Most renters and buyers look at photos of the kitchen when they’re reviewing online listings. If you live in a New York City apartment, you never know if you’ll find a full-sized kitchen or a small kitchenette. It’s important to find a kitchen that best accommodates your cooking preferences. Do you eat takeout most nights, and therefore don’t need a large kitchen? Or are you an at-home chef who thrives hosting large dinner parties? Either way, there are numerous types of kitchens. There are some differences between the well-known Pullman kitchen vs Galley kitchen.
What is a Pullman Kitchen?
First off, let’s talk about what a Pullman kitchen is. Based on the long passenger sleeping cars on Pullman Company’s passenger trains of the 1800s, a Pullman kitchen is a long and narrow kitchen space. Much like a two-sided galley kitchen, the countertop design faces toward each other. The good thing is that Pullman kitchens can fit into odd home-designs and utilize the awkward space it may present as best as possible. There are three types of Pullman kitchen designs: single-sided Pullmans, Pullmans with an island, and dead-end Pullmans.
Note: Most Pullman kitchen layouts are pass-throughs. These are the most traditional Pullman layout and adhere to a single-sided design as well as one with an island. This means they both have a narrow pass-through from one room to another. As an example, a Pullman kitchen that has two long parallel counter areas can open from the dining room to the living room. However, a dead-end Pullman is not considered a pass-through due to it only having a singular entrance with a dead-end on the opposing side. Due to the openness of a pass-through Pullman kitchen, you may want to consider what color schemes you will feature to prevent clashing between rooms that the space will connect to.
Single-Sided Pullman
A single-sided Pullman kitchen will be featured in a place with very limited space. This type of Pullman kitchen has one long counter for the entire kitchen preparation area. The wall includes all of the appliances. Single-sided Pullman kitchens are most popular in a small loft or studio as they utilize the smallest of spaces. If there is enough room, single-sided Pullman kitchens will have a narrow snack counter on the facing wall with an open-shelving unit right above it. However, if the space is too small for that but has a facing interior wall then you can place your own shelves for extra storage.
Kitchen Island
The next Pullman kitchen layout features an island. This would only work if you have enough space to allocate for one, which is not very common. Instead of a parallel work area that would be featured in a single-sided Pullman kitchen, a Pullman with an island will have a large counter space in the middle. This island can offer more counter space, a dining area, and storage. While Pullman kitchens are meant for more narrow rooms, they are still useful in a slightly bigger space.
Dead-End Pullman
The final Pullman kitchen layout is the dead-end. Dead-End Pullman kitchens have one or two facing counters, access to another room from one of the open ends of the kitchen, and a wall at the opposite end. If you are in a house or condo that has a garage, pantry, or laundry-room then the dead-end layout may have a wall-end leading to one of these mentioned spaces.
What are Galley Kitchens?
Galley kitchens are similar to Pullmans in terms of the narrowness of the layout. A Galley kitchen layout will be long and narrow in size with base cabinets, wall cabinets, counters, and or other functions on one or both sides of a central walkway. A Galley kitchen can also be considered a corridor kitchen due to the fact that the passthrough is one long, narrow aisle. Galley kitchens are usually small which makes them relatively inexpensive to implement or remodel in comparison to other kitchen layouts.
Pros and Cons of Each Type of Kitchen?
Galley kitchens can save a ton of space and money. The tight cluster makes it easy to access various parts of the kitchen at once, which can increase productivity or fast cookers. Additionally, this style lends itself to renovations: the small floor plan means less materials and time. Luckily, the cons do not really outweigh the pros (depending on who you ask, but there are not many). Galley kitchens do not allow for many people in the kitchen at once. There is less counter space, less room for larger appliances, and poor traffic flow. This is especially true in a dead-end Galley kitchen.
The same pros and cons stand for a Pullman kitchen as they are not drastically different from each other in terms of counter space and cabinet layout. At the end of the day, it all comes down to how you prefer to operate in your kitchen and how many people are living in the space. If you have a household of roughly more than three to four people, then it may not be for you. If you do not enjoy clutter and need a lot of counter space, then it is not for you. However there are many situations where if you have a Pullman or Galley kitchen and lack counter space, then you can always buy a kitchen cart with a counter on top for extra storage and space. There are many ways around it in order to save money and optimize your smaller area.
Where to Find a Pullman or Galley Kitchen?
If a Pullman or Galley kitchen is up your alley, then there plenty available units with them! RentHop currently has 11 listings for apartments that feature a Pullman kitchen and 118 listings for apartments that feature a Galley kitchen.
Editor’s Note: We updated this article to enhance readability.
