Stephanie Argentine has her hands full at work as the senior human resources director for an international inspection company. At home, her hands runneth over, as she ministers to the needs of her four children, ages 11, 10, 6 and 5.

Her life is complicated enough. So when Argentine and husband Dave score a Saturday night baby sitter, the last thing she wants to worry about is reservations.

That’s why Argentine, like other savvy restaurant customers, looks to dine at the bar in upscale restaurants. The experience can be more social and faster than a standard table— and you can drop in when you please.

The best seat in the house might just be a barstool, they say, even at the fancier places in town. Whether it’s time pressures or sheer convenience, bar dining is shaking its reputation as second-class accommodations.

“In some ways, it’s more intimate,” said Argentine, who enjoys escaping for a few hours with her banker husband. “It feels more like the good old dating days, rather than the old married couple days.”

They’re regulars at Vino’s, where the Argentines might get the asparagus appetizer and a salad before they order main courses. Then they linger over coffee and a dessert. It’s become such a comfort zone that “I think I like sitting at the bar more than sitting at a table, even,” she said.

If you’ve never eaten at a bar, all you have to do is ask. Popular restaurants need people to eat at the bar as a safety valve. “It helps with the flow,” and keeps tables free for people who really want one, said Tony Caggiano, an owner of 31 Club.

In his experience, “People who eat at the bar usually want to eat at the bar,” Caggiano said. “People who want to wait for a table will wait for one.”

Bar diners might like being “in the action,” Caggiano said. “Or if you’re just single and in from out of town, you want to sit at the bar, read the newspaper or watch TV, it’s more relaxing.”

Like most restaurants, 31 Club offers the entire menu at the bar for dinner. Before the week is out, bar diners will account for about 10 percent of the restaurant’s food sales, Caggiano said.

Don’t worry about imposing on the bartender, no matter how busy the place is. “When somebody sits down at the bar and asks for a menu, that gives us a chance to serve them, and we look forward to it,” said 31 Club bar manager Jason Briandi.

The reason is simple: “It gives us the ability to make more money,” Briandi said. “Hey, we’re in the service industry. The higher the check from the guest, the more gratuity we receive. I love it.”

And bartenders are working for those tips. When you eat at the bar, your server is usually within eyeshot during your entire meal. That makes getting a new fork or a glass of water much easier, said John Carocci, who dines regularly at the bar at La Tee Da on Allen Street.

“I really do think the service is better at the bar,” said Carocci, AIDS Community Services’ art director. “The person serving you is right there, two feet away.”

When you finish your soup, “they see it, and get your entree,” Carocci said. “You don’t have to wait for your server to pass by your table.”

One side effect of having your server’s attention is that meals can happen swiftly, if that’s what you desire. Just tell your server what you need, Carocci suggested. “The eating process can be as quick or as relaxed as I want it to be.”

Given the number of meals happening in a relatively small space, bar dining is also an opening for socializing.

“There’s a social element of eating at the bar that you don’t get eating at a table,” said Marti Gorman, a writer and organizer of Buffalo Homecoming.

“You’re with who you’re with when you sit at a table,” said Gorman, who recently enjoyed cerviche sitting at Hutch’s bar. “But when you sit at the bar, you end up talking to other people, because it’s Buffalo, and everyone talks to one another.”

To be sure, if you’re not up for chatting, the socializing might be the biggest downside to bar dining: strangers talking to you.

If Carocci is tucking into his soup and vegetarian chicken wings at La Tee Da, he doesn’t necessarily want small talk.

“You’re basically sharing a table with them, because you’re sitting right next to them,” said Carocci, who allowed that he can harbor antisocial tendencies at times. “You’re in their personal space.

“You’re taking a chance, because it’s out of your control,” said Carocci.

But if you like to watch people and put your finger on the pulse of a restaurant, the bar is where you want to sit, said Vince McConeghy, a restaurant veteran and community manager for LocalFoodService.com.

“It’s where the convergence of front-of-house, back-of-house and ownership is most apt to take place,” said McConeghy. “So to a practiced bar diner, this opportunity offers an unprecedented view of the restaurant, warts and all.”

McConeghy suggests taking a moment to meet your bartender.

“Just as in poker, learn your bartender’s tells,” he said. “Is he slammed or relaxed? What’s good on the specials list? How’s business?”

Cultivating that relationship is the reason a lot of restaurant workers prefer to eat at the bar, said Jacob Drum, a writer and cook who enjoys eating at the bar at Allen Street Hardware.

Simply put, your money might go further there. “Many bartenders become friendlier, with buybacks and special treatment, if you’re sitting right in front of them for 45 minutes,” he said.

Besides shorter waits for service, Drum said, you can chat with the bartender during slow moments on dates.

Get used to the idea, and get comfortable with familiar faces behind the bar, and bar dining can merge homey comfort with snazzy restaurant food.

Depending on what you’re facing back home, the experience can be worthwhile for reasons large and small.

“It’s about spending time together and enjoying the meal,” said Argentine. “I am especially fond of eating my food while it is still hot these days, and that doesn’t often happen at home.”