House with Parallel Kitchen & Dining｜Custom Home Examples by Architectural Offices10Picks Author: Qurasuki Editorial Department

Spaces aligning kitchens and dining tables in a single row connect cooking-to-cleanup movements in one direction, yielding clean impressions. In a parallel-dining (side-by-side) home, close distances between kitchens and dining tables facilitate sharing spaces for cooks and diners. Furniture arrangements simplify, and connections to other spaces like living rooms and gardens become easier to establish. Depending on sequence orders among kitchens, dining, and living areas, sightline escapes and family presence shift. Planning encompasses overall residential circulation, window views, and storage relationships rather than mere side-by-side fixture placement, shaping daily scenery. Through real examples of custom homes by architectural firms, we introduce what characteristics side-by-side dining brings to residential spatial configurations.

A House with “Ma” Connecting Two Households AtelierMA

Located in a residential neighborhood in Ota City, Tokyo, this two-generation house allows the parents’ and children’s households to live together while maintaining a comfortable sense of distance. By combining multiple volumes, the design gently separates each family’s living domain while creating a sense of unity as a single home. The centrally positioned balcony serves as a shared space where family members naturally gather and deepen their interaction. Balancing independence with connection, the house fosters rich relationships that span generations.

Light-Gathering House Yosuke Tomiya Architectural Design Co., Ltd.

This residence is located in a densely built-up residential area near central Sapporo. To ensure access to natural light even as more buildings are added around it in the future, the design combines a south-facing courtyard, a void, large openings on the second floor, and clerestory windows extending to the height of the third floor, bringing in light from different levels. The shape of the walls facing the courtyard also captures reflected and indirect light, while the stairwell functions as a natural ventilation stack. The result is an open living environment filled with light and fresh air, while maintaining privacy in the city.

Residence with a Central Courtyard Tatsumi Negishi Architectural Studio

A residence planned around a central courtyard, designed to be lived in harmony with nature. The layout ensures the presence of the signature tree can be perceived from any point within the house, and the greenery unfolding beyond the windows adds a tranquil accent to daily life. The garden views, which present different expressions depending on the vantage point, change with the passage of seasons and time, imparting a rich sense of depth to the dwelling. Within spaces where interior and exterior are gently connected, this is a quiet, comfortable home in which the nuances of the four seasons can be experienced close at hand.

Boko & Deko Mitsuhiro Kojima Architects

This residence stands on a corner lot in a densely built residential area. By arranging storage bands to the east and west, the design secures distance from the surroundings and places a generous open-plan one-room space for the family at the center. While carefully controlling light, air flow, and sightlines, changes in floor level and the inclusion of stairs and ramps produce a variety of distinct places to inhabit. Meanwhile, the private rooms open onto terraces, promoting gentle interaction with the neighborhood. By inverting the typical residential relationship of “opening the family room and closing the private rooms,” the house simultaneously cultivates familial intimacy and connections with the local community.

House in Shirokane Takayoshi Nakamura Architects & Associates

Located in a quiet residential neighborhood in Shirokane, this home incorporates views of Tokyo into everyday life. Making use of the site's varying elevations, a viewing deck on the third floor overlooks Tokyo Tower, Roppongi Hills, and the surrounding greenery. The second-floor LDK features an L-shaped bay window and a tatami corner, while the atrium and open-riser staircase connect the upper and lower floors with light and sightlines. Within the constraints of the limited site, the home skillfully incorporates the distinctive views and sense of openness of central Tokyo.

Circle House KICHI ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN

The 'Circle House' in Tsukuba City is a residence designed for a couple and their three children. Layered exterior cladding, reminiscent of ripples spreading across a water surface, envelops the entire building, softly screening views from the outside while admitting light and breeze. The white layers of the walls produce a façade with a strong sense of depth, punctuated by striking accents of red cedar. Inside, oak, tatami and a mortar-finished kitchen are used, where Japanese aesthetic and modern-vintage elements harmonize to create a home that combines calmness with a sense of openness.

House in Minamimorimachi Abax Architects

This penthouse residence is planned on the top floor of the building. A courtyard is provided at the heart of the dwelling, creating an open outdoor space that functions as a terrace for enjoying barbecues. The bathroom is oriented toward the terrace and arranged so that one can soak in the bath while viewing planted greenery, enabling a resort-like experience within the city. By allowing interior and exterior to connect gently, the design brings a special sense of the extraordinary to everyday life.

Shimogamo House — Condominium Renovation with Terrace Tokuhiro Norimatsu Architect

This residence has been reconfigured around a simple, monochrome interior palette. The existing layout was re-evaluated, and while providing a bedroom, two children’s rooms, and a study, the dining kitchen was relocated to a position adjacent to the terrace. By carefully adjusting partitions while capitalizing on the character of the structural frame and openings, an open space was created that allows unobstructed sightlines to the Kamo River landscape beyond the terrace. Centered on a living room for spending time with the family dog, the home provides a comfortable setting where the family naturally gathers.

Nezu Flat kurachiffon Miki Takiuchi First-Class Architect’s Office

This gut renovation transformed a 35-year-old two-room apartment with a dining-kitchen into a home for a family of four. By making three-dimensional use of the limited floor area and incorporating a raised tatami platform and loft, the design creates a spacious sense of volume. Sightlines extending all the way to the windows, a predominantly white interior, and an exposed-ceiling approach further enhance the feeling of openness. Another defining feature is the functional storage plan, which accommodates the household appliances within the kitchen counter, creating a home that supports everyday family life and naturally invites everyone to take part in cooking.

House in Ashiya Kumi Inoue Architects

This is a reconstruction project for a residence located in a quiet residential area near JR Ashiya Station. The existing underground parking structure was retained, the large above‑ground timber structure was dismantled, and the building was reconfigured as a compact two‑storey timber house. The street‑facing exterior wall is set at an angle to reduce the sense of enclosure and to create an elevation that harmonizes with the streetscape. The resulting residual spaces are planted with grasses and flowering plants, enlivening the surroundings and allowing the dwelling to cultivate a new local landscape.