The kitchen island takes the lead here. Set inside a renovated farmhouse, this open kitchen with cooking island pairs graphite grey oak, matte black glass and granite in a way that is easy to read from across the room. The tall cabinet run sits back in darker tones, while the island catches the light with its broad top and a warm line of illumination below the handle strip.

Open kitchen with cooking island as a spatial starting point

The central block is more than a working surface. Its matte black glass fronts give the island a crisp, reflective edge, while the granite countertop island keeps the top visually solid. A massive oak bar with a natural edge breaks that строг? — let’s continue naturally: a massive oak bar with a natural edge softens the straight lines and gives the seating side a more tactile finish. The result is a statement kitchen island with lighting that stays visible even in daylight.

Seen from the side, the island reads in layers. Dark front panels, a continuous handle strip and the LED line around it create a low horizontal band that lifts the base off the floor. That detail matters in an open room, where the island has to hold its own against timber beams, brick walls and the wide openings to the outside. The material shift from glass to oak to stone keeps the eye moving.

Graphite grey oak on the tall cabinets

Against the island, the two tall cabinet sections are calmer. Their graphite grey oak fronts add grain without breaking the surface into busy parts, and the darker finish lets the wall run recede. In the images, the cabinetry is framed by visible brickwork and timber structure, so the straight vertical lines read clearly. It is a strong contrast, but not a loud one. The cabinets act as a dark backdrop to the brighter movement around the island.

That darker wall also gives the room a practical anchor. Appliances sit within the tall units and a recessed niche appears in the cabinet zone, so the storage wall does not feel closed off. Instead, it becomes a measured strip of cabinetry that leaves the centre open. This is where the open kitchen with cooking island layout works best: the room can breathe around the perimeter while the middle remains active.

Materials you can read at a glance

The surface palette is restrained and direct. Graphite grey oak appears in the tall fronts, matte black glass defines the island, and granite tops the central work zone with a harder, mineral finish. The oak bar adds a different note, one you can see in the irregular natural edge and feel in the change from stone to timber. Nothing is overworked. Each finish has a clear job in the composition.

That clarity becomes especially visible where the island meets the surrounding space. The granite countertop island keeps the cooking area visually grounded, while the oak bar marks a pause along the edge. It is the kind of detail that invites a slower reading of the room. Rather than hiding the join between surfaces, the kitchen lets the transition show. In a farmhouse renovation kitchen, that honesty suits the mix of old structure and sharp new lines.

Light runs along the handle strip

Light is handled as a detail, not a spectacle. A line of LED in the handle strip wraps the island and traces its perimeter after dark. Above it, pendant lights and recessed ceiling spots give the work zone a second layer of brightness. The warm glow from the base contrasts with the cooler daylight coming through the large windows, and the island changes character as that balance shifts through the day. Open kitchen with cooking island remains connected to the layout, materials and daily use of the home.

The lighting also helps define the kitchen island as a piece of furniture inside a larger room. It does not disappear into the floor, and it does not rely only on overhead fixtures to stand out. The lit strip marks the edge, picks up the dark finish of the base and makes the island easier to read from the dining side. In an open kitchen with cooking island, that kind of clear outline matters.

Cooking equipment kept close to the centre

The cooking zone sits where the room can respond to it. A Siemens induction hob with integrated extractor is built into the island, so the surface stays visually clean while the equipment remains part of the main working plane. This is not hidden technology for its own sake; it simply removes visual clutter from the centre of the room. The island keeps its broad, open top, and the cooking area stays part of the same composition.

From the wider view, the arrangement makes the island feel settled rather than crowded. There is space around the hob, room for serving on the oak bar side, and a clear route back to the tall cabinets. The result is an open kitchen with cooking island that relies on proportion more than on ornament. The materials do the talking, and the plan stays legible even with several functions gathered into one block.

Farmhouse walls, timber beams and a clean-lined kitchen

The setting gives the room its context. Timber beams cross the ceiling, brick walls remain visible, and the floor has a natural stone presence beneath the kitchen run. Against those rougher surfaces, the flat fronts and broad panels feel precise. The contrast is strongest in the images where the island sits below the beams and under the pendant lamps, with daylight cutting across the room from the large openings outside.

What keeps the composition grounded is the way the kitchen respects that shell. The cabinet fronts do not try to imitate the old structure, and the old structure is not smoothed away to match the kitchen. Instead, the open kitchen with cooking island is placed inside the farmhouse as a new layer, using graphite grey oak, matte black glass and granite to answer the brick, timber and stone already there. The room remains easy to read from the cooking side, the seating side and the passage around it.

Photography by Franz Frieling. Contributing elements mentioned in the source include Siemens and Quooker.

View the full project here and browse more Ekelhoff Kitchens projects. Open kitchen with cooking island remains connected to the layout, materials and daily use of the home.