Does anyone have any ideas for what to do with this fireplace. I was going to paint it when I paint my kitchen cabinets, but thought I would look for some other ideas. I'd prefer the kitchen to flow through into the living room, but this completely interupts the open floor plan. Any and all suggestions/ideas are welcomed.
Thanks in advance for your ideas.

You could always take it out. Cover up the floor area with a same-size base cabinet piece to work as a serving peninsula.

the december 15-16 wall street journal issue has a long and very interesting article about open/ through kitchen lay out. i would read it before starting this project.