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Term: Communal tables.

Appearance: Lengthy, awkward and back in fashion.

Communal Dining is Back? Not Again. The Only Acceptable Place for Refectory Tables is the Cafeteria

What kind of adult chooses to dine alongside strangers? Gen Z, apparently. According to data from the restaurant reservations company Resy, "Nine out of ten of gen Z diners say they like communal tables, compared with just 60% of older generations".

I’ve Never Felt More Out of Touch. Before Complaining Regarding Younger People

Communal eating in patriotic “British Restaurants” 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?

It’s an alien concept for you, I know, but shared dining can be enjoyable! As Pablo Rivero notes: "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 An Interrupted Meal by A Loud Conversation 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 nano-influencer filming you accidentally in their video as they massacre a salad? Consider this: young adults – the most online generation, who grew up during COVID, and many of whom entered an almost exclusively digital workplace – love a structured communal activity. It’s the same impulse driving the popularity of young people’s running clubs, hiking outings and art nights: they’re seeking real-world interactions.

I Prefer Dining in One of Those One-Person Ramen Booths They Have in Tokyo.

You might not fancy it, but many youths feel isolated (47% of them, as per an Oxfam study published in June). In a 2023 US report a third of males aged between 18 and 23 reported they had no contact outside their household in the previous seven days. Isn’t it a good thing they’re getting out and sharing meals with new people?

I Suppose. Research Shows Those Dining in Groups Report Greater Happiness

Talking to strangers is beneficial, too: it enhances our feeling of community. Additionally the Resy data highlights an additional benefit: one in seven survey respondents said they’d found a romantic partner at a shared meal event. Since young people are leaving dating apps, this offers a chance for a unplanned "meet-cute".

That Joke Annoys Me Almost as Much as I Hate Communal Tables.

My work here is done.

Appropriate comment: "Young adults believe shared meals are a total success."

Inappropriate remark: "It’s all fun and games until someone drops a katsu prawn on your Y2K baggy jeans."