issue, consider incorporating a second kitchen sink in your butler’s pantry. Most sinks will require a benchtop depth of 600 millimetres. However, if your space is limited, there are some stainless-steel laundry tubs suitable for use in 500-millimetre-deep benchtops.
In any case, a laundry tub-style sink is ideal for a butler’s pantry. Look for a wide, deep sink that you can wash large pots and pans, oven trays and even barbecue racks in. Having such a sink in your butler’s pantry will mean you can opt for a smaller single-bowl sink in the kitchen if you wish. It also means that during cooking you can hide away dirty pans for washing later while you feed your family or entertain guests.
DOOD Studio
Should I have open shelves in a butler’s pantry?
The key to a successful and efficient butler’s pantry is being able to walk in, take a look around and quickly find what you need. Most butler’s pantries will have an entrance door that can be closed, or be positioned behind a partition wall so the space is not entirely visible from the kitchen.
This means you won’t need to worry about having doors on the cabinets inside the pantry – above bench level, open shelves are a smart and versatile storage option. Work with your designer to incorporate adjustable-height shelving in your pantry so you can move the shelves up and down depending on what you want to store on them.
Freedom Kitchens
Also consider running the shelves all the way to the ceiling. You can use the top shelves, which are not as easy to access, for storing items that you only use very occasionally, such as specialty ovenware or table settings only used at Christmas. Keep a small step ladder or stool in or close to the pantry so you can safely access the higher shelves when you need to.
And remember, successful kitchen storage has a mix of open shelves and drawers so aim to incorporate both.
Browse more butler’s pantries for inspiration
Highgate House
Where’s the best place for storage drawers in a butler’s pantry?
It’s a good idea to add plenty of drawers for storage under the benchtop in your butler’s pantry. These drawers will be much easier to access than shelving (although they will add to the price of your cabinetry due to the cost of the drawer hardware).
Drawers can be used to store anything from pantry essentials, such as tinned and dried foods, to extra crockery, pots and pans. You may opt for open-fronted drawers so you can easily find what you are looking for without having to pull out each drawer, though keep in mind that they will result in a more cluttered appearance.
DIY Blinds
What lighting is best in a butler’s pantry?
One of the biggest blunders in a butler’s pantry design is not including sufficient lighting. Depending on the floor plan of your home, chances are your butler’s pantry won’t have a window in it, so artificial lighting is really important. If you’re able to work in a skylight that’s ideal, though you’ll still need lighting in the evening. There’s no need to splash out – cost-effective lighting is great in butler’s pantries.
As well as ceiling lighting (downlights or track lighting work best; a pendant dropping down from the ceiling can make the space feel small), incorporate some lighting under your overhead shelving to illuminate the bench area. Use either downlights or a row of LED strip lighting for a more consistent casting of light.
Another great addition to your butler’s pantry is having your lighting connected to a motion sensor so the lights come on automatically when you enter the room – a useful feature when you are laden down with shopping bags.
ACT Renovations
Should the benchtops in your butler’s match your kitchen?
Building a butler’s pantry space into your home can add additional costs to your build or renovation, but you can save money on the materials that you use for the cabinets and benchtops.
Instead of using the same marble or solid-timber benchtop that you have in your kitchen, you may choose a matching or contrasting laminated benchtop for a fraction of the price. The key is to create a look of consistency so there is a flow between the two areas.
For the cabinets themselves, use the same hard-wearing, inexpensive white melamine board that your cabinetmaker most probably used to manufacture the carcasses of your kitchen cabinets.
In Residence - Kitchen, Bathroom, Hardware
What if I don’t have space for a butler’s pantry?
A large walk-in butler’s pantry isn’t an option for a lot of us, but you can still work a great pantry space into your new kitchen without taking up too much floor space.
The pantry pictured here is no deeper than the other cabinets in the kitchen (about 600 millimetres), yet it includes a benchtop with space for small appliances, open-shelf storage above, storage below in the form of drawers, plus room to store and display spices on the inside of the doors.
The space is hidden behind the cabinet doors, which, when closed, give the illusion that they conceal just another kitchen cabinet. The extra bench space allows the user to keep small appliances plugged in and ready to use at a moment’s notice and also frees up bench space in the main kitchen area.
Karen Aston Design
Your turn
Do you have a butler’s pantry or wish you did? Tell us in the Comments what clever design features you would or have incorporated, like this article, save the images and join the conversation.
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Want more on these great kitchen additions? Check out 28 Australian Butler’s Pantries to Inspire Your Future Kitchen
