We did growing up and used it every night, until my mom started working! Then we just fed ourselves wherever we wanted - usually at the kitchen table. Now, the kids eat at our kitchen table (we don't have a formal dining room in our city apartment).
Do you have a formal dining room? Do you use it?
grapefruit / 4089 posts
Yes we do, and we never ever use it. Can't wait to convert it to a playroom when the need arises 
hostess / wonderful persimmon / 25556 posts
Yep and we use it on holidays or if we have company over. It's really nice now that my husband and his dad put moldings around it. We have a kitchen table, though. We eat there every night.
We're pretty much doing it the same way we did growing up - special occasions are in the dining room. Everything else is in the kitchen.
pomelo / 5041 posts
We do and it looks great but we haven't used it yet. It's pretty formal. We eat regular meals at the kitchen table but I figure we'll do some smaller, nice meals with friends or family at the dining room table once my kids get a bit older.
blogger / pineapple / 12381 posts
We love ours. It's really pretty. I can't wait to get new chairs though someday when my kids are older.
hostess / wonderful apple seed / 16729 posts
We don't have a kitchen table but we do have a dining room area with a table. We have a coffee table that flips up to table height, so we usually eat in front of the tv.
Oh, our table in our dining room is just a regular kitchen table. Nothing fancy or formal about it. I do want to get a nicer dining room table but since we hardly use it, it's fine for now.
pear / 1986 posts
Our kitchen is open to the dining area, but it isn't a real formal dining room. But I wouldn't call in an eat-in kitchen either.
grapefruit / 4085 posts
Yes and we eat there every night b/c the kitchen in its current state would be too cramped with a table. I can't wait to renovate!
nectarine / 2765 posts
We have one & it gets quite a bit of use. I can't imagine not having it. I also grew up with one & it was used every night.
apricot / 288 posts
We have a formal dining room which we haven't used yet, but we've only been in this house for a little over a month. In our last house, we used the dining room for playing card and board games with our friends, and every so often for family meals. In our new house, we're using the kitchen table for every meal, which we didn't do at the last house (we sat on the couch to eat).
pear / 1531 posts
I think you have to be a billionaire (not even a millionaire) to have a formal dining room in NYC, right?
persimmon / 1188 posts
We are living with my parents while we are between homes- our house sold and the market is so slim here. They have a formal dining room and use it about half the week I'd say. We are looking for a home that has a formal dining room but it will not be my number one priority when it comes to furnishing. It's just something I want for long term, so that once we're really settled we can use it a lot.
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21628 posts
Yes, and we use it. We don't have a table in the kitchen.
wonderful pea / 17279 posts
We have one and its used during the holidays and whenever we have guests over.
Growing up we ate in the formal dining room every day because our kitchen was small and only accomodate two breakfast stools.
admin / wonderful grape / 20724 posts
@raintreebee: You could put one in a brownstone if you wanted! Affordable for millionaires haha...
cantaloupe / 6059 posts
Nope. We're in a brand new build and it's very open concept. They don't really put formal dining rooms in homes out here.
cantaloupe / 6669 posts
Yes, though it's not super fancy. Most the time we eat in the kitchen. We use it when we have people over, so maybe once a month? We have what our friends have called "an eating couch" (World Market banquette) so I think it makes for nice sitting and chatting.
Here's a pic from my Instagram. Enjoy the crammed-in Christmas tree with all the ornaments at the top. Toddler life.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
Formal in the sense that it is separate from the kitchen, yes, we have one. But we eat in the kitchen most days. Eventually I would like to move to eating in the dining room. We furnished it to be user friendly (farmhouse style table, chairs with no upholstery, indoor/outdoor rug), but it's such a pain to carry the food in there!
pomegranate / 3329 posts
It isn't formal, but it's not in the kitchen. We don't have a table on the kitchen, the kids eat at the breakfast bar.
blogger / watermelon / 14218 posts
Yes, and it's a playroom for now! We have an eat-in area in the kitchen which is right next to it, and it's only separated by a big big doorway. But we have lots of large gatherings and the kitchen table can be quite tight. I can't wait to convert it from a playroom to a formal dining room. I never thought I wanted/needed one, but with big family gatherings happening pretty often, I do really want one now that the kids are getting older.
apricot / 411 posts
No, I don't like the idea of having a complete separate dining space. It makes me feel closed in. I'm more of an open plan person. Our dining table is in the bay window of our living room.
pomegranate / 3729 posts
No because we are still renting in an apartment, but when we buy we want one. I could see us hosting dinners and would like a big enough table for lots of people. An eat in kitchen won't do for that.
squash / 13764 posts
@raintreebee: yep I think that's the threshold 
I would settle for a dining area, even! Ours is just a teeny table pushed against the wall in between the couch and the kitchen...
grapefruit / 4187 posts
Yes and we use it when we have guests, otherwise we eat in the kitchen or living room. It was not a priority to us when house hunting but i'm actually very glad we have one.
pomegranate / 3604 posts
Not in this apartment; our eating space is basically a strip of floor that fits a table off the kitchen before the living room rug starts. 
In the apartment we're moving too (fingers crossed!!) there's a separate dining area (but not what I'd call "formal", persay) but the kitchen isn't eat-in. A separate dining area was top priority when looking for a new place. Was just tired of being crammed into one space!
cantaloupe / 6206 posts
N to the O. We would never use it, so the room designated as a dining room in our house is now the office. We eat at our (nice and big) kitchen table.
clementine / 927 posts
Yes. It's huge and we rarely use it. We either eat in the kitchen or the breakfast nook.
kiwi / 557 posts
We have one but only use it on special occasions. It is carpeted so the hard wood breakfast nook is a lot easier to clean up after with a toddler. Hopefully once he is older we'll use it more.
persimmon / 1458 posts
Yes we do but it's currently being used as a playroom. We have a sunroom off our kitchen that we have a table in that we use. Someday we will get dining room furniture in the formal dining room.
pineapple / 12526 posts
Yes, but we never use it. We're planning to knock the wall out and turn it all into an eat-in kitchen with a banquette.
nectarine / 2878 posts
Yes, we have one. But we converted it to the kids playroom until we move into a bigger house.
grapefruit / 4278 posts
We have room that is supposed to be a formal dining room, but right now I have an elliptical and an exercise bike in it. We have a table in the kitchen where we eat and I don't want to have a whole room in my house that I only ever use on the rare occasion that we hosted a holiday.
pineapple / 12793 posts
We have one but it's currently the junk room. We just renovated the kitchen and living room and haven't yet started on the dining room. It's pretty rough in there!
eggplant / 11408 posts
No, not in this apartment, but it is not a feature I really care about in a house. I'd much rather a harvest table in the kitchen!
honeydew / 7091 posts
Technically yes, but it's now our office. Our house was designed for a formal dining room and a casual/kitchen dining room?? We have no use for two tables.
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