Entry to the house through the garage

Our home here is that way too. And now that I think about it, it seems the side entry through the garage is the one we use much more often than the main entrance on the front of the house. For us, we like to use the side door because we can just go inside the garage then close the gate straight away. You may also know, that most houses in the States do not have fences; well, it's the same with our house here. And we also live on a main street, and our front door is exposed to the street. So I guess it is mainly for security reasons that we do not use the front entrance too much. Plus, we don't really have any reservations when guests come through our pantry. Our guests are mostly just really close relatives or friends, and they would just prefer to sit around our dining table anyway when they come over. It's much more comfortable and they would feel more 'at home' when they do that...

Generally, guests aren't parking in the garage, so they would still be coming in through the main entrance. Of course, if you are doing the driving, they would be. However, who cares? It's a kitchen. Don't your guests usually congregate in the kitchen anyways? You're there preparing food, and they come hang out--maybe, offer a hand. That's how it generally goes when I have guests or am a guest in someone's home.

Sounds strange to me, but then I guess I have always known entry to a house through the front, hence the front door. Our garage is only big enough to fit one car in and yes there is a door from inside the garage that goes into the house, but I only use it when I have parked my car in the garage, closed the garage door from the inside and entered my home. Everyone else uses the front door.

I have an attached garage/carport with a door that enters the kitchen are but I don't bring company in that way. I suppose that some people do but I am more comfortable bringing them through the front door.

The advantage of having the garage connected to kitchen door is- for shopping and market stuffs then you do not need to go through the main door with all the heavy shopping bags and groceries. Here in the Philippines we also have same style. Anyway, you do not need to let the guest use the kitchen door- instead you can walk them to the main door- or drop them to the main door before going to the garage.

I would say that the garage entrance is for the comfort and convenience of both the homeowner and the guests. If the weather is less than optimal, such as extreme cold, stormy, snowy, windy, icy, etc., then the garage provides a safe and comfortable way into the house that is protected from the elements. In addition, some people entertain in the living room, but many prefer to entertain in the kitchen, especially for close friends and family, because they think it is more comfortable and "homey".

My house have 3 entrance and we use any of them according to our needs. If we have visitors, then we use the front entrance, if we going out for shopping or anything, we use the side entrance at the garage and when we do some landscape work, we use the back entrance as it's easy to get the pipe and clean our legs before enter the house. I don't know maybe some family prefer to have only the side entrance to enter or exit the house, but for me, the more exit or entrance is better and convenience.

We used to use the garage entrance in wet weather, because the front door didn't have a porch. The big room you entered was called the mud room, and you left your wet coats and muddy boots there. If we were having a fancy party for "real" guests-- meaning not immediate family or close friends-- we used the front door for guests to come in. Since in New England (New Hampshire and Maine, mostly) everyone had mud rooms and did the same thing, it was considered normal. It also kept the more formal entry clean and organized. Then again, I wouldn't do that now if I had the same house layout, because I don't keep my house model home clean like my grandmother and aunts did. Heck, one of my aunts had plastic over her rugs and furniture so it wouldn't get dirty. Being in her house was not fun or comfortable, because it seemed so unlived in, so to speak.

Thanks a ton for sharing this discussion. Well yes even i have heard about people entering into someone's party or function by the virtue of the entry through their garage which is generally left open and is the least bothered place in a house but this is very wrong and as i had said in my earlier discussions that gatecrashing might seem interesting and funny but in reality it is something that no organizers would ever appreciate. Its better to have our garages closed every time. What say?