)
On the first night of Sukkot, when we set the tone for the whole holiday, it is obligatory to eat a formal meal in the sukka. For the rest of the holiday, if someone wants to eat a proper meal (normally eaten at home), one is obligated to eat it in the sukka. In contrast, if someone wants to eat a light meal or snack (sometimes eaten outside the home), one may do so outside of the sukka. Some go beyond the letter of the law, and avoid eating anything outside of the sukka.
Before fulfilling the mitzva of sukka, we recite the blessing: “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who has sanctified us with His mitzvot and commanded us to sit in the sukka.”
There are different customs as to when to recite this blessing. Some recite it each time they enter the sukka intending to spend time there, since just being in the sukka is a mitzva. This is the Yemenite practice. The custom in most Jewish communities is to limit the blessing to eating times, as eating is the primary way to fulfill the mitzva. Sephardic custom is to recite the blessing only before eating a proper meal, while Ashkenazic custom is to recite it even over certain snacks or light meals.
As long as a person stays in the sukka, the blessing recited at the beginning of one's time there suffices. Even if one ends up eating another meal, one does not repeat the blessing. And even if one leaves briefly – for example, to go to the bathroom, to bring something back to the sukka, or to chat with friends – on does not repeat the blessing on one's return, as the original blessing is still in force.
