Rav Itzhak bar Shmuel stated the law: the smallest possible sukkah has to be no less than seven handbreadths by seven handbreadths so that one can fit in it his head, most of his body, and his table. They asked him, “But this is the opinion of Beit Shammai, and we know that whenever Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai argue, the law is always like Beit Hillel!?” He answered, “And what should I do? In this case, Beit Shammai is correct.”
Note, however, that the table is inside the sukkah. This leaves room for a more lenient opinion: a sukkah that is so small that it only contains his head and body while the table is outside is still valid. That, indeed, is the opinion of Beit Hillel.
What if the sukkah is pretty big, but the table is still outside? Would this be valid or not? It turns out that Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai are consistent with their own opinions: Beit Hillel permits it, while Beit Shammai says he does not fulfill the mitzvah. What is then the basic underlying reason for their disagreement? - Beit Shammai says that the Sages instituted an additional law and disqualified a sukkah with an outside table out of concern that he will get drawn after the food on the table and will, in fact, eat outside the sukkah. Beit Hillel disagrees and says that there is no such concern.
Art: Peasants at the Table By Diego Rodriguez de Silva y Velazquez
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