Refinish the table and continue to eat meals facing one another and conversing.

My kitchen table has a zinc top, so it looks better as my kids trash it. I personally don't care for island seating.

histokitch,
i love zinc. where did you get it? do you have any pics?

Put a tablecloth on the table? With a table pad underneath? They aren't just decorative. They are functional as well. Guests coming? Grab both ends and roll all of the mess up and stuff it into the laundry and out comes a fresh "dress" tablecloth.

Do you love this table for it's antique value? Or would you think about refinishing the top and sealing it so it is more durable? It sounds like the set-up works for you and you stated you didn't care for the island in your previous home. Table height sounds better for the usage you describe.

We use our island seating for the following: solo eating of a quick meal or snack (often while surfing the net), person(s) keeping the cook company, DD likes to spread out schoolwork and complete it while standing, and cookbook browsing while facing the open pantry. We also have a table that seats 8 (with two leaves we leave in) so we sit two on each side across from one another for meals. Packer Sundays every seat at the table is filled and the island is for serving.

My table has proven to be not as kid friendly as I would have hoped as well. It has it's bumps/bruises/dents.... My plan is to give it a bit of TLC and move it into the dining room when we do our remodel. Table pads and cloths don't work well for us. The shape of the table is abnormal (bowed/boat shape).

I am still debating on what type of table I want for the kitchen. Definitely prefer table seating (family of 6) over island seating. But I don't want a surface which will show fork "spears" from errant kids either...

I'm waffling between a truly bulletproof, hard granite/silestone type surface (but it would be cold and I don't want that)... or search for a harder wood with a better finish sealant... or perhaps a table and look that already isn't pristine so a few more marks won't look bad.

My vote for you is to stay with a true table. Any family (but especially young families) greatly benefit from the sitting across from you, eye contact style dining. Perhaps you can go ahead and do the homework for me to find that perfect, relatively kid-proof, but not cold (imagine taking the warmth right out of your coffee cup) surface? ;-)

In the '50's and '60's kitchen tables had formica tops. In the late '70's and '80's, in smaller places that had no kitchen table, the tables were topped with marble or glass.

Take a page from the past. Get a new kitchen table with a surface that works for you. You can get it made with quartz, granite, Corian or whatever you want.

hi y'all... thanks!

the table i am currently using is not special. it works, but not great as the legs get in the way. I think I would something with a pedestal or some other set up to allow more comfortable seating...we are just using it for the time being since we have it. I want the new kitchen to have a streamlined, clean lines look without too much fussiness so this antique table isn't really the vibe anyway, BUT it is doing a good job of getting me thinking of how much abuse we can dish out on a daily basis.

We did try tableclothes but unfortunately our precocious little dog Carolyn took to pulling them off (along with everything on the table).

One idea I have been chewing on is having the cabinetry company build me a table height base and then I can find some sort of low maintenance top for it (preferably not too heavy so that I can move the table around).

Maybe a thin piece of quartz wouldn't be too heavy? I don't think i want wood as I think I will have enough already with the cabinets.

Any other ideas?
Thanks for all the suggestions.

this is the wood I am thinking of for the cabinets (although haven't 100% decided)

Sounds like a great idea if you're doing the top to match the counters. Otherwise, you might also check at table stores. Not furniture stores, but if you're anywhere near an urban area there should be table specialists. They can probably do a better job, cheaper, for you.

A metal pedestal will give you a thinner base, leaving more room for knees if that's important to you. Also, a curved base is more comfortable than one with unseen corners to bump into.

The top depends on what you mean by moved. By one person? Two? Shoved over a little to clean? Carried by one person into a different room? One caution on light tables--light enough to move is good, but you don't want it to be easy to move. That means that any kid who wants to make a point can shove it, any little stumble can send plates flying, etc. Heavy equals stable. Look for just light enough for your purposes.

Really and truly, you might want to look into Formica. :) It's very functional. Or you could have a wood top, with a Formica "pad" (just the Formica, not the underlayment) that you can remove and stow in the garage when you want to. Or a Formica table with a wood expander/topper.

Not the greatest pic, but I think you get the gist. I'm pretty sure it was from Sundance. The base is cast iron.

In the planning stages, my SIL told me I'd regret keeping a table in our breakfast area - she recommended an elongated island with a rounded end for family eating. But then, her family doesn't eat any meals together.

We went with a table, although we're looking for a slightly bigger one that can accommodate 6 regularly. Yes, we'll have to squeeze it in (one side might have to be a bench), but we eat breakfast and dinner together every day, and lunches on the weekends, so a table was important to us.

When my mom remodeled 35 years ago, she had her cabinet maker make a new top for their old table, with a formica surface. She still has that table and it still looks good as new, even after raising 5 kids. I'm thinking with today's much improved laminates, we might do the same thing.

MDP- I have just what you described in my basement craft area. I have cabinet base (awesome for extra storage) with a granite top. It is a huge square that seats 12 comfortably but I've had up to 16. The kids spread out their projects and homework and I do lots of crafting and wrapping here. I made it counter height. You could obviously make it a custom size this way. We raised the cabs off the floor with a 2x4 frame under so that we can move it around if and as needed. It took 4 guys to move it when I had a party and needed to bring it out towards the room more.

We got our wood topped kitchen table in 1985 and it has stood up fine (in a family with three young children at the time). It has served for lots of meals, homework and crafts (with newspaper put down for messy crafts. The only defect in it is a thin arc burn mark where I put a wok ring down on it without a trivet underneath. It is oak, a fairly hard wood, and doesn't have a glossy surface. While we have some casual seating at our island, if it had to be either or, I'd have the table. I don't find counter height seating as comfortable. Our table has a pedestal base.

thanks again for the input...

coastal, your basement craft room is about the nicest basement craft room i could imagine! WOW! my kids love to do arts and crafts - i can imagine the fun you have going at your house.

histo, your kitchen is beautiful. is that a modernaire hood? i love your lighting, how you were able to integrate the slanted ceiling into the space so seemlessly, the open shelving (I am consider one little section of this in the new kitchen - do you find anything picking up dust or grease? love your pot rack. looks like a warm and comfortable kitchen to be in.