Get a Few Things and Share with the Table
Choosing what to eat for dinner might just be the single greatest challenge we face as humans. every. single. day. It’s a relentless battle, a nightly crisis of indecision that plagues us all. And sure, it’s manageable on your own, but it’s a struggle. When did food become such a solo operation anyway? Meals were meant to bring people together, to be shared experiences, not individual puzzles to solve.
Enter Chantel. A woman full of great ideas, an immeasurable impact on my life, and quite possibly, the reason I’ll never order solo at a restaurant again. It all started on our very first date, Moku Kitchen, with menus in hand. While I was deep in thought, weighing my options (pizza? burger? what’s the right move here?), Chantel hit me with a simple yet life-altering suggestion:
"Do you want to get a few things and share?"
Now, this was our first date. I was trying to keep things smooth, play it cool, and not mess up within the first few hours. So naturally, I said, "Sure!" not realizing this moment would alter my entire approach to dining.
You see, I’ve always been a grazer. Variety is my best friend. My ideal meal consists of at least three different things—main dish, two sides. The idea of getting a few dishes for the table and sampling a little bit of everything? Absolute genius. Right under my nose the whole time, yet somehow, I had never given it a go. Maybe Chantel was the one for me all along?!
Fast forward a year, and this method had fully integrated into my restaurant routine. Any time we dined out, the “let’s get a few things and share” playbook was in full effect.
Then came Sicily.
We were visiting my family, spending 90% of our time at restaurants (because, well, Italy). As usual, we defaulted to our tried-and-true dining style of ordering a mix of dishes and sharing everything. Little did we know, my sister and her husband were quietly observing this strategy, as if watching animals in their natural habitat.
A few weeks later at Christmas, they dropped a confession: They had stolen the idea. They’d started doing it themselves and were completely hooked, even crediting Chantel as their food-sharing guru.
It’s not rocket science, but it does make you wonder why this isn’t more common? Food has always been about community, about connection. Think about it….the Last Supper? A shared meal. Thanksgiving? A giant communal feast. Bringing over baked goods or a dish when visiting friends? A time-honored tradition. There’s something special about diving into a variety of plates with the people you’re with, trying flavors you wouldn’t normally pick, and having an actual experience rather than just eating.
Last night, we had some friends in town. As we stared at the menu, contemplating what to get, one of them casually suggested, "Should we just order a bunch of things and share?"
Our eyes lit up.
These were our people. Maybe not the only reason we’re friends, but definitely a reason.
And so, the legacy continues.