I've been through LAX a couple of times and was equally unimpressed. Last time I was there was the year before COVID. There was a lot of construction going on but I don't know if it will result in any improvement.
On the other hand, I've always liked Atlanta which has been a waypoint for me on several occasions. It's the busiest airport in the world, it can definitely be crowded at times, and it is huge but it is easy to get around at least and there are absolutely tons of places to eat/drink/shop/etc. It's also generally not hard to find somewhere to sit though whether that's next to your gate or not is another question.
Finding a place to sit isn't a problem, you are correct. I will normally head to a gate way the hell away from my own that doesn't have a flight going out of it at all and sit there to get some quiet.
I'll be posting my LAX experience soon, the construction is completed in many parts but it just seems like they had someone brainless in charge of it. There was also a ton that was still being built with massive walk-arounds that were confusing and very time-consuming.