Parking / freeway cafes (Houston: cost, design, automobile)

[LocalPlanner]

I'm curious as to what forummers think of a common dining establishment type in Houston, the parking lot cafe. We don't really do sidewalk cafes much here; instead we put outdoor dining next to the parking lot so that we can watch folks go to and from their cars, our equivalent of urban hustle and bustle. For freeway feeder road locations, we put the dining out facing the freeway, with its noise and exhaust. I personally don't find the freeway situation appealing, but maybe I'm a small minority.

What do other folks on here think of parking lot and freeway cafes?

[texas7]

I don't really care for dining on sidewalks up against parking lots but I love being outside, even in our hot weather, so I often choose to sit in whatever outside section they have because I'm cooped up indoors at work all day in a freezing cold office. Unless the outside is crowded and filled with smokers - then I'm inside, even when the only view I have is the parking lot.

[ottc777]

I always found it funny that most outside seating does this (faces a parking lot or a freeway).... but then again, what else would they face in this concrete land?

[fnh]

They are terrible, of course, but better than nothing I suppose. DH and I joke it is symptomatic of Houston's love of the automobile, that an outdoor patio overlooking a parking lot with the deafening roar of traffic is a Houstonian's idea of a good view and the sounds of nature.

I appreciate it when establishments at least try to create a more pleasant experience with planters and small trees, etc. Good design can do so much to improve quality of experiences and life but Houstonians just do not get this or do not care. Practicality and cost trump everything here.