What is wrong with this table?

Does anyone notice anything wrong with this table?

This is a table in a cafe where I sometimes have breakfast. At first glance it looks like a chess table and I thought it would be quite a good idea where people could bring pieces and play over a morning coffee before work etc but look at the squares. It's a 9x9 grid. Black in every corner. I first thought this would be a way of being able to sit at any of the 4 sides and just ignore one of the 'files' and one of the 'ranks' but this would be very uncomforable for one of the players who has an empty row nearest them. My other thoughts are:

- It's for a different game like checkers or something.

- It's for a very weird variation on chess. 

- It's a technical thing I never knew about chess.

I- t's just a pretty pattern.

- Someone designed it as a chess board but miscounted the squares.

Note also that there are only 2 or 3 out of say, 15 tables that are like this. The others are just plain wood. Also that there is a red and black chair on opposite sides which looks competitive. 

Am I missing something here or just seeing chess where there isn't any?