Restaurant Seating

Guide to Planning Restaurant Seating

Well planned commercial seating will keep customers coming back for more
By Lorri Mealey

Restaurant seating furniture is an integral part of a restaurant's design. Whether you plan to use traditional tables and chairs, tall tables and restaurant stools, or cozy dining booths, you should carefully consider your restaurant seating plan. Your restaurant furniture should match your dining concept or theme and enhance the overall look of your restaurant.

Restaurant seating goes beyond the dining room. The waiting area, lounge, bar and function room should all be given careful consideration when selecting restaurant furniture and planning a seating chart.

A well thought out restaurant seating plan should:

1. Allow for easy flow of traffic throughout the restaurant.
2. Maximize floor space, allowing for more tables and booths.
3. Enhance the ambience of a restaurant.

Action Steps

The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Consider your restaurant theme A restaurant that serves fine French dinners and wine by the bottle has different commercial seating needs than a diner that specializes in cheeseburgers and fries. It is important to think of the atmosphere you are trying to achieve in your restaurant and let the restaurant seating reflect that.

I recommend:  If you are looking for restaurant seating, SeatingExperts.com sells all types of restaurant seating furniture, including tables and chairs.

Save space with restaurant booth seating If your restaurant offers limited space for tables and chairs, consider purchasing restaurant booths. Dining booths come in a variety of colors, patterns and styles. Restaurant booth furniture can add warmth and coziness to a restaurant dining room.

I recommend:  AMC Industries is one of the leading restaurant booth manufacturers. General Seating Solutions offers high end restaurant booth seating in vinyl, leather and custom fabric upholstery as well as a full array of other restaurant seating furniture. ChicagoBooth.com has more than 30 years of service as a restaurant seating manufacturer. In addition to restaurant booth seating, the company carries a wide array of metal and wood chairs, as well as restaurant stools.

Save money by purchasing used restaurant seating One of the biggest expenses of opening a new restaurant is outfitting the dining room. Commercial seating doesn't come cheap. However, you can pick up gently worn tables, chairs, booths and bar stools at a fraction of the price through restaurant auctions and used equipment dealers.

I recommend:  A City Discount offers a wide array of gently used restaurant chairs at half the price of new commercial seating. Budget Supply is another online vendor that carries good quality used restaurant seating, including booths and barstools.

Make a statement with your restaurant seating plan Skip traditional low tables and chairs and purchase tall pedestal tables with high restaurant stools for a sleek, sophisticated look. Tall restaurant stools are very popular with customers and can work in both the bar area and the dining room.

I recommend:  Find durable, attractive restaurant stools at Jeans Restaurant Supply. Just as their name suggests, Bar Stools & Bar Stools is another restaurant seating manufacturer who specializes in bar stools.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• Avoid placing tables near the front entrance, restrooms, kitchen doorways and wait stations. If you are limited on space, use dividers to separate the restaurant seating from these areas.