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Dining Room Ideas For Apartments

Whether you have a formal dining room or are utilizing a makeshift area in the corner of your apartment, having a designated dining area is important within your home. Where you lack square footage, you can make up for it with creative design and planning to give yourself a dream dining room within your small apartment. These small dining room ideas will help you make the most of your space, while keeping a good flow of traffic and tricking guests into thinking your space is larger than it is. Read on to learn our favorite dining room ideas for apartments!

Keep it Neutral

If you are facing the challenge of thinking of small apartment dining room ideas, one thing to prioritize is materials. By utilizing colors, finishes, and materials similar to what you have in your space, you can create the illusion of your floor space being larger than what it really is. For example, if you have a small white kitchen, opt for a white table so that it blends in more than sticking out. You can also look for specific table shapes with narrow legs or a slim base to take up less room and make the areas surrounding the table feel more spacious. Go for dining chairs that pair with your overall aesthetic but that keep in the neutral theme by matching them to your table, cabinets, or another furniture piece within the same line of vision.

Define your Dining Area

Regardless of the type of apartment you are living in, one easy way to designate a dining area is to define it with items like an area rug or hanging light fixture, which distinguishes it from the living room. If you are creating a dining space where one doesn’t exist, try strategically placing an area rug underneath the table and chairs to separate the space and make it look more intentional. You can also hang artwork or decor above the table to give it some extra character and make it feel like a unique, separate space.

Use your Kitchen

If you are living in a small apartment space, truth is, you may not have a vacant area to dedicate specifically to a dining and living room. If this seems to be the case, we suggest using your kitchen to double as a dining space. If you have surplus counter space, you can pull up a few stools and let the counter double as an eating surface. If you have the room for it, you can try finding a small island that can double as an eating area and extra counter space when you need it. A dining area does not have to be big, or fancy, for you to enjoy together time and meals, so make the most of what you have to work with!

Cafe Style Table

If you have a window in your kitchen, this is a good starting point to place a dining table, as there is almost always available floor space in front of a window. You can push a square or rectangular table right up against the window and find chairs or stools you can push completely underneath the table while you’re not using it to free up some space. Our Burnham Stools are an excellent option for a kitchen dining stool. You can pair them with our Square Dining Table to complete the look!

Folding Table

If you don’t have available space on your counter or in front of a window, try finding any open space on your wall and using a floating or folding table. If you live in a studio or tiny apartment, you can put this type of table anywhere you can find the space for it to create a minimalist dining room. If you opt for a folding table, you can take it down or fold it into the wall when you are not using it and pop it up as needed to make for a cute little dining area. This is our favorite option if you’re living within a small space!

Bistro Table

In our opinion, there is nothing more chic than a classic bistro table. Bistro tables tend to be very small in size, think, what you may see on the sides of the street at cafes in Europe. A bistro table is often small and round with light chairs accompanying it. Try looking for a really sophisticated round bistro table and pairing it with our Luna Side Chair for a more elevated look.

Combine Living/Dining

If you need to combine your dining space with your living space, layout the room to allow for some negative space to add in a round table and set of chairs. You can easily tuck these away in a corner while giving yourself the feel of a designated dining room layout. Use our tip above and add a separate area rug or decor around the table to make the small space feel like a separate part of the larger room.

Add a Bench

One of our favorite apartment dining room ideas to save on space is installing corner-bench seating in a nook. This allows for extra seating as needed, and if done correctly, the bench can also double as extra storage by having drawers or shelving underneath. You can use a bench in the same shade as the wall color to help it blend in and make the space feel deceivingly larger.

Use a Bookcase

If you are pressed for space within a small studio apartment, you can also use a bookshelf to double as a wall for a dining area. Place a dining bench or stools and table right up against the backside of a bookshelf to separate the space. This is another great idea if you need additional storage space.

Make it your own

Remember to always make the space feel like your own! If you have a small apartment space, but love entertaining, don’t shy away from making the small dining space a focal point. Add extra personal touches like artwork, table decor, or a vase of fresh flowers to make it more welcoming and aesthetically pleasing.