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Name: Shared seating arrangements.

Appearance: Long, awkward and making a comeback.

The Return of Communal Eating? Oh no. The Only Acceptable Place for Refectory Tables is the School Canteen

What kind of adult chooses to dine alongside strangers? Gen Z, it seems. According to data from the restaurant reservations company Resy, "90% of gen Z diners say they like shared seating, 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

Communal eating in nationalistic eateries was a big thing during the second world war, in fact – there were about two thousand five hundred of them, backed by Winston Churchill.

It Was Logical When Food Was Scarce, But Why Do It Now?

This might seem strange to you, I know, but communal tables can be fun! As the Resy CEO explains: "They naturally turn dinner into a shared experience," and "You never know who you’ll be seated next to; that’s the fun of it!"

The Enjoyment From Having Dinner Interrupted by A Loud Conversation About Their Therapy Revealing They Are an Empath

Or sitting beside a fitness enthusiast chomping chicken breasts to fuel his "farmer’s carries"? Or a social media user filming you accidentally in their video while eating a salad? Consider this: young adults – the most digitally connected group, who grew up during COVID, 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, group hikes and crafting nights: they’re craving offline social connection.

I Prefer Dining in a Solo Ramen Stall They Have in Tokyo.

You might not fancy it, but many youths feel isolated (Nearly half of them, as per an Oxfam study published in June). A recent American study a third of males aged between 18 to 23 reported they had no contact outside their household in the past week. Isn't it positive they’re going out and sharing meals with new people?

I Suppose. Studies Indicate People Who Eat Socially Report Greater Happiness

Conversing with new people is good for us, too: it enhances our feeling of community. Plus the Resy survey highlights an additional benefit: 14% of survey respondents said they’d landed a date at a communal dining experience. Given gen Z have gone off the apps, this gives them a shot at a unplanned "meet-cute".

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

My work here is done.

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."