Lane Cardwell

Dining With Strangers

Under our noses a quiet trend has been developing in a subsection of the restaurant industry. Communal tables. What are they? Large tables that are on a first come, first served basis for the dining public. What’s the catch? You will no doubt be dining with strangers.

In casual dining and fine dining there are typically two options if you have not, or can not, make a reservation. You wait for a table to become available. You eat at the bar. In a growing number of restaurants, but still in the minority, there is a third option: the communal table. These large tables (ranging from 8-40 seats) are open to anyone willing to sit next to, or near, people that they don’t know while eating. Depending upon the concept they are either a nice alternative to waiting, or the reason why you go.

In Minneapolis, Phil Roberts’ Chino Latino concept has a communal table downstairs near the kitchen that will seat up to 30. When you are upstairs looking down on this table you suddenly realize that you are not eating where the action is. Jeffrey Chodorow has a 36 seat, $450,000 table in the middle of Asia de Cuba in New York. It has been so successful that it has become a feature in other Asia de Cuba’s that have opened around the country. One of the most popular tables in Stephan Pyles' restaurant in Dallas is his communal table.  People will wait at the bar for seats to open.

Formerly the domain of the independent restaurateur, the communal table has been making inroads with some chains. Carrabba’s Italian Grill has long had a communal table in their bar for guests who don’t want to wait for a dining room table, and want more of a traditional dining experience that eating at the bar.  Bonefish Grill has three communal tables in their bar area that stay busy.

However, the king of communal dining will always be Paul Prudhomme during the early days of K-Paul’s in New Orleans.  His restaurant was so popular, and at the time, the seating so limited, that Paul would seat the next party in line at whatever table in the dining room still had space.  Consequently, it was commonplace for a party of two to be seated at a four-top with another party of two, or at a six-top with a party of four, who were halfway through their meal.  Dining with strangers was a fun (usually) part of the experience.

For travelers dining alone, for couples and foursomes who don’t want to wait, or for people who just enjoy the camaraderie of dining with others, these tables are a great option.  If you haven’t experienced dining this way, give it a try the next time you see a large table with groups of strangers having the time of their lives.

Posted by Lane Cardwell on February 15, 2008 | Comments (0)