i don't think a pot rack is a good idea in this kitchen - with the track lights and the soffit; it'll look even more cluttered. you probably just need a good round of decluttering and organizing your cupboards. i have a family of 4 and we have a kitchen with faaaar less storage than yours and it works fine.

That's small? compared to my 5x8 galley kitchen it's huge,a dream kitchen dare I say! Over the door by the pantry maybe?

I'd be inclined to use a wall-mounted pot rack to the right near the table, and take down the wine glass holder (and art that is subsequently hung way too high above it.)

http://www.amazon.com/Hammered-Steel-Chrome-Bookshelf-Rack/dp/B00008KIVM/ref=sr_1_19?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1297776709&sr=1-19

I don't know that there is room in that kitchen for a pot rack, unless it was a wall mounted one like Home Body mentioned.

Any kitchen can become too small, so adding extra storage is always nice! I agree with Home Body and think a wall-mounted one would be nice. Maybe in the 2 feet of space between table and cabinets, or just out of frame on the left (if possible)? Good luck!

It looks like the stove is under the microwave. If you want to keep the pot-rack close to the stove, for ease of use, place it where you have the painting and wine glasses. Put the pot-rack as close as possible to the wall and cupboards so that there is less chance of head bumping. I recommend putting the long side of the pot-rack against the wall. Straddling the soffit is fine, unless you can find a pot rack small enough to fit between the upper cupboards and the soffit, such as a small square type. Your table may have to move. But the wine glasses and painting should move either way.

Also, your kitchen looks like someone actually cooks in it, which is marvelous. That's all I can recommend without being able to see more of the space. Good luck and I hope to see some after pictures.

DON'T!!

I don't think pot rack would work here, but maybe pegboard on the wall the other side of the sink? Like this sort of thing: http://annabelvita.com/kitchen-envy
Open up some of those upper cabinets too. Maybe some cuphooks under the cupboards for mugs?

Possibly hang individual pots along the back side of the soffit? Or, you could nage the single bar Grundtal from Ikea, with hooks along the soffit, that way the pots would slide. It's hard to tell from the picture where the soffit lines up. I've seen the bars used successfully where there really wasn't room for a hanging pot rack. Personally, I have a few of the shelves mounted to the wall. The bottom on is covered in hooks for all of my oft-used pans, and stock pots, etc. are on the shelf itself. Could you fit some shelves between the wine rack and the nearest cabinet? I think the Grundtal shelves are ~32"

(nage = hang)

Don't.

There seems to be quite a lot going on visually in your kitchen, so I am in the "don't" camp. Is that a pantry opposite the fridge? I say do a big de-clutter/purge/organize session and find space in that pantry for the pots.

There really isn't much room to hang a pot rack - maybe a wall mounted one but it would still end up looking cluttered.

I hacked a wall pot rack using those shelf brackets that have a hanger in the front. They provide so much extra storage, and it's so easy to get to my pots and pans now:

http://www.news-gazette.com/blogs/area-extras/2010-06/best-part-diy-projects-finishing-them.html

I think a grid panel would be more fitting. That could be hung in the space between the table and the cabinet. Something like this, only smaller, would get you the storage you need without looking awkward.

http://www.re-nest.com/re-nest/shelving-storage/functional-green-decor-gridwall-panels-in-the-kitchen-106987

I'm seconding the person who said take down the shelf holding your wine glasses and replace it with a wall mounted pot rack (we use the grundtal from IKEA for a similar arrangement). Then buy a bar cabinet or something to put below it for additional storage and move your table out into the living room area if there's space. You definitely need an additional cabinet or shelving to get things off of your counter, though.

For a quick and dirty solution I would do a little GRUNDTAL rail (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90011396) Under the nook of the cabinets on the left. Through some s hooks up and bam! A nice clean pot rack that does not add to the clutter. BTW take down the glass rack/shelf and make a little bar by the table.

Sorry, I agree -- don't do it. Reorganize and store your pans (ONLY ones you actually use regularly) in the cupboards. If you have extra pans that you use rarely, stash them someplace else -- closet, under the bed, whatever!!! Same thing with your small appliances. (I can't believe you need everything I see in the photos at your fingertips 24/7!)

If that place were mine, I think I would get a free-standing unit (shallow armoire, IKEA "closet", maybe even just a bookshelf) and put it against the wall where your dining table sits now. Ideally a closed unit with doors and no more than 10-12 inches deep. If a bookshelf, maybe use some nice baskets to hide clutter. I'd load this with things that fit, like the wine glasses (decorative things near the top) and small appliances (utilitarian stuff nerar the bottom). That might free up some space in the cupboards and counters for pans. Also, unload the cupboard tops.

(The table probably won't fit then, sadly. (Maybe you could make space next to the breakfast bar?)

I'm inclined to go with the "Don't" crowd. You could, possibly, do some kind of peg board or grid system with hooks on the back of your door there, but that would be an awful lot of clanging around if you open and close that door often. Otherwise, perhaps something vertical in the two feet of space between your table and your cabinets.

Frankly, I'd ditch the bar stools (since you have a dining table sitting right next to them, it's kind of redundant) and put a small bookshelf where they are now to use as storage - for the pots or for something you could take out of your cabinets to make room for the pots (food stored in glass canisters maybe?).

Is that a bi-fold door going into a pantry or laundry room? I'd replace it with a regular door and put peg board on both sides to hold pots & pans, utensils, etc.

I don't see a place you could hang it without either:

a) banging your head
b) blocking a door
c) having it halfway into the living room

Sorry, I just don't think it would work!

It looks like you have tons of storage space, though (lots of cabinets and a pantry), so maybe try re-organizing that to make more space.

I think you'd feel a lot better with a different paint color. It looks a bit heavy for the space, and is fighting with your cabinets and the stone on your fireplace. Could just be my browser, though, since no one else has mentioned it. Good luck!

i think i'd hang it straddling the soffit over the little peninsula where the computer is sitting. i think it would help define the separate spaces a little (maybe hang pots on the kitchen side and a piece of art or a kilim or large pretty scarf on the living room side).

i agree with the comment about the paint color. for me too it may be my computer/browser - it reads a strong salmon-y hue on my screen. something lighter would feel more open to me.

I think a pot rack will make the space look too cluttered. I think the paint colour is adding to the cluttered feeling. If you really love the colour maybe leave one wall of it or tone it down so it doesn't clash with the wood cabinets.

I agree with the "don't" crowd. It's time to purge and reorganize. However, the only option I see if you absolutely want a pot-rack is a wall-mounted one where the wine glasses currently are.

Maybe this is a convenience thing as well as a storage question. I'd stand in the spot where you would usually want to use a pot/pan/whatever. Reach up. Hang a pot rack there. With 10' height you can keep things from banging your heads. Smaller pots need longer hooks so no stools required.
Visually, behind the beam in the foreground would make a nice divider if the cabinet doors don't bang. I think the kitchen requires function first, and I have my pots hanging where I can grab what I need quickly and easily. Not the lids though :( They are in a drawer and require a break in the action to clean my hands and rummage for the right one. Kind of defeats the function argument doesn't it.

I do like the looks of the pots hanging. It gives a kitchen a sense of serious intent. The pots on the wall don't have that same feeling. Well that is just my feeling, not useful for your question.

i LOVE the paint colour!

and i have less space in my kitchen and put an Ikea Grundtal bar over the top of the window in my kitchen. the 5 pans i use to cook most often hang there.

UNDER the kitchen sink is the best place I've found to store pots and pans. Clean out the cabinet, store your cleaning stuff elsewhere.

Not sure if there's wall space for this, but I just installed two of these grids:http://www.containerstore.com/shop/kitchen/pantryOrganizers/doorWallRacks?productId=10027934&N=74107

on the wall of my oppressively small kitchen and I'm delighted by the amount of space they've cleared up. Kind of a pain to hang, but brilliant once they're up.

Wow! Overwhelmed with your responses -thank you!! We have decided against a pot rack -we are going to try to reorganize the cabinets with "risers". Here is some info to clear up some confusion we noticed: Our kitchen is NOT small -it is big & beautiful. It's the rest of our apt. -we have been forced to use our kitchen storage creatively to store items not ordinarily found in a kitchen. We love the idea of a train rack, just not in our kitchen -it doesn't seem to "go." We like our wall-mounted wine rack, but realize it needs a good weeding for less "visual noise." We're glad the kitchen looks like SOMEONE cooks in it, but it ain't us. ;) We also like pegboard and cup hooks but think they would add to the visual clutter. Speaking of clutter, I didn't tidy up pre-photo shoot, so normally the clutter is wrangled a bit better -a few things even found their way in from the porch. The only appliances we have out are the ones we use frequently (i.e., toaster, toaster oven, coffee maker, electric water heater). The one exception is the mini-Cuisinart. Unfortunately, we can't ditch the bar stools as the bar doubles as my office. There also isn't room to stick a bookshelf underneath it (it only juts out a bit), nor is there room btwn the table and counter b/c we need space to push chairs back from the table. Those bi-fold doors are hiding our washer/dryer and HVAC -there's no storage in there. :( We also want to keep the bar area open -we visit w/ our guests as we prepare food when we entertain. Lastly, the paint color is actually a light terra cotta, not salmon as it is showing on monitors. (Thank you, rouquinne!) Thank you all once again -your suggestions were wonderful. As always, we knew we could count on AT!

I have to disagree with most of the commenters. If you use you kitchen, you do not put everything away and have a clutter free space. I'd rather use the space than have it be uncluttered.

I'm in the midst of a pot rack dilemma myself... Not where to hang it, but HOW to hang it... I have old walls that have brick behind them so I'm having serious drilling problems...

Anyway... I'm not sure where the pot rack would work based on your photo, but I would suggest that you first line the tops of your cupboards with matching shallow grass baskets to store stuff, vs having those tchotchkes up there and then get a lightweight step stool for retrieving the contents.

I'm sure you've resolved your pot rack issue, but if not, I agree with the grid idea on the wall where your wine glasses are, but I'd do chrome... Agree with everyone on the de-clutter thing... remove stuff from counters. Think of your kitchen like a ship's galley... think vertical (etc...), think spatial relations... Hope to see a completed pic.