Are you comfortable having a conversation while eating?

Of course! That's half the point of a meal!!

Dinner parties where you get to chat with old friends and make new ones, family meals where you catch up on what everyone has been doing that day..... having meals together and talking has been shown over and over again to be really important for a child's healthy development.

Talking on the phone is different. But then that's a different kind of conversation altogether.

by VerityG

I don't mind having a conversation while dining with others at all. I definitely don't like to eat and talk on the phone and I don't like when people eat while on the phone with me!

by Aleigha

I'm ok with it, if family or friends.
I don't like heavy conversation....as my meal or theirs gets cold.
After the meal, over dessert, deep conversation can start.

I find if I talk too much, I don't enjoy my food.
I like to watch t.v. when I eat, so I can drift away.

Some cultures embrace eating and talking....I like the idea.

I do it very well when with family, so merit on both sides.

by jonaja

p.s....yes I have talked on the phone just a few times, when eating....but not a fan!

I don't having a conversation when eating with others, but sometimes I prefer to focus on my food. Talking on the phone is annoying because you will end up with awkward silences as you chew!

by Vee

Yes. when I was young it was at meal times that the family came together. We ate at the table, in a room with no TV, and we all talked to each other.

by Gayle Beveridge

Big NO for phone, but I am okay with a normal conversation when people are eating together.

by BK

Yes as long as my mouth is not full

by gbrow

Yes so long as it isn't about a topic that will cause my tummy to turn

by Steve

Without a doubt. Every social gathering (where you are expected to chat) involves food. As a matter of fact, thats why the family table is so important. This is one of the best times for families to talk about what is happening in a relaxed way.

by Gia

Yes. NEVER,. NO.

But to have polite conversation with those fellow eaters around you is a delight.

It's always amazing who a person you've never met before, has sometimes, much in common, with you. Wow!

by donjo

Family meal times, or even with friends, is a great time to catch up on what's been happening. I ban phones at the table as it's the height of bad manners to have a phone conversation, or check Facebook, when dining with others.

by helga

Yes, I think it is part of dining or entertaining.
Never with a mouthful of feed and certainly not while on the phone - manners.
Farley

by farle

I'd rather eat 1st, if it's a main meal & then talk, otherwise my meal gets cold, but I find I'm talking anyway, so I end up with a cold meal! Ugh! So perhaps I'm talking too much, & not letting the other person or people talk. (One of my bad habits I think!)

by Miro