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Term: Communal tables.

Look: Lengthy, awkward and making a comeback.

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? Gen Z, apparently. According to data from the restaurant reservations company Resy, "90% of young adult patrons say they enjoy communal tables, compared with just six in ten of older generations".

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

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

I Suppose It Made Sense When Food Was Scarce, What's the Appeal Today?

It’s an alien concept for you, admittedly, but shared dining can be fun! As Pablo Rivero explains: "Dinner becomes a collective event," and "The excitement lies in not knowing your neighbor!"

The “Fun” of Having Dinner Interrupted by A Loud Conversation About Their Therapy Says They’re “a Highly Sensitive Empath”

Or being squeezed next to a fitness enthusiast eating chicken to fuel his "workout routines"? Or a nano-influencer capturing you in the background in their video while eating a salad? You have to remember: gen Z – the most online generation, who came of age during the pandemic, and many of whom entered an almost exclusively digital workplace – enjoy organized group events. It’s the same impulse driving the popularity of young people’s running clubs, group hikes and art nights: they’re seeking real-world interactions.

I’d Rather Eat in One of Those One-Person Ramen Booths They Have in Tokyo.

This may not appeal to you, but lots of young people are lonely (47% of them, as per an Oxfam study released this summer). A recent American study 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 breaking bread with strangers?

Perhaps. Research Shows Those Dining in Groups Report Greater Happiness

Talking to strangers is good for us, too: it gives us a greater sense of belonging. Additionally the Resy survey highlights an additional benefit: 14% of survey respondents said they’d landed a date at a shared meal event. Since young people are leaving dating apps, this gives them a shot at a spontaneous "meat-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."

Inappropriate remark: "Things are fine until food spills on your vintage clothes."