Richard Curtis and Stuart Melling don't have much in common when it comes to dining out.

Both like to enjoy themselves, of course. But Curtis, a Holladay dentist, said he is "not hard to please" when it comes to food and just wants somewhere pleasant to unwind and relax.

Melling, on the other hand, is a restaurant connoisseur and "chief taster" for his Web site, gastronomicslc.com, which chronicles the Utah restaurant scene.

But they have one other thing in common: Neither is willing to wait long for a table at any restaurant, and they're not alone.

Despite the long lines in evidence every weekend at popular area eateries, many Deseret News readers are baffled as to why anyone would wait more than, say, half an hour when there are plenty of other good restaurants.

"Last time we went to Tucano's, the wait was an hour and a half," said Lindsay Wolsey, a Payson resident who eats out often, especially when traveling with her husband on his business trips to Las Vegas. "I'm like, 'People, Macaroni Grill is right across the way with a 20-minute wait! What are you thinking?' "

Curtis and his wife, Annette, received a gift certificate to The Cheesecake Factory in Murray back when two-, three- and even four-hour waits were not unknown at the popular chain restaurant.

Rather than fight the crowds, the Curtises waited it out. A year or so after the restaurant opened, they went in for lunch, Richard Curtis said, "and we only waited about 10 minutes."

"On Valentine's Day, we didn't even bother to go out," he added. "We went the night before. We'll go at 5 o'clock to avoid the wait. We're not really good at calling ahead, and a lot of people don't take reservations, anyway."

Richard Curtis and his wife frequent Market Street Grill to take advantage of that restaurant's "early bird" specials, and they look for similar enticements at other eateries.

But even if they really like a place, they won't wait.

"If they would buy that land to the east and put in better parking, we'd go to Tuscany," Richard Curtis said. "We love it, but we won't go. Food isn't worth waiting for, at least for us. If you're working all week, going out is a time to relax, and waiting is not relaxing."

Restaurants know that, said James Small, and many are trying their best.

Small manages Mimi's Cafe in Murray and said Mimi's offers both call-ahead seating and reservations, "and that's probably the best way to avoid a wait. We've always been of the feeling that sometimes (restaurants) might get burned taking reservations and wasting the table time, but a lot of people won't come if they can't get in right away."