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Term: Shared tables.

Look: Long, awkward and back in fashion.

The Return of Communal Eating? Oh no. The Sole Appropriate Location for Refectory Tables is the Cafeteria

Who would voluntarily eat with strangers as an adult with free will? Gen Z, it seems. Research indicates from the restaurant reservations company Resy, "Nine out of ten of young adult patrons say they enjoy communal tables, versus just 60% of boomers".

A Sign of the Times. Before You Start Harrumphing About the Youth of Today

Group dining in patriotic “British Restaurants” was a major trend during the WWII, in fact – there were about two thousand five hundred of them, supported by Winston Churchill.

It Was Logical During Times of Rationing, But Why Do It Now?

It’s an alien concept for you, I know, but shared dining can be fun! As Pablo Rivero explains: "Dinner becomes a collective event," and "You never know who you’ll be seated next to; that’s the fun of it!"

The Enjoyment From Having Dinner Interrupted by Someone Explaining Loudly About Their Therapy Says They’re “a Highly Sensitive Empath”

Or being squeezed next to a fitness enthusiast chomping chicken breasts to fuel his "workout routines"? Or a social media user capturing you in the background in their video as they massacre a salad? Consider this: gen Z – the most online generation, who grew up during COVID, and many of whom entered an almost exclusively digital workplace – love a structured communal activity. This same desire driving the popularity of youth running groups, group hikes and art nights: they’re craving offline social connection.

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

This may not appeal to you, but lots of young people are lonely (47% of them, as per an Oxfam study released this summer). In a 2023 US report a third of males aged between 18 to 23 reported they hadn’t seen anyone outside their household in the previous seven days. Isn't it positive they’re getting out and breaking bread with strangers?

I Suppose. Studies Indicate People Who Eat Socially More Often Feel Happier

Talking to strangers is good for us, too: it enhances our feeling of community. Additionally the Resy data highlights an additional benefit: one in seven survey respondents said they’d landed a date at a communal dining experience. Since young people are leaving dating apps, this gives them a shot at a unplanned "meet-cute".

I Hate That Pun Nearly as Much as I Dislike Shared Seating.

Mission accomplished.

Do say: "Young adults believe shared meals are a total success."

Don’t say: "It’s all fun and games until someone drops a katsu prawn on your Y2K baggy jeans."