Communal Restaurant Seating: The Reason 90% of Generation Z Like This Trend

Term: Shared tables.

Appearance: Lengthy, uncomfortable and making a comeback.

Communal Dining is Back? Not Again. The Sole Appropriate Location for Refectory Tables 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, "Nine out of ten of gen Z diners say they enjoy shared seating, versus just six in ten of boomers".

A Sign of the Times. Before Complaining 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, 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, I know, but shared dining can be fun! As the Resy CEO notes: "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 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 eating chicken to fuel his "farmer’s carries"? Or a nano-influencer capturing you in the background in their video as they massacre 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 – love a structured communal activity. 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.

You might not fancy it, but lots of young people are lonely (47% of them, according to an Oxfam survey released this summer). A recent American study , one-third of men aged between 18 and 23 reported they hadn’t seen anyone outside their household in the previous seven days. Isn’t it a good thing they’re getting out and sharing meals with new people?

Perhaps. Research Shows People Who Eat Socially More Often Feel Happier

Talking to strangers is good for us, too: it enhances our feeling of community. Additionally the Resy data highlights an additional benefit: 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 gives them a shot at a spontaneous "meet-cute".

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

Mission accomplished.

Do say: "Gen Z think communal dining ate and left no crumbs."

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