I have been using Room Director which may be overkill for your application. I plan more automation for each room so I decided to "standardize"
For me in the kitchen, the key was a ceiling mounted motion sensor. I chose the Nyce NCZ-3043-HA The criteria included appearance, battery life and features. It is expensive! For the light sensor I'm using Xiaomi Mijia Smart Light Sensor (Zigbee 3.0) So far. so good. I don't turn on the light unless the sensor tells me it's too dark in the kitchen. I'm lucky because my wife understands we are testing and I will work to improve the system over time. She is happy with the kitchen lighting automation so, on to the next room.
