Table for Two, and Nothing Else

I'm not sure if there are any restaurants out there that already practice this concept, but I'm very surprised that most eating establishments don't focus thier business around it.

It's a simple idea. And it's sure to make everyone's dining experience much more enjoyable. How 'bout we take all the tables that only seat 2-4 people and put them in a room all by itself. And at the same time, let's keep all the tables that can seat the family reunions in a separate room.

One time I went out to dinner for Chinese. A friend and I wound up at a restaurant we had been in before and we figured that the staff - seeing that there were only two of us - would seat us somewhere quiet. Unfortunately they put us at a table "rowdy family adjacent."

The entire time I'm trying to listen to my friend, but instead I'm hearing all about how 8-yr-old "Bubba" is gonna "kick some ass" in Little League the next day. Also, I nearly lose my drink as kids were running through our section to get to the ice cream table first. Instead of telling them to be quiet, he families sitting nearby are trying to talk over their children, and I can't even hear the person across the table at that point. Now that I'm especially annoyed, I had to look over there. Sure enough, the family looked like something out of the 'Griswold family album.' "Bubba" was your typical overweight kid, and the Dad looked just like the kid proportionally. Mom even pulled out her cell phone and had a nice screaming conversation with who I'm guessing was a older relative who was hard of hearing.

Long story short, dinner wasn't 'superb.' They're lucky they didn't hand me a comments card. But in the past, I never gave it much thought whenever I was asked where I would like to sit. But the next time someone asks if I would like smoking or nonsmoking, or a booth or a table, I'm just going to ask them to take me where the kids aren't. Simple as that.

But wouldn't it make good sense for the food service industry to maybe recognize when a smaller group walks through the front door in contrast to a family with leashes on their children. I think if the whole is to try and please as many people as possible (because you can't please everyone), maybe they should try seating the couple away from the family.
Hey, just a suggestion.
AX