#HTE

Design Details Debate: Ought Dining Chairs Have Handles on the Sides?

Here’s a ridiculous ritual: When you go to a fancy restaurant, and a server lurks behind you as you sit, trying to correctly time when to push your chair forward for you. I do this weird crouch and turn my head over my shoulder to indicate it’s go-time. After I sit, I feel ridiculous that another human being helped me get there.

When we’re on our own, we belly up to the table by grabbing the sides of the chair and scooting. I never thought about how weird and inelegant this act is, until I saw this photo:

That’s clearly a DIY fix that doesn’t integrate well into the design, but I’m guessing it’s functionally perfect.

So, yea or nay: Ought all dining chairs be designed with this aspect of their use in mind? Surely there’s an elegant, unobtrusive way to do this.