Shopping for Compact Dining Tables – The New York Times

A dining table doesn’t necessarily need to accommodate a dozen people. Especially in a small apartment, a table with more conservative dimensions is often a smarter choice — or simply the only thing that will fit.

“In smaller-scale apartments, the size of the table is dictated by the size of the apartment,” said Alexander M. Reid, an interior designer in New York. Often, there is no dedicated dining room, he added, so it’s a matter of finding a table you can put in the kitchen, the foyer or one end of the living room.

For tight spaces, Mr. Reid looks for a table that’s no more than 48 inches in diameter. And if your space is extremely limited, the table could be as small as 28 inches wide. “You can still seat two people at it,” he said. “But anything smaller than 28 inches is a side table.”

In his own apartment, Mr. Reid has a compact oval table.

“You can go from fitting four people comfortably to even eight, if you squish ’em,” he said. “That’s not appropriate right now, with Covid, but I’ve done it before.”

• What’s the most functional kind of base? “A pedestal table is often best,” Mr. Reid said, “because legs can be cumbersome if you need to fit more people.”

• Are some shapes better than others? Tables with circular or oval-shaped tops provide more flexibility for squeezing in extra guests and are less likely to interfere with circulation.

• How many chairs should go around the table? Two or four is usually best, Mr. Reid said: “Then I always float some chairs in my living room, entry and bedroom that can be pulled up for a dinner party.”

Zig-Zag Base Dining Table

Mahogany pedestal table from Noir

$2,091 at Chairish: 855-549-9990 or chairish.com

Lola Round Concrete Dining Table

Stone powder, cement and natural fiber table by Mermelada Estudio

$899 at CB2: 800-606-6252 or cb2.com

Williams Table

Square or rectangular walnut table with choice of leg color

From $850 from Tronk: 513-549-0210 or tronkdesign.com

Theodore Dining Table

Table with tapered wood base and marble top from Arteriors

$3,290 at Lumens: 877-445-4486 or lumens.com

Accent Dining Table

Oak dining table by Space Copenhagen for Mater

From $1,680 at Fair: 212-352-9615 or fair-design.com

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