What is that empty foot of wall above my kitchen cabinets called?

Question

my house was built in the 70's and the cabinets have like a part of the ceiling that comes down like a rectangular box. i want to install larger cabinets. so how do i take out that piece of the wall?

Answer 1

That piece is called a "soffit". Usually it is empty, but you won't know unless you have architectural drawings of your house, or if you take it apart. In our Kitchen it was empty. But I have had clients who had duct work running through there from the oven vent to the exterior wall of the house. I hope that helps you out!