What is the best kitchen layout for a small New Brunswick bungalow?

The galley layout is the most efficient kitchen design for a small New Brunswick bungalow, making maximum use of limited floor space while keeping everything within easy reach. For bungalows with slightly more room, an L-shaped layout with a small peninsula offers a good balance of workspace and openness.

New Brunswick has thousands of bungalows built from the 1950s through the 1980s, particularly across Moncton, Fredericton, Saint John, and the surrounding communities. These homes typically have kitchens ranging from 80 to 120 square feet with a closed-off layout separated from the living and dining areas by walls. The original designs often wasted space with awkward door placements and oversized gaps between counters.

A galley kitchen places cabinets and countertops along two parallel walls, creating a compact work corridor. The ideal galley width is 42 to 48 inches between counter faces—wide enough for one person to work comfortably and for cabinet doors and the dishwasher to open fully. In a galley, the sink typically goes on one wall with the range on the opposite wall, keeping the work triangle tight and efficient. This layout maximizes counter and storage space per square foot, which is exactly what a small bungalow kitchen needs. Semi-custom cabinets ($10,000 to $18,000) work well here because you can specify precise widths to fill every inch without the filler strips that stock cabinets often need.

If your bungalow's kitchen has one exterior wall and one interior wall, the L-shaped layout is worth considering, especially if you want to open the kitchen to the adjacent dining or living room. Removing the interior wall (confirm it is not load-bearing first—many bungalow interior walls are, and an engineer's assessment costs $300 to $800) lets you add a peninsula that creates counter seating and defines the kitchen space without enclosing it. This open-concept approach is extremely popular in NB bungalow renovations and can add significant resale value.

Making Small Kitchens Feel Larger

Cabinet choices matter enormously in a small space. Go with upper cabinets to the ceiling to eliminate the dust-collecting dead space on top and gain an extra shelf of storage. Light-coloured painted cabinets (white, soft grey, or warm off-white) make the room feel larger. MDF-core with a painted finish is the best mid-range option for NB's climate—it handles the humidity swings between Maritime summers and dry heated winters better than thermofoil, which can delaminate within five to ten years.

For countertops, quartz ($60 to $120 per square foot installed) is the most practical choice. It is non-porous, handles NB's humidity without sealing, and a light-toned quartz brightens a small kitchen. Under-cabinet LED lighting is a small investment ($300 to $800 installed) that makes a dramatic difference in a compact kitchen, eliminating the shadows that make small spaces feel cramped.

For flooring, LVP ($2,000 to $4,000) is the clear winner in a small bungalow kitchen—waterproof, warm underfoot during NB winters, and available in light wood tones that visually expand the space. Running the same floor from the kitchen into the adjacent room makes both spaces feel larger.

Budget a mid-range renovation at $25,000 to $40,000 for a small bungalow kitchen, or $50,000 to $65,000 if structural wall removal is involved. Getting three or more quotes from local contractors is essential, as NB pricing varies significantly.

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Looking for experienced contractors? The New Brunswick Construction Network connects homeowners with qualified professionals:

• Gionetterenovations
• Thirty Four Renovations