Shared Dining Seating: The Reason Nine in Ten of Gen Z Enjoy This Trend
Name: Communal tables.
Appearance: Lengthy, uncomfortable and making a comeback.
The Return of Communal Eating? Oh no. The Only Acceptable Place for Refectory Tables is the Cafeteria
Who would voluntarily eat with strangers as an adult with free will? The younger generation, apparently. Research indicates from the restaurant reservations company Resy, "90% of gen Z diners say they enjoy communal tables, versus just six in ten of older generations".
I’ve Never Felt More Out of Touch. Before You Start Harrumphing About the Youth of Today
Group dining in patriotic “British Restaurants” was a big thing during the second world war, actually – there were about two thousand five hundred of them, supported by Winston Churchill.
It Was Logical When Food Was Scarce, But Why Do It Now?
It’s an alien concept for you, admittedly, but shared dining can be enjoyable! As the Resy CEO notes: "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 sitting beside a fitness enthusiast chomping chicken breasts to fuel his "workout routines"? Or a social media user filming you accidentally in their video as they massacre a salad? You have to remember: gen Z – the most digitally connected group, 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 driving the popularity of young people’s running clubs, group hikes and crafting nights: they’re seeking real-world interactions.
I Prefer Dining in a Solo Ramen Stall Found in Japan.
This may not appeal to you, but lots of young people are lonely (47% of them, according to an Oxfam survey 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. Studies Indicate People Who Eat Socially More Often Feel Happier
Talking to strangers is good for us, too: it enhances our feeling of community. Plus the Resy data points out another advantage: 14% of survey respondents said they’d landed a date at a communal dining experience. Given gen Z have gone off the apps, this offers a chance for a unplanned "meat-cute".
I Hate That Pun Almost as Much as I Hate Communal Tables.
Mission accomplished.
Do say: "Gen Z think communal dining ate and left no crumbs."
Inappropriate remark: "It’s all fun and games until someone drops a katsu prawn on your Y2K baggy jeans."
