Naomi Howard
A breakfast bar creates a welcoming social hub and a more informal dining spot to traditional dining rooms, while at the same time offering ample storage space to keep surfaces sleek and clutter-free. As open plan kitchens become increasingly popular and kitchens are becoming more social spaces, breakfast bars provide a social focal point for family life and guests, where people can gather, eat and chat. Usually the social hub of any home, people tend to be drawn to kitchen islands and gather around them at drinks and dinner parties. Adding seating means you can offer them somewhere to sit and chat while the host is busy in the kitchen.
Breakfast bars are typically incorporated within kitchen islands or peninsula-style layouts to create a laid-back, informal space. Breakfast bars also give you valuable extra storage, allowing you to keep more things tucked away and your kitchen clutter free, and they provide extra work surface area for preparing large meals as well as serving buffet style party food on.
Plus, an island unit can also help direct the flow of traffic away from busy hotspots. For a show-stopping centrepiece, look to luxury materials, from volcanic rock, walnut wood and marble tops to copper, brass or even foxed mirror sides.
Stick with backless seating so the stools can tuck in neatly under the island, keeping the walking areas clear. Here are 35 of the most gorgeous kitchen breakfast bar ideas to transform your space into a versatile kitchen-diner.
This sleek breakfast bar kitchen island is solid marble, with a brass tap, hot tap and sink to complement the striking kitchen pendant and the extractor hood. Get the look: The Classic Dome range hood kitchen extractor is by Vogler Metalwork & Design, as is the bespoke brass sink.
These are Autoban 249T Butterfly bar stools by De La Espada. Although substantial and weighty, it doesn’t dominate and up close you can see tiny fossils, shapes and the veining in the rock.
Get the look: The kitchen is Minotti Cucina in volcanic stone with predominantly Gaggenau appliances.
Kitchen storage can be entirely concealed behind bifold doors for a very pure, clean look. Lipstick-red artwork by Sara Pope is repeated in the set of pouty Gubi stools that were reupholstered in luscious fuchsia velvet, giving the space an edgier feel. While the blend of natural materials such as wood, stone, marble and metal is very now, it’s glamorous vibe won’t date.
While the blend of natural materials such as wood, stone, marble and metal is very now, it’s glamorous vibe won’t date. The walls are painted in Farrow & Ball’s Charleston Gray estate emulsion.
An all white kitchen with solid Quartzite kitchen island and these modern bar stools create a super slick and ultra modern breakfast bar vibe. The clean lines and minimal looks of the cabinetry are softened by the rich, textural warmth of herringbone oak floors and the energetic patterning of a white Quartzite worktop and kitchen island. Get the look: The kitchen is from the Tio Collection by Rational, teamed with White Fantasy Quartzite from Stone World. A large, jaw-dropping faux olive tree looks as though it's taken root within the Corian-clad island.
Get the look: The bespoke cabinetry by Sola Kitchens features Corian worksurfaces and antique mirror-glass panels on the island. These are Hauteville concrete bar chairs by Lyon Beton at Rockett St George. A monochrome palette is teamed with sleek metal details to give this space a cool, industrial-style edge, while the wood flooring and chairs add a more organic, earthy feel.
This king-size island has a generous amount of storage and makes a striking centrepiece, providing a great spot for family and friends to gather. Log storage makes a pretty display in this breakfast bar kitchen island. Stools tuck neatly under this marble breakfast bar, keeping them out of sight from the living area and helping to make the kitchen appear tidier.
Minimalist wire seating suits this Scandi inspired kitchen space. Mirrored skirting creates the impression of floating units and along with the oversized floor tiles, increases the feeling of space. The handle-less kitchen cupboards and discreet extractor (hidden in the island) enhance the clean look.
The open fire with brickwork back, the natural linen blinds, the wooden breakfast bar and woven stools all create a rustic vibe, yet this space feels modern too. Tom Dixon lights over the island are a stylish alternative to a cooker hood. A zinc breakfast bar was created as somewhere to eat and as a way to extend the scale of the unit to fit the size of the room.
The island is painted in Slate IV architects eggshell; and the cabinets in BTWN Dog & Wolf architects eggshell, both by Paint & Paper Library. These are Pam bar stools by Claudio Dondoli and Marco Pucci for Ligne Roset. The owners had the clock first and wanted it to be a feature, so the stainless-steel island by Bulthaup was specially positioned to highlight it.
We love how the island top stretches out over pillars / plinths, to provide extra leg room. The island is painted in Rectory Red estate eggshell by Farrow & Ball. Everywhere there are flourishes of green – instead of overhead units, the focal point of the bespoke kitchen is the row of Indian glass paintings and the antique chandelier, hung deliberately low to relax the lofty proportions of the interior.
There's a subtle brass trim framing this breakfast bar and the kitchen cabinets, tying in with the pendant lights. The Branching Bubble light over the table is a custom design by Lindsey Adelman.
The bespoke Jack Trench design in this kitchen is achingly smart. Replacing an elderly Ikea number, it delivers a sleek mélange of walnut cabinetry and marble work surfaces and there’s a cool central island, perfect for food prep as well as for socialising.
The low ceiling has been painted with white gloss, which reflects the light around the room. Big, chunky wood drawers are an unusual choice for a breakfast bar kitchen island, but they help frame the bar stools plus provide handy storage to keep the surfaces clear.
Kastor pendant lights by Jo Hammerborg for Fog and Mørup, Ed Butcher. Bronze mirrored-glass adds a glam note to this breakfast bar. Get the look: The island is made from Calacatta Vagli marble from Italy, sourced by Jon Loveday. These are Charles Ghost stools in Matt Gloss White by Philippe Starck for Kartell.
The Axor Citterio Semi-Pro single lever kitchen mixer tap is by Hansgrohe. This island unit was designed by the owner, who is a builder, and has a composite-stone worktop, all beautifully bookmarked, as if it were made of solid marble.
The Angel cushion and the Concrete candle holders on the island are from Graham and Green. Cabinets painted in Pavilion Gray Estate Eggshell, Farrow & Ball.
Woodwork and walls, Strong White Estate Emulsion and Eggshell, Farrow & Ball.
The base for the island was made from reclaimed plaster pillars sourced from Retrouvius. A wood breakfast bar zones the seating area from the rest of the kitchen island. Get the look: The cabinetry was spray-painted in Farrow & Ball’s Oval Room Blue eggshell.
