Banquette vs. Booth Seating: Which Is Best for Your Dining Area?

Banquette and booth seating are similar solutions to spacing problems in your restaurant’s dining area. They provide many of the same benefits, such as a comfortable alternative to tables and chairs, a chance to use upholstery to add some color, and a way to use the floor space more economically. While these are valid benefits, banquette seating and booth seating arrangements are different configurations of the same basic idea. They’re not equally viable in all restaurants.

Knowledge of the differences can help you design a better dining area and configure the available space to give your customers a memorable experience.Continue reading to learn the primary differences between banquettes and booths. We’ll give you a big-picture overview so you can create your ideal customer experience using these seating types.

What is Banquette Seating?

Banquette seating refers to long benches upholstered with fabric, vinyl, or leather and placed against a wall. In some situations, restaurant owners and interior designers prefer to build banquette seating directly into the wall to economize space.

Built-in banquette seating is not exclusive to restaurants. Many homes and public buildings have built-in banquettes to accommodate visitors, especially in rooms with limited floor space. However, banquettes have become commonly associated with diners due to their ability to accommodate a maximum number of seats in a minimum amount of space.

Part of the challenge of introducing banquette-style seating in modern restaurants is overcoming this stigma with a customized vision. Thankfully, banquettes can be built-in, freestanding, or modulated, meaning they can be rearranged or combined as needed into larger configurations.

What is Booth Seating?

Booth seating is not fundamentally different from banquette seating but more like a different arrangement of the same idea. Booth seating involves combining two front-facing banquettes with a table in between. The booth’s style can be changed with different banquette seating shapes, including U-shaped, L-shaped, curved, or straight.

If your restaurant has unusual tables to accommodate, don’t worry! Booth seating can be customized and rearranged to fit any table style and shape.

Booth seating uses the space provided by banquettes as a comfortable, intimate, and plentiful seating option. Restaurants with limited floor space can use booth seating to comfortably accommodate more patrons, especially along walls where conventional tables and chairs take up a lot more space.

Booths can be set up back to back to create a feeling of privacy or even romance while using limited space. This is why smaller restaurants such as cafes use booth seating arrangements to create versatile and cozy experiences.

They’re commonly combined with pedestal tables, but experienced designers can customize banquettes to be arranged into whatever type of booth a designer or business owner envisions. With the right materials and craftsmanship, booth seating can communicate comfort, luxury, or intimacy while making the dining area feel more spacious.

What About Bench Seating?

Bench seating is a type of booth seating where multiple banquettes are placed in a row facing each other, usually on either side of a table. Bench seating allows parties of 4-8 people to sit comfortably and socialize. Whether the individual banquettes are curved or straight, an experienced designer can create a bench seating arrangement that matches the tables and the floor plan.

Importantly, designers and restaurant owners don’t have to choose a single style to accommodate guests. Bench, banquette, and booth seating can create a unified dining area. It’s the artisan’s job to make sure the vision is achieved through custom seating arrangements that make sense in the space, communicate the owner’s vision through the style and materials, and provide the ideal experience to their intended customers.

How to Choose the Right Seating

Choosing the seating option that’s the right fit for your dining area requires having the right priorities. Space optimization is primary to making the right choice since even beautiful and exclusive seating options can be a net negative to the restaurant if they are mismatched to the space.

The second essential factor is flexibility. Experienced custom banquette seating designers can create flexible designs customized to the space. Bespoke banquette arrangements offer practical space optimization and distinctive stylistic choices.

The choice of wood, fabric material, and overall design can greatly affect the vibe of the dining area. Working with furniture artisans to create bespoke designs for your specific space will go a long way toward bringing your ideal customer experience to life.

Contact Sixth Avenue Custom to Choose the Best Seating for Your Dining Area

At Sixth Avenue Custom, our experienced furniture artisans help designers and restaurant owners achieve their ideal customer experience with bespoke banquette and booth seating arrangements. We can help you understand the benefits of each to pick the perfect configuration for your space.

Contact our team today to learn how our millwork artisans can help you choose the best seating for your dining area.