You have lots of things to think about that only you can answer:

How formal do you want to dine? A banquette is an informal eating space, compared to the more formal set up you have now. Does your home have a dining room, in addition to this space? If so, you could sacrifice this duplicate formal dining space, downgrading it to a more informal eating space. If not, you may want to reconsider, to keep the option for formal Thanksgiving Dinner, etc.

Think about how you want to use and care for the eating space: How many people do you envision seating at a banquette table? The larger the number, the harder it is to get in and out of it on the bench side. The way it is now would be easiest to clean.


Also, think about your sight lines: It looks like the table is currently centered on an opening to a living room. When looking at the kitchen from that room, do you want to see a formal dining table that can be decorated seasonally, or view kitchen bar stools?


Think about your traffic patterns and lighting: Changing to bar stools & banquette would open a wide space in the middle of that room -- where you would bonk your head on the chandelier. How do you envision your lighting plan changing to accommodate that? Recessed cans? Moving the big chandelier over the banquette would likely make the room feel unbalanced.


All of these issues are solvable. They just require forethought and an understanding of the trade-offs.


At my house, we got rid of the eat-in kitchen table & chandelier altogether and extended the countertop for bar stools. We needed the floor space for a clear pathway to the new family room addition beyond. We also have a formal dining room elsewhere in the house, so, functionally, keeping the eat-in kitchen table was not necessary for us.

@Kristin- good point, it is very close. It seems that people, including kids, have a tendency to hover around the peninsula when I’m cooking despite the table being so close. Also, I’m thinking of shaving a few inches off the end of the peninsula due to the proximity of the fridge (not pictured) because it’s a very narrow walkway that gets a lot of traffic and I was thinking that adding some seating would extend the countertop enough to make up for lost area.

@pittsburitto- thank you for all the considerations you listed. I do like that the table is centered in the entryway/patio and I guess I just need to weigh that with my desire for extra space. Right now the path to the sun porch is pretty limited and when the seats are full it’s even worse. I would have to move the light fixture over, as you mentioned, but that’s easy enough. We don’t have a formal dining area but the front sitting area of our home could definitely be utilized for that function if future homebuyers wanted one. We don’t entertain much and have young kids so casual is the norm for us. I was thinking to have 4 chairs at the table for adult use and the banquette seat would mostly be used for kids.

We had similar considerations (kids with no place to visit in the kitchen), so we put an arc on the side of our peninsula, that kinda makes it round table seating, rather than shoulder to shoulder bar seating. In addition to eating there, the kids do crafts and play games there (as evidenced in the photo, please disregard the mess!). In case that idea is helpful at all? (I don't know which side your slider opens on.)

@Shaina Moore what did you up deciding? We thought about doing something similar in our space.

We decided to scrap the kitchen reno and move houses (Covid played a big part in this). Though, we didn’t entirely escape a kitchen update. The new place has a larger and only somewhat newer kitchen. I’m still considering a banquette to improve traffic flow and extend the current kitchen island. I guess I’m just drawn to the coziness of banquettes!

Same! We love them. Our family has small children and we always choose a booth at the restaurant, so it works for us. Looks like you have a bit more room in your new dining space. Our dining room is 9x9 and it's the only access to the kitchen and backyard. I'd love to know your thoughts.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6262275/small-dining-room-seating-layout-help#27730193