Memory allocation requests are satisfied from a memory pool or from lookaside lists, based on the memory size requested to be allocated. A method, for each of a number of future differently sized memory allocations, determines which memory allocations are to be satisfied from a lookaside list, and which memory allocations are to be satisfied from a memory pool. For each memory allocation to be satisfied from a lookaside list, a corresponding lookaside list for the allocation is initialized. A table is constructed that has a number of entries corresponding to all the differently sized memory allocations. Each entry corresponding to a memory allocation to be satisfied from a lookaside list points to the lookaside list for that memory allocation.