Design Ideas for Your Butler's Pantry [See What's Inside Ours!]

Looking for design ideas for your butler’s pantry?!

Today I’m sharing our family’s butler’s pantry that I designed myself while renovating our home.

There are so many functional reasons why you should build a butler’s pantry – I’ll be covering them all!

I remember when I was planning our design… I physically wrote out everything I wanted our walk-in pantry to accomplish for our family.

Then, based on the room’s dimensions, I slowly started piecing together what we could fit into the space.

Let’s look up close and personal at the key functioning features of ours….

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Why Build a Butler’s Pantry

Let’s start off talking about WHY you would want to build a butler’s pantry…

To keep small appliances out of sight
To keep your kitchen counters more clear and uncluttered when you’re entertaining
To have a place to wash glassware and let it air dry
To throw dirty dishes out of sight during a party
To store your fancier or seasonal serve ware
To store your wine, liquor, snacks and kids beverages, without taking up space in your kitchen
To function as an actual pantry as well

There are so many ways you can utilize a walk in pantry, and the cool thing about them is, they are very personal to design.

When brainstorming ideas, you’ll want to list out YOUR family’s needs and the way you function on a daily basis. More on that below!

Key Functions of Our Butler’s Pantry

Our butlers pantry is right off of our main kitchen and a fairly small space.

The previous owners had used that room as an office and we removed the door and created an archway for character instead.

Here are the key functions I wanted out of our butler pantry:

Small refrigerator for beer, sodas, juice boxes etc.
Wine fridge because we are big red wine drinkers
Plenty of storage for our pantry staples
Coffee machines and toaster out of sight
Ample storage for all of our wine and cocktail glasses, with pretty glass doors
An extra sink for washing all of our glassware & to throw pots and pans in during a party
Extra counter space that’s out of the way for opening wine and making cocktails
Plenty of natural light
Open shelving for displaying charming decor

I am happy to report that I got all of these!

Here’s a close up of our under counter wine fridge…

Our cabinets with glass doors so we can see our glassware…

Our hidden coffee mugs and K-cups so everything is neat and off the counters…

A designated snack drawer that my kids can reach…

In my initial design, I had a dishwasher to the right of the sink.

Since it’s a fairly small room though, I had to choose between the dishwasher and either the wine fridge or beverage fridge. I couldn’t have all three, and I really wanted both of the fridges.

Here are the final layout drawings of our walk in pantry…

The amount of time I spent putting this design together and finalizing every functional detail is actually quite funny!

I do not regret not adding a dishwasher AT ALL. I don’t ever wash dishes in there, just glassware, and I handwash those anyway! It would have gone pretty unused.

Without the dishwasher, I could have fit a nugget ice maker, but my husband talked me out of it due to ongoing maintenance and the price.

That’s my only regret – not doing a hidden ice maker!

Though I made good use of the space by making it a roll out cabinet for easy access to liquor bottles…

Sources for our Butler’s Pantry Design

My goal for the design of our butler’s pantry was a warm, inviting space with a touch of elegance!

Below I’m sharing all of our design sources to help you plan yours…

Cabinetry: Brand: Fieldstone, Color: Stone

Wall Color: Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace

White Marble Countertops: Mystery Marble

Open Shelves: Brand: Signature, Stain Color: Irish Cream

Gold Hardware: Aged Brass Pulls, Aged Brass Knobs

Lighting: White & Brass Double Sconces

Sink: White Undermount Blanco

Faucet: Bridge Faucet, Satin Brass

More Walk-In Pantry Ideas to Inspire You

Here are our favorite butler’s pantry ideas to inspire you in planning yours…

Source: Maison with Coco

Source: Cambridge Home Company

Source: The Munro Project

Source: French Country Farm

Final Words

Whether you need extra prep space, more space for food storage or a place for extra appliances, butler’s pantries are one of THE most hardworking spaces!

We use ours every single day, multiple times a day.

If you have an adjacent room off of your kitchen, I highly recommend adding one to your home!