The hill I will die on: Food-sharing is gross without rules

When I was a child, I remember the grimace on my uncle's face when one of my sticky little cousins drank from his can of soda. He announced he could no longer drink it because another person's saliva had touched it, and then abandoned his old can for a fresh one.

In the early 1990s wastage was serious and fizzy drinks were a treat. Fast forward 35 years, and I've realised I am now that uncle. It extends to food too. I'm Indian and at home we serve food in giant pots, family style, with a spoon for every dish; there is no double-dipping because there are unspoken rules of engagement.

What isn't fine is when different cultures come together and someone puts the spoon that was in their gob into the main pot or uses it to scoop something from another person's plate. The other week I went to a chic restaurant — the kind that only has five things on the menu and dainty glassware.

India

food sharing, double dipping, hygiene, family style, main pot, saliva, cultural norms, soda can, wastage, india