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Name: Shared seating arrangements.

Appearance: Lengthy, uncomfortable and back in fashion.

Communal Dining is Back? Oh no. The Sole Appropriate Location for Long Benches is the School Canteen

What kind of adult chooses to dine alongside strangers? The younger generation, it seems. According to data from the dining booking company Resy, "Nine out of ten of gen Z diners say they enjoy communal tables, compared with just 60% of boomers".

A Sign of the Times. Before Complaining About the Youth of Today

Group dining in patriotic “British Restaurants” was a big thing during the WWII, in fact – there were about 2,500 of them, supported by Winston Churchill.

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

This might seem strange to you, I know, but shared dining can be enjoyable! As the Resy CEO 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 An Interrupted Meal by Someone Explaining Loudly That Their Therapist Revealing They Are an Empath

Or sitting beside a Hyrox bore chomping chicken breasts to fuel his "workout routines"? Or a social media user capturing you in the background of their reel while eating a salad? You have to remember: young adults – the most online generation, who came of age during the pandemic, and many of whom entered an almost exclusively digital workplace – love a structured communal activity. This same desire behind the rise of young people’s running clubs, hiking outings and crafting 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 lots of young people are lonely (Nearly half of them, as per an Oxfam study published in June). A recent American study , one-third of men aged between 18 and 23 reported they had no contact outside their household in the previous seven days. Isn't it positive they’re getting out and breaking bread with strangers?

Perhaps. Research Shows Those Dining in Groups Report Greater Happiness

Conversing with new people is good for us, too: it gives us a greater sense of belonging. Plus the Resy data points out another advantage: 14% of survey respondents said they’d found a romantic partner at a communal dining experience. Given gen Z have gone off the apps, this offers a chance for a spontaneous "meat-cute".

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

My work here is done.

Appropriate comment: "Gen Z think communal dining ate and left no crumbs."

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