May I have a different table, please?

[Clara Bow]

I have two, I hate being seated in the row of tables down the middle of the aisle (it feels like you're eating in a fishbowl) and I cannot stand it when they sit me under an airconditioning vent and I freeze to death. I'm a very hot natured girl, but those vents are usually rather large, and they blow out artic air (it does get hot for the waitresses and cook staff I realize but good Lord! Don't put tables under those things!) so I end up freezing, And my husband is practically a reptile, he freezes regardless. Put him under those vents and he literally shivers.

[goblue2539]

It depends on who I'm with.  But, reading the responses and explanations, I think it boils down to if I'm supposed to be "protecting" or watching the door, like when I'm with Gran.  Funny thing is, I find myself facing the kitchen more often than the door.  Wonder if it's because people come in and out that door more often. 

[Bijou]

We went to a very upsale restaurant once for our anniversary, and they put us in this tiny alcove with a two-seater table with a little railing separating us from a table that was about six inches below us but definitely RIGHT next to us. Plus the seats had arms, so there was only about 4 inches between the arms of the chairs (when scooted ALL THE WAY BACK) and the tabel so it was nearly impossible to get in/out. I hate being squeezed like that. I definitely prefer booths

Last January we went to a restaurant in a neighboring town and while my dh went to the restroom the owner directed me to a table in the corner even though there were only two tables with people at them and many were empty.  I like corner seats so I did take the seat although it was dark as a cave there and they had put up this ridiculous "stage" about 8 inches high which made it hard to get to the table.  Well, I sat down, then got up and BAM tripped over the stage and fell down.  Apparently nothing broke, but I really banged myself up and went to the emergency room to make sure nothing really  horrible had happened, especially since I have a multitude of medical  problems and history that make a fall a bad idea.  I'm not at all embarrassed to say the air was blue and that I made it that way.  But, I'm glad no kids were there because it was just a reaction to falling and hurting myself, I didn't know how seriously, due to the stupidity and greed of the owner (for shoving a table in where there should have been none).  When the owner asked someone who had been seated at a neighboring table what happened and I was standing there the guy gave me a contemptuous look and said, "So, are you trying to sue them?"  That made me madder than falling down, actually.  (and no, I didn't sue).  I often wonder if the restaurant owner is waiting for the other shoe to drop.  He did apologize profusely and said ye was going to fix the problem by moving the stage or the table or something.

[Bijou]

My favorite restaurant seating: As far away from the smoking section or screaming kids as is humanly possible.

(The smoking section thing has become a moot point within the city limits as of January 1, since the city went smoke-free in public places.)

That said, I don't care for booths with the seats so low that I feel the need to ask for a booster seat …

There is no smoking allowed in any of the public use buildings, like restaurants and bars and the like.  There is one bar in town that allows smoking because they have no employees (the owners run the operation entirely).  They advertise that smoking is allowed on a sign in the window. 

[Bijou]

How about lighting?  The other night we were in a place too dark to be able to read the menu, which wasn't printed on white, either.

Makes me wonder what they are hiding.  If I had been in a darker restaurant the other evening for dinner I never would have noticed that big long skinny  leg in my cheese and mushroom omelette.  Who knows what I have eaten in dark restaurants and didn't know it!  No wonder I couldn't duplicate the flavor of that wonderful creamed chipped beef on toast at home!

[Bijou]

I personally prefer booths since I don’t like being surrounded by others like most tables are. I like having my back to something and being able to watch everybody else. Makes me feel more comfortable. A couple times I’ve felt rather awkward because, well, I’m not a child person. At all. I’m really not even comfortable around well behaved ones, and once I was in the uncomfortable situation of being barely a body’s width away from one (who was remarkably well behaved, I have to admit) in the booth/table combo seating area at a nearby restaurant. (I’m not sure if anybody else knows what kind of seating I’m talking about, but I mean like the ones where it’s one long booth seating, tables set along it, and chairs on the other side of the tables.) Thankfully my mom realized my discomfort and politely went over to the hostess and explained. They moved us to another table, but I’m sure they thought I was crazy just for that.

I do know the kind of seating you're talking about.  You see it a lot in movies where the people are dining at a posh restaurant.  I always wonder why they would have such a crumby seating arrangement in a fancy schmany place.  Maybe it is easier to film or something with that kind of seating.

[Bijou]

We recently went to a new place with some friends.  We made a reservation in advance.  This place serves a varied menu including some seafood.  I am violently allergic to seafood and even the smell of it cooking will make my throat start to swell up.

Naturally, they showed us to a booth right near the kitchen doors.  I could smell the seafood from there so I quietly and politely explained to the hostess that I would not be able to sit there and requested a table as far away from the kitchen as possible.

We got the eye roll but she did turn around and lead us to a table on the patio.  I think she thought she was putting us in Siberia, but we loved being outdoors where we could enjoy our meal and avoid a trip to the ER.

It really gets me riled up when anyone who is providing customer service or service of any kind has the nerve to roll their eyes. Or if a co worker does it.  I caught someone I worked with rolling her eyes (at me, but thought she was doing it on the sly).  I just looked at her.  She was flustered at being caught.

[Bijou]

I think the worst seating is when the tables are so close that you practically have a table of eight on top of you. I once had this situation with a friend of mine and we had to literally yell at eachother to have a conversation. It is especially bad when you are with people who don't hear that well like my father, uncle, and granfather.

How about places that blast you with music you don't even like or have one of those big tv sets blasting away.  My dh and I used to go to this one restaurant almost every time we went out to dinner.  One evening we walked in and our favorite table in the corner had been moved away and a huge blasting TV was hung on the wall in that area.  We turned on our heel and walked out and have never been back.  We liked the food (Well, I did, anyway...he doesn't like Mexican food) and the service was great.  I just looked at our usual waitress and said "Oh no.  Not a TV set!",  so she knew what was going on.

[Lisbeth]

I prefer:
1) To be seated in a well-lit area so I can read the menus.
2) To be seated away from small children or things that attract them, like video games.
3) To be seated away from the kitchen.
4) To be seated close enough to buffets with hot food so I don't have to carry these items too far back to my seat, but not so close that people are on top of me.
5) To be seated away from really loud music or fans/ventilators.
6) Booths to tables unless the booths are curved or otherwise hard to get into or out of.
7) Not to be seated at small tables that can hold maybe two people if larger ones are available.
Not to be seated in high traffic areas of restaurants (outside of buffet situations).

[Bijou]

We recently went to a new place with some friends.  We made a reservation in advance.  This place serves a varied menu including some seafood.  I am violently allergic to seafood and even the smell of it cooking will make my throat start to swell up.

Naturally, they showed us to a booth right near the kitchen doors.  I could smell the seafood from there so I quietly and politely explained to the hostess that I would not be able to sit there and requested a table as far away from the kitchen as possible.

We got the eye roll but she did turn around and lead us to a table on the patio.  I think she thought she was putting us in Siberia, but we loved being outdoors where we could enjoy our meal and avoid a trip to the ER.

I'm the opposite.  I don't like to sit outdoors.  I tend to feel the cold if it's chilly and get overheated if it's warm (my thermostat seems off in that way).  I also don't like to compete with insects for my meal and for some reason when we've eaten outdoors the restaurant doesn't seem to be doing anything to ward them off.  I remember as a kid camping and having to move the forkful of food very slowly from the dish to the mouth while the bees hovered around.  Now I'd run screaming into the tent.

[Bijou]

My husband is a healthy looking guy, but has an old sports injury to his back.  He strongly prefers sitting in chairs rather than booths because it offers more support for his back.  We try to request this upfront when we are first being seated.

I try to let the server know what I prefer right away, too.  Only a couple of times have I requested to move, but that was when there was nothing open when they seated us, our order hadn't been taken and then something else opened up.  This happened recently where they seated us at a middle table that was a shared table with about eight other seats.  I wouldn't have even taken it if we had not made plans to meet another couple there so were stuck with the restaurant where were to dine.

[Bijou]

I have two, I hate being seated in the row of tables down the middle of the aisle (it feels like you're eating in a fishbowl) and I cannot stand it when they sit me under an airconditioning vent and I freeze to death. I'm a very hot natured girl, but those vents are usually rather large, and they blow out artic air (it does get hot for the waitresses and cook staff I realize but good Lord! Don't put tables under those things!) so I end up freezing, And my husband is practically a reptile, he freezes regardless. Put him under those vents and he literally shivers.

They should set aside those tables for staff to use.  They could learn a valuable lesson, if they did. 

[Thipu1]

I like booths or a seat with my back to the wall for a very practical reason.  When we eat out it's often because we've been doing other things.  As a result, we usually have shopping bags or at least a tote with our Subway reading material.  A booth or a seat against the wall keeps these things out of the traffic lanes.

[Chartreuse]

Hubby and I both prefer booths, in the quietest area of the restaurant possible.  I realize that large groups go out to lunch/dinner, we sometimes go with groups too, but if it's just us, we would like to be able to have a conversation across our table without having to scream over the sounds of our neighbors.

[Athos_000]

I prefer a deep booth or a table in the farthest corner. I can't STAND having people brushing past me and walking around me when I eat, it makes me really nervous and uncomfortable. I think it relates to hating being touched by strangers. I have yet to be in a restaurant with tables that actually has enough space around them where the servers don't have to touch you as they walk by.