[ARCHIVED] Sims won't use nearest furniture while eating/reading

This may not be a bug.   I am fairly sure that the "Comfort" of a particular piece of seating may be a major factor.   I'm not sure, but in the case of reading, lighting may also be a factor.  With eating, they seem to like to socialize while they eat, so will try to sit somewhere where they are able to talk to others.   In many cases, they will even prefer to stand and talk to someone rather than sit and eat alone.

The bottom line is, they don't necessarily seek out the "nearest seating", but rather the "best available" seating.