饭厅(fàn tīng) - dining room in Mandarin

饭厅 (fàntīng) is the "dining room": 饭 (fàn) means "rice, meal" and 厅 (tīng) means "hall, room". It is the space set aside for eating, distinct from the 厨房 (chúfáng), "kitchen", where the food is actually cooked.

In smaller flats the 饭厅 (fàntīng) and the 客厅 (kètīng), "lounge", often merge into a single open room, so you will also hear 客饭厅 (kèfàntīng) used loosely for a combined living-dining space. In larger homes or restaurants, though, the 饭厅 (fàntīng) is a clearly separate room.

A restaurant's main seating area can also be called its 饭厅 (fàntīng), so the word is not limited to private homes.