Why Do Humans Like To Eat Outside?

The weather has been nice lately, and my humans have taken to eating dinner on the deck. My housemates approve of this behavior. They like to go out there along with the humans and nibble on the herbs, get a closer view of the birds (see photo at right), and sharpen their claws on the railing posts. Personally, I think it's a bit dangerous: some of those birds are hawks and owls (see second photo, below right), and while I'd back myself against any bird in a fair fight, it's not fair if they swoop in and carry you off while you're not looking.

 But given that my humans don't hunt birds or scratch the railing posts, why do they like to take their food outside to eat? It has been suggested to me that it might be because they want to feed the mosquitoes, but I'm pretty sure that was a joke.

After much observation and reflection, I have begun to think that it is because as omnivores (not obligate carnivores like us) they eat a lot of vegetation and so the smell of plants stimulates their appetites and improves their digestion. For us, it helps our appetite and digestion to hunt and chase things before dinner, even if the food itself comes from a can; so it seems plausible that for humans it might help to smell living plants as they sit down to eat.

If so, this suggests that we should be supportive of any interest they show in growing plants indoors and refrain from completely chewing them up. 

I'll have to think about that one some more.