Shared Dining Seating: The Reason 90% of Generation Z Like Them
Term: Shared tables.
Look: Lengthy, uncomfortable and back in fashion.
The Return of Communal Eating? Not Again. The Sole Appropriate Location for Long Benches is the School Canteen
Who would voluntarily eat with strangers as an adult with free will? The younger generation, it seems. According to data from the dining booking company Resy, "90% of young adult patrons say they enjoy communal tables, compared with just six in ten of boomers".
A Sign of the Times. Before You Start Harrumphing About the Youth of Today
Communal eating in patriotic “British Restaurants” was a major trend during the second world war, actually – there were about 2,500 of them, supported by Winston Churchill.
I Suppose It Made Sense During Times of Rationing, But Why Do It Now?
This might seem strange to you, I know, but shared dining can be enjoyable! As Pablo Rivero notes: "Dinner becomes a collective event," and "You never know who you’ll be seated next to; that’s the fun of it!"
The “Fun” of Having Dinner Interrupted by A Loud Conversation About Their Therapy Revealing They Are an Empath
Or sitting beside a fitness enthusiast eating chicken to fuel his "workout routines"? Or a nano-influencer filming you accidentally of their reel while eating a salad? You have to remember: 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. It’s the same impulse driving the popularity of young people’s running clubs, group hikes and crafting nights: they’re seeking real-world interactions.
I Prefer Dining in One of Those One-Person Ramen Booths They Have in Tokyo.
This may not appeal to you, but many youths feel isolated (47% of them, as per an Oxfam survey released this summer). In a 2023 US report a third of males aged between 18 to 23 reported they hadn’t seen anyone outside their household in the past week. Isn't it positive they’re going out and sharing meals with new people?
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. Additionally the Resy survey points out another advantage: one in seven 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 unplanned "meet-cute".
I Hate That Pun Almost as Much as I Dislike Shared Seating.
My work here is done.
Appropriate comment: "Young adults believe shared meals are a total success."
Inappropriate remark: "It’s all fun and games until someone drops a katsu prawn on your Y2K baggy jeans."
