I've been in my first house now for a little over a year. The only place I've ever lived, on my own, that had a bigger kitchen, was my first apartment. The kitchen was about the same size, but I had approximately twice the cabinet/shelf space that I currently have.
I've lived in some apartments with really tiny kitchens. I lived in a house with a really tiny kitchen. I don't like it, but I learned.
You have to prioritize your equipement, and maybe groceries. What do you use every day? What do you use every couple of days, or maybe once a week? What you use you maybe once a month? Is there anything that you only use at certain times of the year?
Things that I use every day get stored in prominent locations ON THE COUNTER. Coffee maker, cutting boards, etc. Some pots and pans, that usually get used every day, or every other day, get stored on the stovetop. I only store a pan there if it's clean.
I have a pan-storage drawer built in to my oven. I keep most of my pots nested together in that drawer, with the largest, a 22 qt stockpot, on the bottom, then a 16 qt pot, a 12 qt pot and so on, until finally, I have a 1 qt saucepan on top. As luck would have it, I usually use the smaller saucepans and 12 qt pot practically every day, or every other day, so that works would quite well, with me only breaking out the big boys when I'm making stock.
Same thing with cabinets. I keep what gets used constantly within easy reach. I have overheard cabinets that go all the way to the ceiling, with the top levels being reserved for stuff I rarely use, as I have to use a step-stool to get to them (I'm short). I also have a storage cabinet over the basement stairs. That stairway is just behind my stove, so I do tend to keep some things in there, like cereal, vinegar, etc.
I'm not even going to go into my pantry. That thing is huge.
