🔗 Share this article

Term: Communal seating arrangements.

Look: Lengthy, uncomfortable and back in fashion.

Communal Dining is Back? Oh no. The Only Acceptable Place for Long Benches is the School Canteen

Who would voluntarily eat with strangers as an adult with free will? The younger generation, apparently. According to data from the restaurant reservations company Resy, "90% of young adult patrons say they like communal tables, compared with just six in ten of boomers".

I’ve Never Felt More Out of Touch. Before You Start Harrumphing Regarding Younger People

Group dining in nationalistic eateries was a major trend during the WWII, actually – there were about two thousand five hundred of them, backed by Winston Churchill.

It Was Logical When Food Was Scarce, What's the Appeal Today?

This might seem strange to you, I know, but communal tables can be enjoyable! As the Resy CEO explains: "They naturally turn dinner into a shared experience," and "The excitement lies in not knowing your neighbor!"

The “Fun” of Having Dinner Interrupted by Someone Explaining Loudly That Their Therapist Says They’re “a Highly Sensitive Empath”

Or sitting beside a fitness enthusiast eating chicken to fuel his "workout routines"? Or a nano-influencer capturing you in the background of their reel as they massacre a salad? You have to remember: young adults – the most digitally connected group, who came of age during the pandemic, and many of whom started careers remotely – enjoy organized group events. This same desire behind the rise of young people’s running clubs, group hikes and crafting nights: they’re craving offline social connection.

I Prefer Dining in One of Those One-Person Ramen Booths Found in Japan.

You might not fancy it, but many youths feel isolated (47% of them, as per an Oxfam study released this summer). A recent American study , one-third of men aged between 18 and 23 reported they hadn’t seen anyone outside their household in the past week. Isn’t it a good thing they’re getting out and sharing meals with new people?

Perhaps. Research Shows People Who Eat Socially Report Greater Happiness

Conversing with new people is beneficial, too: it enhances our feeling of community. Plus the Resy survey points out another advantage: one in seven survey respondents said they’d landed a date at a shared meal event. Given gen Z have gone off the apps, this gives them a shot at a unplanned "meat-cute".

I Hate That Pun Nearly as Much as I Hate Communal Tables.

My work here is done.

Do say: "Gen Z think communal dining ate and left no crumbs."

Don’t say: "Things are fine until food spills on your vintage clothes."