The Dining Room - A Relic in Modern Home Culture

As I go about my everyday wanderings throughout my home I can’t help but notice how little my formal dining room is used for its intended purpose.  Instead it seems to be used more as a temporary storage area for school books, and folded laundry that is destined for the upstairs bedrooms.

Over the years I have questioned whether or not it was my lack of social skills that have led to infrequent formal dinners with guests, or was I just like the average American today who didn’t have the time for them. As time has passed, I have come to the conclusion that the latter was more the case. And I have proof!

As I watch today’s various home shows on television about selling homes or building homes, I can’t help but notice the complete lack of discussion on the need for formal dining rooms.  Instead the needs and lexicon for modern homeowners now includes media rooms, home offices, and man rooms. Yes, man rooms. From what I can conclude they are effectively home sports bars. Kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms are also still important to today’s homeowners, but the need for a formal dining room has appeared to have faded away into Americana.

One reason for the dining room becoming a relic of modern home culture is the change in lifestyle of Americans. I heard a report recently that indicated that only 35% of families say they gather regularly for dinner every evening. The rest grab quick snacks or go out to restaurants per their individual family members’ schedules. This is not surprising when you reflect on the after-school activities we have signed our children up for. Today’s American family is constantly on the run and has little time for being a total family unit, including at the dining room table.  To conclude, if you are in the process of building a new custom home, think twice about your lifestyle, as well as the lifestyles of future buyers of your home. Like me, you may quickly come to the conclusion that an enlarged kitchen capable of supporting your cooking and family eating habits, and social gatherings, maybe a better alternative to a formal dining room. The space, that would have otherwise been used for a dining room, may be better utilized, and have more resale value, if it is instead used for a home office, media room, or dare I say, a man room.