I would shop flea markets. Find a buffet or sideboard you like, paint it if necessary, and have a butcher block top made to fit.

Target.com

Ikea's freestanding kitchen unit, Bravad, looks really nice

I have the exact same problem. I've been trolling craigslist to poor effect. Short of building stuff from scratch, I've no good ideas. I've also heard bad things about those ikea units. Doesn't it seem weird that one of those companies like Apt or something that makes tiny couches doesn't jump on this?

We had the same problem in our kitchen, and bought a Target dresser/sideboard type piece. It looks really lovely from the front, but the back is cardboard (what can you expect for $100). It's held up for 3 years now though. It has 2 regular drawers and a deep drawer in the center, and two doors with shelves behind on each side. It holds all our silverware, linens, mixing bowls, strainers, pot lids and dishes, which is a surprising amount of stuff. So maybe something that's designed for a different room could work, and you could put a glass top on it to keep the wood from getting scratched when using it as a counter.

The ikea unit is quite nice, though - and made to be seen from all angles.

This can be used as a bar as well as storage.
Does not need the support of the undershelfs.

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60045393

http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=1154&f=10180

http://www.kmart.com/shc/s/p_10151_10104_14300008CF512000B?vName=For the Home&keyword=kitchen cart

http://www.target.com/gp/browse.html/ref=sc_pgp_r_6_0_322958011_1/601-7465307-5353753?ie=UTF8&node=219739011

^Not sure if those would be deep enough but I can only imagine you could take the wheels off of a large kitchen "cart" and stand it against a wall.

Also, a friend of mine has one from Ikea and she loves it.

I don't know if you're in NY or not, but years ago I bought a long, narrow metal shelving unit thing with a butcher block-style wood top at Surprise Surprise on 3rd Ave. It was perfect for my tiny kitchen because the unit is only about a foot wide. I don't have any counter or drawers either, but with this unit and some handmade wall shelves the kitchen became functional. I don't remember the maker of the unit, otherwise I would just tell you that. But anyway, hope this is helpful.

http://www.chefsresource.com/kitfurandcut.html

I bought a rolling cart with shelves, drawers and a butcher block top from Lowes three years ago that has held up beautifully. The rolling feature is nice for when we have parties and need to move it out of the way or even into another room for serving purposes.

I like Surprise Surprise a lot. Like Gracious Home, but more realistic.

I have a kitchen counter unit in that same series as the photo (Varde). We have the one with the three drawers, and love it. We've had it for 3 years and it's been great, no problems at all. Our kitchen only had two shoebox sized drawers and NO counter space, and this handles a ton of stuff. The drawers are deep enough for saucepans.

Ballard Designs has 5 different choices on their website: http://www.ballarddesigns.com/jump.jsp?itemType=CATEGORY&itemID=570&path=1%2C2%2C22%2C86%2C570

I'm not sure if you're in NYC, but I'd take a walk down the Bowery through all of the restaurant supply shops. Their products will definitely withstand some serious cookng action.

Wow! Thanks for all the suggestions...I'm definitely hitting Bowery restaurant supply and Surprise Surprise this weekend.

I've been hunting for the same thing. It looks like this site carries all the inexpensive "prefab" models out there http://www.kitchenislands.com/ -- the same as Target/K-mart but a wider selection. Can't vouch for their service/quality.

I've also been trolling Craigslist and one of these models seems to come up about once a week, as in this ad, for example: http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/fur/366475401.html

could you be more specific about your requirements regarding space and style? price wouldn't hurt either.

i recently moved into a small open plan space and was sans common room furniture and so have been working on filling it up with pieces i love. my kitchen was small and along a wall, although i do have some cupboard space.

it's been expanded with a custom/diy counter height dining table sitting parallel to it but also has cabinets on castors that fit snugly underneath it. when i have people over for dinner i just roll out the cabinets and we have tonnes of leg room.

not the quickest of fixes, but definitely a permanent item in my collection of furniture that i'm delighted to own. the benefit of custom is that it works with what i have now and should work for what i want in the future.

a similar system could work really well for others on a cheaper scale. perhaps a custom cut butcher block from ikea http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20010668, extendable height legs http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60105301, a few drawers on wheels http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90055620 (this one can have a top put on for more surface area). you could probably even fabric cover the front from a diy by an at intern i saw and pattern it according to whim!

well there's currently NOTHING in my living/dining/kitchen area but my style veers towards the clean and modern. I like the Ikea piece i just wish it wasn't so wide but its the height i need and closest to the length(approx 71') I could have something custom done but its a rental so i'm not too keen on spending a fortune on something i probably won't take with me to my next place. I like the Ikea piece b/c its closed and creates the illusion of an actual kitchen instead of a couple of appliances on one wall and a couple of wall cabinets.

Pompanoosuc Millss (Pompy.com) makes a number of pieces like that in solid woods and a choice of either wood or stone tops. Solid wood, made in VT....very nice stuff.

I found this online, many choise

http://www.ekitchenislands.com

Do NOT get the Ikea Varde cabinet. I bought the other one, with white doors. It's by far the most $ I've ever spent on a piece of furniture and I so regret it. That thing took, I kid you not, 3 days to assemble. I lost track of how many things went wrong with the assembly. The instructions were the worst I've ever seen (and I have extensive Ikea assembly experience). Several of the holes were too small and had to be enlarged with a chisel, which I fear weakened the hinges and in one case, ended up taking a big chunk out of one of the doors. (Fortunately that's on the inside of the door and I was able to glue it back together but who knows how long it will last). And the whole thing just feels pretty crappy and insubstantial; for $330 I need this thing to last a long time, and I am not confident that it will. I've made peace with my mistake, but please don't do it.

By the way, I'm no Ikea snob, I have a passionate love/hate relationship with Ikea and am very happy with most of my Ikea purchases. This one just truly sucks.

Re seeing this unit from all angles -- I don't know about this one with no doors, but mine is definitely not meant to be seen from all angles. The back is cardboard, attached with a zillion nails. I kind of wish I'd checked that before I bought it; even without knowing the misery it would bring me I doubt I would have paid $330 for a piece of furniture with a cardboard back. On the bright side, my son drew a beautiful mural on the back, which will be a cool surprise when we move it someday.

Thanks the one i saw at the store had a white plastic front so it would be fine being seen from all angles but thanks for your advice...I've been rethinking my kitchen area and may invest in a tall hoosier/cabinet instead for storage and workspace and then put a table and chairs where the counter would be...the only problem being they've carved out a little tile section for the 'kitchen' that ends very abruptly - not very attractive and I'm not keen on a rug in the kitchen